幾個月前iCHEF與恒生銀行聯辦餐飲業發展研討會，其中一位與另一同事出席的店家Stephen，已有三年多採用iCHEF的點餐系統協助營運，他的店是位於中環威靈頓街112-114號新威大廈1樓102-103號舖的 “Root Vegan” 「本原純素」餐廳。在活動中由於我忙於處理現場工作，只能抽空與他說了幾句，但承諾了儘快到餐廳拜訪他。
A few months ago, iCHEF, in collaboration with Hang Seng Bank, held a seminar on the development of the catering industry. One of the attendees was Stephen, a restaurant owner who has been using the iCHEF ordering system for over three years. His restaurant, “Root Vegan,” is located at Shop 102-103 Sun Wise Building, 112-114 Wellington Street, 1/F, Central. Although I was busy managing the event, I managed to chat briefly with him and promised to visit his restaurant soon.
這承諾今天終於實現了，同事阿芯與我一同去回訪Stephen，約好了4:00pm正。安頓下來並接過員工招待的冰水後，不到五分鐘，魁梧而擁有運動員身形的有為青年Stephen已經從外邊回來，熱烈地歡迎我們來訪。不知道餐廳有沒有下午茶時段，不想因廚房下了場就放棄試菜機會，第一時間問Stephen可否先點選一些餐飲，他說廚房下場時間是4:00至4:45pm，如不介意我們可等到4:45pm就可作選擇。
Today, that promise was finally fulfilled. My colleague, Sum, and I went to visit Stephen, scheduled for 4:00 PM. After settling in and enjoying some ice water offered by the staff, Stephen, a tall with an athletic build young man, returned from outside to warmly welcome us. Unsure if the restaurant had an afternoon tea service and not wanting to miss the chance to try the food, I asked Stephen if we could order some dishes right away. He informed us that the kitchen would be closed from 4:00 to 4:45 PM, but if we didn’t mind waiting, we could place our order at 4:45 PM.
這等待時段給我們理想交談機會，先是關心他的業務狀況，原來午飯時間仍是不錯，晚市就強差人意了，餐廳正推出新菜式吸引顧客，希望為生意帶來好處，但目前不是擴張業務的好時機。對於系統的運作，暫時看到有需要改善的是員工工時記錄系統是否可輔助自動計算超時（”OT”)數目，令計算員工薪酬更方便，我們說會建議給有關同事研究，並提到有關快將推出的時段餐牌與訂枱服務等功能，相信會迎合他們的需求，我們會適時指導餐廳怎樣應用，他對這兩功能都有興趣。
This waiting period provided us with an excellent opportunity to chat. I expressed interest in his business situation, and he shared that lunch hours were still decent, but dinner service was lacking. The restaurant is introducing new dishes to attract customers, hoping to improve business, but he felt it wasn’t the right time to expand. Regarding the system’s operation, he noted that an improvement could be made in the employee hours tracking system to assist with automatically calculating overtime, which would simplify payroll. We mentioned that we would suggest this to the relevant colleagues. We then talked about upcoming features like time-based menus and reservation services, which he found interesting.
廚房按時再度開放，我們就點了一份芫茜醬牛油果忌廉扁意粉及一份煙肉脆薯條配秘製黑松露蛋黃醬，並邀請Stephen與我們一同進食。飲品方面，阿芯選了話梅梳打，我就被羅勒檸檬水所吸引，Stephen 就安排了一瓶泰國勝獅梳打（玻璃瓶裝）加檸檬給自己，這玻璃瓶裝飲品我在家常備，想不到竟然有知音人！我們邊享受美食邊問他與在附近工作中的廚師各款食材與醬汁是利用什麼素食材代替？答案是：例如，忌廉用豆奶代替，芝士就用營養酵母（nutritional yeast）代替，蛋黃醬就用豆奶及黑醋混合而成，脆煙肉是用大豆製成，總算好好的上了一課吧！兩道菜的醬汁都非常美味，尤其是意粉配上醬汁及各種食材混合起來製造了難以形容的魔術效果！Stephen一定是亦感到滿意，觀察他試過第一輪後，自己添了第二輪！甜品我們選了一份自家製的檸檬批，甜酸比例恰到好處，令人回味無窮。
When the kitchen reopened, we ordered a coriander sauce avocado cream pasta and crispy bacon fries with a secret black truffle mayo sauce, inviting Stephen to join us. For drinks, Sum chose a plum soda, while I was drawn to basil lemonade. Stephen opted for a bottle of Thai Singha soda (in a glass bottle) with lemon. I was pleasantly surprised that he also enjoyed this drink, which I keep at home regularly! As we savored the dishes, we asked him abd the chef nearby about the ingredients and sauces used as vegan substitutes. It was explained that cream is replaced with soy milk, cheese with nutritional yeast, mayonnaise with a mix of soy milk and black vinegar, and crispy bacon is made from soybeans. It was quite an enlightening lesson! Both dishes were incredibly tasty, especially the pasta, where the sauce and various ingredients created a magical flavor combination. Stephen seemed satisfied as he went for a second round after trying the first!
For dessert, we chose a homemade lemon tart, perfectly balancing sweet and sour, leaving us wanting more.
閒談中，了解到Stephen七年前開始食素，後來遇上目前合夥人，由於兩人都熱愛素食，想創立一個場地煮自己喜歡食的素菜及招待同道的好友共進素菜美食，決定合資開辦「本原純素」。Stephen每週會花約四天時間在餐廳出任管理，合夥人在外有另一份工，很少會來餐廳，餐廳的營運有賴員工團隊努力支持，Stephen不上班時就有同事盡全責保持業務質素，他自己與家人住在較遠的地區，所以他不想要他們過來支援。
During our conversation, I learned that Stephen began eating vegan seven years ago. Later, he met his current partner, and since both loved vegan food, they decided to create a space to cook their favorite dishes and share them with like-minded friends, leading to the establishment of “Root Vegan.” Stephen spends about four days a week managing the restaurant, while his partner has another job and rarely comes in. The restaurant’s operation relies on the dedicated support of the staff, and since Stephen lives further away, he prefers not to have his family come to help.
我好奇他出席我們上一個研討會時為何把一位同事也請來參加，我驚訝地聽到他想員工除了整天在餐廳工作外，有機會接觸到外邊的實際環境及知識。我突然感覺到這餐廳的地點和佈局很適合做iCHEF店家們的聚談活動，索性問問他有沒有興趣與我們合辦下一個聚會，他說能請到一群其他使用同一系統的店家在他的餐廳聚會傾談是很有意義的事，建議利用餐廳較寧靜的下午5時至7時舉行，詳情就留待有關同事與他再討論。
I was curious about why he invited one of his colleagues to the previous seminar. To my surprise, he wanted his employee to experience the outside world and gain knowledge beyond working at the restaurant. I suddenly felt that the restaurant’s location and layout would be perfect for iCHEF’s gatherings, so I asked if he would be interested in co-hosting our next meeting. He expressed that it would be meaningful to gather other iCHEF restaurant owners at his restaurant. He suggested holding it between 5 PM and 7 PM when the restaurant is quieter, and we agreed that relevant colleagues would discuss the details with him later.
今天渡過了一次很充實的回訪，帶走了可以同Stephen協作的正面意念，希望不久將來可以實現！
Today was a fulfilling visit, leaving me with positive ideas for collaboration with Stephen. I hope we can make it happen soon!
