Laid-Back Life in Tokyo: I Really Didn't Want to Work Hard
Chapter 298 - 234: Daily Life at the Soho Coffee Shop

Chapter 298: Chapter 234: Daily Life at the Soho Coffee Shop

The Soho café, after a busy half-day, Uesugi Sakura finally had some time to take a break.

"It’s great, since more and more customers are coming because of you."

Mr. Blaise said as he took freshly baked cookies out of the oven, "Try a piece and see how they taste."

"Why is it green?" Uesugi Sakura carefully picked up a scorching hot green cookie with his hand.

"Matcha!"

Mr. Blaise snapped his fingers with a gloved hand, although it didn’t make a sound, "The fresh tea fragrance is just like walking in the Lake District on a weekend, so serene and relaxing."

The Lake District refers to the Lake District National Park in the UK, covering 885 square miles, filled with lakes and known worldwide for its beautiful natural scenery.

Hanamaru Yuuki always said she wanted to go there to sketch, but it’s still a bit far from London, and the hope feels forever out of reach.

"And there are also rose-flavored cookies."

Mr. Blaise took out another tray of cookies adorned with chocolate chips from the oven.

These cookies are complimentary with a coffee order, three pieces per cup, with an additional penny for more.

Every time they come out of the oven, Uesugi Sakura always tries one or two pieces, but he felt that with Mr. Blaise’s skills, he didn’t need an amateur like him to judge.

Eating a hot cookie, it’s soft and fresh.

"What did Mr. Blaise do before?"

"Me? I was a horse master at a ranch." Blaise said as he closed the oven.

"Horse master?" Uesugi Sakura didn’t expect that; this job should be managing horses at a ranch, taking them out for walks when there’s nothing to do.

"Surprising, isn’t it?" Blaise smiled and said, taking off his gloves, "Actually, I love animals. Being a horse master was just one of my past jobs; I have worked at zoos, national parks, and aquariums."

"Speaking of which, I even went to China as a volunteer and worked as a Panda Keeper. Hold on, let me show you."

Mr. Blaise, wearing an apron, began to take out his phone to scroll through his photo album.

Uesugi Sakura curiously leaned over and saw many group photos with lots of people, showcasing various styles and nationalities, with backdrops of different places like the pyramids, Sydney Opera House, Bell Tower, and the Great Wall.

"Ah~ Found it!"

Mr. Blaise handed the phone to Uesugi Sakura.

He carefully scrutinized it.

The photo showed a beaming Blaise holding a little panda. He, along with several others, were wearing green volunteer uniforms with panda logos on them.

The panda seemed a bit lethargic, lazily dozing off.

"It’s interesting, the trainer there taught me how to use an apple to trade for the cub with its mother. You know, little pandas need to be bottle-fed."

"It seems like Mr. Blaise has had exceptionally rich experiences," Uesugi Sakura said with a smile.

"I always said, life is romantic."

Uesugi Sakura used a bamboo basket to transfer the cookies from the baking tray, packing them up, as the aroma of the cookies escaped the kitchen and filled the entire café.

"Sakura, you are learning how to brew coffee so well; why not learn to make desserts with me?"

"I can’t learn this." Uesugi Sakura shook his head and refused immediately.

"Making desserts is just like brewing coffee, it’s about patience and anticipation." Mr. Blaise tried to persuade, realizing his fast learning pace, "Miss Hanabi’s desserts are truly commendable."

"Mr. Blaise, I once turned chocolate into obsidian during Valentine’s Day."

"Obsidian? That’s really something."

Mr. Blaise seemed keen on teaching him desserts, so Uesugi Sakura had to change the topic:

"Sir, do you play the guitar?"

"Guitar?" Mr. Blaise said, "No, I only play the accordion, but if you want to learn, you can ask Miss Anna; she’s a well-known guitarist on our street."

Anna the boss lady?

Uesugi Sakura made a mental note.

The rest of the morning passed leisurely, and after enjoying the lunch prepared by Hanabi, Uesugi Sakura began to prepare for work.

He rather enjoyed this kind of life—standing in the café every day, waiting for Hanabi to finish class, and pushing through the door with a smile to order a cup of coffee he brewed.

During that time, he would wipe the equipment while listening to her chat with her classmates.

It’s filled with sweet daily life.

Ring~

The sound of the doorbell.

"Welcome to the Soho café," Uesugi Sakura said in English to the two young women who walked in.

"Xiangying, is this the place?"

"No doubt about it."

The girl in a pink dress looked around, "The decor is quite stylish, and it’s very quiet."

Uesugi Sakura quickly saw them come in, handing over the menu, saying in Chinese specifically:

"Please let me know what you need."

The Mandarin was especially fluent, with no trace of a foreign accent.

Chi Xiangying closed the menu, smiled, and looked up to say: "Milk mocha and ice cream mousse."

"Alright." Uesugi Sakura waited for the other girl in the pink dress.

"Blue Mountain and a macaron."

"No problem."

After notifying Mr. Blaise in the kitchen, Uesugi Sakura began to operate the equipment.

Since Uesugi Sakura came here, Mr. Blaise is in charge of the desserts. Usually, there are other staff, but today Miss Anna gave them a day off.

Because she had used up everyone’s day off in the past two weekends.

Once Mr. Blaise started working hard, his British Blue cat would jump onto the bar counter to rest, acting as the store’s mascot in front of Uesugi Sakura.

As a lucky cat, it worked perfectly well. As soon as the two girls saw it, they nudged each other, took out their phones, and clicked away.

"Hey handsome, can I add your WeChat?" Chi Xiangying placed her phone on the counter with a smile.

"I am very sorry, I don’t use WeChat."

The two girls exchanged a glance, thinking he was politely refusing.

"Then, at least tell us your name."

Uesugi Sakura: "Uesugi Sakura."

"Shang Shan Zhao?"

"Upper ’Shang’, cedar ’Sugi’, and Sakura is the wood radical with a robe ’Di’."

"Surname Ue, a rare surname."

The British Blue cat lazily wagged its tail on the bar counter; it rarely meowed.

Uesugi Sakura didn’t say anything, feeling like these two young women came just for him, quietly chatting about his looks as they sat at the bar.

"Excuse me, where do you go to school, handsome boy? We heard from a British classmate that this café serves great coffee and that an Asian barista has just arrived."

Uesugi Sakura was actually 16 years old, but he looked around 18 or 20, just a bit on the delicate side.

"Not in school, just working as a barista here."

"Not in school? You look like a junior."

"Age-wise, that’s about right." Uesugi Sakura said as he poured hot water over the freshly ground coffee.

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