Chapter 245

A sparrow, or a frog, or maybe even a butterfly (1)>

There are numerous stories about people getting unexpected results from their actions. Like that story about the sparrow that brought back a magical seed after getting healed, or like that saying about how a randomly thrown rock could kill a frog. There were even similar terms like the butterfly effect as well, for example.

Minjoon was in that situation. Was he blessed by the three animals above or something? The recipe he’s decided to publicize ended up bringing on a much bigger result than he’s ever imagined. The TV in front of him was a testament to that fact. A random reporter in the middle of the streets of New York began began her story.

<<The recipe that chef Minjoon Jo’s revealed publicly recently has been taking the country by storm Households and restaurants alike have been trying it out, and the experts have dubbed this the ‘Jo effect’.>>

“Jo effect… Pfft.”

Kaya smirked to herself, causing Minjoon to scratch his head in embarrassment.

“Stop laughing. I didn’t come up with it.”

“Alright, fine. But you really struck it big this time, didn’t you? It’s even appearing on TV.”

“Yeah. I still can’t believe it. How’d that happen?”

Things didn’t get this far out of proportion when Akira’s first posted about his dessert. But a while after Minjoon revealed his recipe, a famous singer friend of Chloe’s tried making the dish for herself, and blogged about it.

This was the start of all his misfortunes. All the young fans of the singer started trying out the recipes for themselves, and a few restaurants ended up putting it in their menu. Restaurants all over the place began to follow suite, and… it’s become a fad at this point.

This didn’t just extend to LA, of course. After all, the news anchor was speaking at New York even now. The cafe owner being interviewed through the TV began to speak.

<<I’d like to thank Minjoon. We’ve been getting more and more customers after Minjoon’s dish got on the menu. It’s like the entire neighborhood is getting a little more lively than before.>>

The customers started getting interviewed next. Most of them were young females trying out the dish.

<<I tried it after seeing it on Theresa Page’s starbook, and I’ve been eating it almost daily ever since then. It’s the best dessert I’ve ever had, no question.>>

<<I tried making it at my house, which turned out to be really difficult. I don’t even know how to find cheeses according to their age.>>

<<I don’t even know if the cafes are even following the recipes well enough. It’s still tasty though, so I don’t really care.>>

<<I heard the original was called a Parmigiano Regianno of five flavors and textures? We just call it a Jo Regianno. Simpler that way.>>

“Do you think they follow the recipe? Especially with the age bit?”

“Who knows…”

Minjoon trailed off a little after hearing Kaya’s question. The dish was hard to make. Especially for simple cafe owners. It wasn’t like these people could raise the price, either.

“I can only hope.”

The news was beginning to talk about that topic just now. About if cafes really were following Minjoon’s recipes to a T. About what differences there were between the version in Rose Island and the version outside.

<<We can’t really go anywhere with this topic. After all, there are tons of restaurants and cafes out there making the same thing. There has to be a difference.>>

<<If anything, eating at Rose Island is more of a symbolic gesture. Like a person making a pilgrimage, almost. It’d be meaningful to travel to the restaurant to try the dish if we can.>>

<<Pilgrimage, you say? You sound like this dish is going to be recorded in history.>>

<<I do. It’s only been getting more popular. I believe it’s going to be on the menu of every little cafe in the world, just like tiramisu and cheese cakes.>>

“…Your name is going to be spread around the world just like that?”

“He’s just being optimistic. Who knows?”

“So it’s possible, huh. Hmm… Makes me feel nervous.”

Kaya grabbed Minjoon’s cheeks playfully.

“You’re not going to cheat on me when you get famous, are you?”

“I would’ve done it already if I was going to.”

“I’m joking.”

Kaya turned away with a light laugh. She opened her mouth again after staring at the screen for a bit.

“How does it feel? Good or bad?”

“No reason it’d feel bad. My dish is just getting popular.”

“But you’re not earning a single penny for it.”

Minjoon just smiled in response. He put a hand over Kaya’s head.

“I told you, if I wanted money…”

“You would’ve done something other than cooking. I know. I heard you. But it’s still a little annoying. The entire world’s raving about you, and yet here you are.”

“I like being here like this. Don’t you?”

Minjoon turned to Kaya with a smile. The girl ended up bursting into laughter in defeat.

“Never said I hated it.”

€

Thanks to Minjoon’s dish now dubbed the unofficial title of ‘Jo Regianno’, Rose Island ended up going through several different changes. Normally, people would have to choose between five or six different desserts, but nowadays most people opted to go for Jo Regianno.

This ended up filling the restaurant’s walk-in with parmigiano regianno, and most servers ended up expecting customers to order Jo Regianno. After all, more often than not people even ordered extras.

“Nice to meet you, Minjoon.”

“Likewise. Feels like I’ve seen you for a while, though.”

The woman on the table smiled. She was Theresa Page, which made the dish take off like it did to begin with. The woman turned to look at Chloe.

“I heard from Chloe about what an amazing person you are.”

“…I won’t dare ask for specifics.”

“I think you’d enjoy it, though?”

“Stop it, Theresa! He’s going to get misunderstandings. I didn’t say much, Minjoon. Just talked about your cooking.”

“Thanks.”

Minjoon smiled. He turned to Theresa with a curious look.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Of course you can.”

“What made you want to try my recipe?”

“I like cooking quite a bit. That’s how I got close with Chloe. She just came up one day and told me to try it, so I did. The end.”

“…That’s a simpler story than I imagined.”

“It would’ve been weirder if it wasn’t. Would you mind if I asked you something?”

“Of course.”

“How do you feel?”

It was a simpler question than he imagined. But thinking about the answer made him think for around 20 seconds. By the time Theresa began to feel annoyed, Minjoon had come up with an answer.

“I’m happy.”

“…That’s it?”

“Did you want something more specific?”

“Not really, but I didn’t expect such a short answer either.”

“If I want to be more specific… I like it, but I don’t want to let it get to my head.”

Minjoon tried to stay calm as he talked. He didn’t have to explain much further. Theresa seemed to understand well enough what Minjoon was trying to convey. She was a famous singer herself, after all.

“I wanted to say my thanks to you, Theresa. I got to know what it feels like to be world-famous thanks to you.”

“Oh? And what’s that feel like?”

“Even better than watching my own son grow up and marry.”

“Ha, that’s interesting. I want to replay that to my own son if he ever grows up.”

Minjoon smiled, and turned to Chloe, who smiled back in return.

“Grats.”

“No need. Thanks to you, too, for cheering me on all the time.”

“Well, we’re friends, after all.”

Chloe’s voice was quite calm.

Their conversation ended with Minjoon and Theresa exchanging autographs with each other. But Minjoon couldn’t go back to the kitchen just yet. There were quite a few people outside still waiting to talk to him.

Even famous food critics started speaking to him with a smile on their face as of late. The average customers were much more excited when they spoke with him. “I really love your dish.” “Do you think the flavor really changes if you don’t use different cheeses?” etc.

By the time their dinners were coming to a close, a man walked up to him with an outstretched hand. Minjoon shook the man’s hand, thinking the man was just another customer in the restaurant.

“Nice to meet you, Minjoon. May I talk to you for a second?”

“Of course you can. I’d love to talk more with my customers.”

“Ah… Apologies, but I’m not here to speak to you as a customer.”

This came as a surprise to Minjoon. As he looked at the man with a confused look, the man took out a business card. Minjoon read the card carefully. The man was a manager from a company called Rascoe Bakeries.

“It’d be rude not to introduce myself. I’m Alex Brandon, from Rascoe Bakeries.”

“Yes, Mr. Alex. What can I do for you?”

“I was incredibly taken aback by Jo Regianno. The real thing is quite different from the ones being sold outside.”

“Thank you.”

“I have an offer in mind for you.”

Alex’s eyes twinkled a little under the light of the restaurant.

“Could you be our model if we start producing Jo Regiannos?”