The Omnipurpose Restaurant in Dungeon City

When you think of beer, you think of chicken.
When you think of chicken, you think of beer.
In Jin’s previous life, before he was possessed, it was a set menu that naturally went together without needing to mention it.
Just like you can’t help but worship when you see Dae-sang Hyuk’s photo, it’s a relationship where one reflexively brings the other to mind.
That was the dignity of chicken, shining as the number one delivery late-night snack and the number one beer side dish across all generations.
“Chicken? What’s that?”
But alas! Unfortunately, this is another world.
It was a strange land where even such common sense didn’t apply.
A land without the gospel where even the truth of chimaek hadn’t been conveyed!
Unable to hide his dismay at this fact, Jin hurriedly began to spread the word about chi-maek to Miley.
“It’s a dish where chicken is coated in batter and fried in oil.”
“A dish fried in oil? You’re making quite a luxurious dish. Are you really not a high-end restaurant?”
Miley asked again in response to Jin’s explanation.
Although she didn’t know exactly what kind of dish chicken was, she knew that dishes fried in oil were expensive.
It was natural since edible oil itself was precious.
“I told you we’re not a high-end restaurant. Well, let’s just say I have my ways. So, is chicken okay?”
“Sure. If you’re going to serve an expensive dish, I have no reason to refuse. Chicken… I’m looking forward to it?”
Gulp-
Miley swallowed her saliva, showing her anticipation.
In fact, even at the high-end restaurants Miley occasionally visited, fried dishes were not easily available.
Of course, she couldn’t help but be in a good mood as she unexpectedly got to eat it for free.
‘I wonder how much oil they’ll use? Still, it should be enough to cover it lightly, right?’
Miley had been half-jokingly, half-seriously teasing about whether this was a high-end restaurant.
But she didn’t expect it to be like a real high-end restaurant, using oil up to 1/3 of the pan.
She just thought that since Jin himself said it was a dish fried in oil, it would at least be pan-fried with a light coating of oil.
That’s what Miley was expecting at a reasonable level.
But those expectations were betrayed.
Splash splash splash-
“You! Is that all oil?!”
By the sight of Jin filling a large pot full of oil.
“Is it okay to use that much oil?”
“Of course. To make proper chicken, you need at least this much.”
Not just 1/3 of a pan, but.
Jin confidently answered with a grin to Miley, who was surprised by the enormous amount of oil far exceeding her expectations.
His strategy hit the mark precisely.
‘As expected, it seems this is her first time seeing frying with so much oil.’
Even in his previous life, it hadn’t been long since oil could be used so easily. Was it around the modern era?
So he expected that in this dungeon city with a medieval fantasy background, frying with so much oil would naturally be rare.
Seeing Miley’s reaction, he could be sure his prediction was correct.
‘Other restaurants probably can’t do this because of the cost.’
From Jin’s perspective, who could supply abundant modern ingredients, it wasn’t that expensive.
It was a level he could easily afford.
And that difference was going to be another weapon.
‘Fried food tastes best when you use plenty of oil.’
Fried food where the ingredients aren’t completely submerged in oil naturally has inferior taste and texture.
If he could provide fried food cooked in properly filled oil, wouldn’t it be likely to attract customers to Jin’s Omnipurpose Restaurant?
It was perhaps a perfect cooking method for Jin’s purpose of tempting customers by selling delicious food cheaply.
“Huh, I’ve been to all sorts of restaurants, but this is the first time I’ve seen one as unique as this.”
“Is that a compliment?”
“What else would it be? Honestly, I’m so constantly surprised that it’s hurting my pride.”
It was shocking enough for Miley, who had been quite proud of herself for even making an alcohol map, to declare defeat.
“Haha, I’ll repay you with delicious food instead.”
Jin laughed at her honest reaction and started preparing the chicken.
Whoosh!
He first turned on the heat to raise the temperature of the oil-filled pot.
Then he asked Miley an important question.
“Miley-ssi, do you prefer boneless or bone-in chicken?”
Boneless chicken or bone-in chicken.
It was an important decision to make before eating chicken.
Soft and easy-to-eat boneless chicken?
Or bone-in chicken with the satisfaction of holding and tearing into it?
Because both have their advantages, opinions are always divided, and it’s a battleground where debate competitions occur.
“Meat tastes better when you tear it off the bone. Please give me the one with bones.”
In such a crucial and sensitive choice, Miley chose bone-in chicken.
Jin, who preferred boneless chicken, felt a bit disappointed, but what could he do? He had to respect the customer’s choice.
Rub rub-
Jin took out a whole chicken cut into pieces, washed it clean, then sprinkled it with salt, pepper, and minced garlic, mixing it well.
‘It’s a shame I can’t marinate it properly, but it can’t be helped.’
Still, leaving it like this for a while would season it, albeit simply.
“Well then, would you like to drink some beer first in the meantime?”
“Hm? Is it okay to drink first?”
“Yes, we need time for the oil temperature to rise and for the chicken to absorb the seasoning.
It’s boring to just wait, so please enjoy some beer first.”
“I don’t mind.”
“Just a moment, I’ll give you some snacks to go with the beer.”
Jin served a bowl of macaroni snacks along with a beer glass.
“You can open the beer bottle cap with this bottle opener and pour it.”
“It’s an unusually shaped cap. Is this how you do it?”
Miley lifted the bottle opener against the cap that was tightly sealed on top of the glass bottle, wondering how it was closed.
Pop!
With a refreshing, cheerful sound, the bottle cap flew off.

“Oh… this is quite fun.”
The beer foam rising with a sound that seemed to clear your ears gave a sense of refreshment and strange satisfaction.
Miley, who was in a good mood even before drinking, hurriedly poured the bottled beer into a glass.
Whoosh-
“It really is beer.”
“I wouldn’t serve you fake beer.”
“I’m just not used to it yet.”
Golden liquid, bubbles rising and fizzling, white foam.
It was undoubtedly beer.
And clearly recognizable as a superior quality beer.
‘The color is clear, and there are no impurities or sediment. Judging by how well it foams, it’s not old beer either.’
Based on her experience as a drinker, this was undoubtedly very well-managed beer.
I guess it deserves to be carefully packaged in such bottles?
“Well then, shall I taste it?”
Now that she had observed enough, it was time to taste.
Miley closed her eyes as if to savor it and brought the glass to her lips.
Gulp gulp-
In an instant, a whole glass went down her throat.
“Kuaaah! It’s cold!!”
She involuntarily let out a roar and opened her eyes wide at the intense taste she had never experienced before.
“Does it suit your taste?”
“Suit my taste? Can’t you tell just by looking at this? It’s the best! The best! It’s the best beer I’ve ever had!”
Miley reacted intensely with white foam mustache around her mouth.
She was so excited that her chest shook violently every time she shouted, enough to catch Jin’s attention.
“Compared to this, all the beers I’ve had until now are no better than goblin piss.”
The carbonation, so full it was tingling, combined with the cold temperature of the beer to provide an unbelievable level of refreshment.
Clean without impurities or sediment, it went down smoothly without any unpleasantness, while still strongly delivering beer’s unique bitterness and savory flavor.
It was truly a new world.
“I need to apologize for something.”
“What? What apology all of a sudden?”
“I thought you were crazy for investing too much in just one beer.
But I was wrong. This taste is totally worth it.”
She still wouldn’t be able to do it herself if asked, but.
As a drinker, Miley could respect that this beer had enough reason to justify it.
That’s how good this cold bottled beer tasted.
“The people who made this beer would surely be happy to hear those words.”
Of course, those words would never be conveyed, but seeing her enjoy it so much naturally made him feel good.
“Ah, give me another plate of these macaroni snacks. They’re plain but strangely addictive.”
He served another plate of macaroni snacks to Miley, who had already finished one plate.
‘Should I start with the chicken now?’
The oil temperature had almost risen enough.
It’s time to prepare and put it in.
‘For the batter, crispy style would be best, right?’
While the old-style smooth batter has its own taste.
Jin thought that if enjoying it as chimaek with cold beer, a crispier and greasier style would suit better.
Once decided, it’s time for action.
He mixes all-purpose flour, starch, and baking powder as a base, then seasons it with salt, pepper, red pepper powder, garlic powder, and onion powder.
You can think of it as making a kind of chicken powder.
‘And then take some of the chicken powder…’
Stir stir
He takes some out and adds water to the chicken powder, stirring to make a water batter.
‘First, dip the chicken in this water batter to coat it.’
Then take it out, put it in the remaining chicken powder, roll it around without clumping, and shake off the excess.
Ta-da!
The crispy chicken batter is complete, with a double layer of wavy patterns over the water batter.
You can’t get such nice patterns by just coating with water batter or dusting raw chicken with powder.
It’s a hidden combination that only comes out when the two are combined.
“The oil temperature is… good, just right.”
When he puts in some leftover batter, it rises quickly without burning, so the temperature is just right.
He drops the prepared chicken pieces one by one into the oil that’s reached the perfect temperature, making sure they don’t stick to each other.
Plop-
Sizzle!
Sizzle sizzle-
The sound of the batter frying as it meets the hot oil is irresistibly stimulating.
‘Now we wait a bit here.’
But we mustn’t rush.
Right after putting in the chicken pieces, the oil temperature drops due to the cold chicken.
If you touch it carelessly here, the batter will all fall off and you’ll end up with nude chicken.
‘Patience is needed to eat delicious chicken.’
He patiently waits for the temperature to rise again.
After some time has passed and the temperature has risen again and the batter has firmly set.
Now he gently touches them, separating any pieces that might have stuck together.
It’s almost done now.
Now, fry them for over 10 minutes depending on the size of the pieces until they’re cooked through and the batter turns golden.
“You’ve been waiting, right? The crispy chicken is ready!”
He scoops out the finished chicken with a strainer, shakes off the excess oil, and plates it.
Ding-
[Crispy Fried Chicken]
[Permanent Agility +3 upon first consumption]
[Strength +5 for 10 hours upon consumption]
As always, he skips over the usual completion message.
“Would you like to try it?”
Now it was time to teach this drinker about the truth of chimaek, who couldn’t take her eyes off this chicken.