Infinite Cosmic Cafeteria Chapter 41: Boss, Add Me on WeChat

Translator: Stellar Novels Editor: Stellar Novels

Ma Lu's ex-girlfriend was the vice president of the photography club, and from her, Ma Lu learned a few tricks about composition, color, and the use of light and shadow.

Coupled with the built-in filter pack on his phone, he was able to almost perfectly capture the freshly made Sandfish Burger's tempting appearance.

This finally broke the resolve of those who were still hesitating. They complained about how unfair it was while joining the order queue.

By the time Ma Lu left, he checked the two group chats again—the number of orders had already climbed to over 70.

He and Old Wang loaded the meatballs, toppings, and freshly baked buns onto their tricycle.

They arrived at the west gate 20 minutes before the last class of the morning ended.

The Universe’s Best Snack Stall had now become a star on this street, drawing attention every time it appeared.

Some people who were originally lingering around other snack stalls, or even those halfway through ordering, couldn’t help but “defect” when they saw Ma Lu and Old Wang arrive.

Squid Bro and the others were no longer surprised by this; this kind of scene had been playing out almost every day for the past two weeks.

Luckily, Universe’s Best Snack Stall sold quickly and packed up early, usually selling out before dark and heading home, so they wouldn’t come back in the evening to compete for business.

Ma Lu had just stopped the tricycle and hadn’t even had a chance to set things up when someone called out.

“Found you, finally!”

The speaker was a female college student wearing a floral short-sleeve T-shirt and cropped jeans, holding a cup of freshly bought sugarcane juice, sprinting across the road like she was in a 100-meter dash.

“Boss, boss, do you remember me?” the excited student asked.

“Nope, but don’t worry, even acquaintances don’t get a discount here.”

“Oh, I’m not looking for a discount, though of course, it’d be great if there was one. No, that’s not the point—I wanted to say that I had your fried meat patties at Guo Family Village before, and they were amazing. I’ve been craving them ever since, but I couldn’t find you the next day.

“It wasn’t just the next day; I went there on the third day, and last week too whenever I had time. But the uncle who sells bracelets said you hadn’t been back, so I thought you’d stopped doing business.

“Until I heard from a friend that there was a senior from their school and a quiet, bald… uh, uncle running a food stall together and that the snacks were really good. I immediately thought of you guys.”

“Oh, it’s you.” Ma Lu finally remembered. “It’s impressive that you found us here, but we don’t sell those meat patties anymore.”

“I know. My friend told me that you guys are really fickle, changing your menu every few days and making everyone complain, but your new items are always so good that no one can say anything.”

“Yeah… that’s about right.”

“Well then, let’s see.” The girl, nicknamed “Little Monkey,” rubbed her hands in anticipation. “What are you selling today?”

“Special Smoked Angus Burger, 35 yuan each.”

“It’s been only two weeks, and the price has nearly doubled?” Little Monkey exclaimed, but as a foodie, she knew beef wasn’t cheap, especially when it was branded as Angus.

And having chased them all the way here, there was no way she’d back down now, especially since the taste of the fried meat patties had lingered in her mind for so long.

If she didn’t satisfy her craving soon, she’d probably lose focus on her studies.

Meanwhile, Old Wang had already set up the new gas stove and large griddle and was preheating them.

Quite a few people had gathered around the snack stall, but except for those who had pre-ordered in the group chat, most froze in their tracks when they saw the prices Ma Lu had posted.

However, it didn’t matter; the first wave of customers had already gathered. Old Wang waited for the temperature to rise, then threw all sixteen meatballs onto the griddle in one go, pressing them flat.

Soon, the aroma of sizzling fat filled the air. This time, Ma Lu wasn’t idle either; he took out four small buns that Old Wang had pre-baked, sliced them in half, and used the remaining space on the griddle to reheat them.

According to Old Wang, the side of the bun that touched the griddle would get a crisp, charred texture.

Once the buns were adequately reheated, Ma Lu removed them and started spreading sauces and arranging the toppings. He also took a moment to heat four more small buns.

Meanwhile, Old Wang flipped the patties, placed cheese slices on top, and the two of them worked together seamlessly, completing eight servings of Sandfish Burger in just six minutes, averaging 45 seconds per serving.

Ma Lu handed one to Little Monkey, “Here’s yours.”

Little Monkey swallowed hard. Compared to fancy restaurants, street food stalls had a unique charm: you could watch the entire cooking process.

Though some customers didn’t care how the chefs prepared the food and were there just to eat, to foodies like Little Monkey, watching the chefs was like an appetizer in itself.

Seeing the raw ingredients come together, transforming from raw to cooked, releasing alluring aromas and glistening textures—nothing could whet the appetite more.

Look at the people around; their eyes didn’t lie. Some were already succumbing to the temptation and starting to line up.

But Little Monkey couldn’t care less about the others at the moment. She took a deep breath and indulged in the long-awaited delicacy.

After the first bite, she knew she’d struck gold again. By the second bite, her heart was racing, as if she’d met the love of her life…

When she finished the last bite, she felt that this was the best 35 yuan she had ever spent.

Browsing Meituan and Xiaohongshu, even the burgers at any random internet-famous shop were more expensive than this, yet they paled in comparison to Universe’s Best Snack Stall.

(Translator's Note: A group buying website and a social media platform known as China's Instagram respectively)

Little Monkey even started to think that Ma Lu and Old Wang were like angels sent to earth to save broke and hungry college students like her.

No, she couldn’t resist; she had to share this deliciousness right away.

But she had enjoyed her burger so much that she forgot to take pictures.

Fortunately, Ma Lu and Old Wang had just finished another batch of burgers, so Little Monkey hurried over to snap a few photos.

She was about to post in her dorm group and organize another group order, but she hesitated right before hitting send.

Previously, she had brought the fried meat patties back to the dorm, which were well-received by her roommates.

However, after having eaten one herself, she knew there was quite a difference compared to having it fresh off the griddle, and for burgers, the difference would likely be even more noticeable.

No, even the slightest compromise would be a disgrace to this amazing taste.

So Little Monkey decided not to offer delivery services anymore and instead started rallying her roommates for a group meal, which happened to coincide with mealtime.

But before that, there was something even more important.

“Boss, add me on WeChat. Next time you set up the stall, especially if there’s something new, let me know.”

Little Monkey eagerly approached Ma Lu again, looking expectant.

Ma Lu was too busy to fiddle with his phone, so he casually called out a name.

“Cat Kaka, who’s Cat Kaka? Your burger’s ready. Also, do me a favor—add that girl… what’s your name again?”

“Hou Yihan.”

“Alright, pull Hou Yihan into Group 2.”

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