274: Three-Curry Special
"Sorry to keep you waiting—enjoy your meal!"
"Thank you very much."
After a short wait,
our today's Three-Curry Special, along with the rest of the dishes, arrives.
Hmm, even before it's placed on the table, the spicy aroma is already filling the air—truly tempting.
"Then, let's eat!"
"Let's eat!"
"Let's eat!"
Today's Three-Curry Special.
The beef curry is so thoroughly cooked that the ingredients are nearly indistinguishable, giving it a dark appearance. The green curry, made predominantly from vegetables, has a light, fresh taste. The pork curry is rich with plenty of ingredients and bright yellow in color.
The side salad is a standard leafy green variety, and the drink is a white, yogurt-like beverage known as lassi.
As for the staple... I'll stick with white rice.
The cooked rice is fully absorbed with moisture, glistening brightly.
"First, a bit of beef curry... "
I scoop up some beef curry with a spoon, pour it over the white rice, and bring it to my mouth.
Hmm, delicious.
The beef curry has blended together with various vegetables, meat, and spices into a spicy, fragrant broth.
It clings perfectly to the white rice, releasing aromatic warmth and a kick with every bite.
At this point, I’m already dying to give this shop a big thumbs-up.
"Next up, green curry... oh wow."
I proceed to eat the green curry following the same procedure.
It’s delicious too.
But it’s a different kind of delicious—distinct from the beef curry.
To put it precisely, it’s as if the color itself is startling—vivid and gentle green, yet incredibly stimulating, tingling sharply on the tongue and throat.
Yet this is not a crude, harsh pain; it’s a refined, thoughtful spiciness, a delicious burn.
One might even call it a burn so irresistible that you can’t wait for the next bite.
"This lassi really soothes the mouth nicely, huh?"
"That's true. It's just the right balance of sweet and tangy."
Like Joharisi and Vilijianira, I take a sip of the lassi here.
Ah, so that's it—just the right amount of sweetness and tanginess, combined with the rich flavor of dairy, soothing the spice of the curry and resetting the environment in my mouth.
It might stick slightly to the tongue, so some people might find it divisive, but I personally like it.
Incidentally, I later found out this lassi isn't a store-bought product—it's specially prepared by the owner each day, tailored to match that day's curry.
No wonder it pairs so well with the curry.
"Alright, last one—pork curry."
"Hmm, indeed."
"Feels really soothing."
Now, the third type of curry—pork curry.
As with the previous ones, I eat it by placing a small amount on white rice, but I also bring the diced potatoes, which have been simmered until just the right size, into my mouth together with the curry.
The flavor... hmm, well, it's calming.
It's a step above the curry made with the roux commonly found in regular households, yet milder in spice than the green curry we had earlier, with just a hint of sweetness... yeah, the word "calming" really fits.
Of course, there's absolutely no sense of laziness or shortcuts here.
The vegetables—potatoes, carrots, onions—and the pork are thoroughly prepped and simmered long enough for the flavors to fully penetrate, while the curry itself boasts a rich, well-rounded taste.
On the surface, it might seem like something I could replicate myself, but in reality, it's the result of extremely advanced technique.
Homemade yet tasting like a professional dish—truly impressive skill.
"Seriously, this is delicious."
"Apparently, staff members from the Vanilla Seed Mod Research Institute occasionally visit here too. They say that when they hit a wall in their research, eating this curry helps clear their minds."
"Yeah, it really feels packed with nutrients. This curry here."
"I suppose so. But now I'm starting to think we might be better off not becoming *too* famous..."
"I can understand that feeling."
Incidentally...
It's currently lunchtime, so a regular restaurant would probably be packed... but this place has a fairly average crowd.
Still, it's precisely because the customer flow is normal that we can eat at our own pace, and considering how pleasant the atmosphere is... I can understand why Viridiana is struggling with how to promote it.
I feel the same way—there's part of me that doesn't want to ruin this atmosphere or the taste.
"Thank you for the meal."
And so, I slowly and leisurely finished eating, clearing away the main curry.
Afterward, sipping on an additional lassi (sweetened) as a dessert, I relaxed even further.
Yeah, this was an extremely satisfying meal.
Later, after getting the shop owner's permission, I wrote an article about the shop, and also negotiated and coordinated with the nobleman assigned by Villigianila.
This way, I’m sure we can promote the shop without disrupting its atmosphere.
"Mmm..."
This is...
Sigh...
Yeah, yeah, I got it.
I had been hoping things would just continue as they were... but it seems that won't be possible.
I, Viridianiya, watch Mekoxi's eyes turn toward the shop's entrance, and Johalis sighs, sensing the shift.
"Thank you, shop owner. That was delicious. Also, I expect the weather outside to become rough shortly, so please stay inside until it's safe, or quickly head to shelter if necessary."
"...Got it. Be careful."
We settled the bill and told the people inside the shop to stay put for a while before heading outside.
"It looks like a trailer crashed into the mod research facility."
"Sat. I'll go ahead to check the situation and, if possible, secure it... No, better to go together."
"Well, the mod research facility has plenty of combat personnel on hand. In this situation, it'd be unwise for me to leave Vee's side."
At that moment, what my main body's eyes witnessed was a massive trailer crashing into the Vanilla Sid mod research facility, accompanied by the sight of armed militants inside the trailer fighting against the facility's forces.
Simultaneously, I saw suspicious figures moving around key points within this section.
05/06 typo corrected