Cooking with Varindar

[Varindar Asyt]

Once again, running a five-star hotel is hard work. If she was lucky and felt like eating at the restaurant, she would be able to eat, retained against her GM's salary perhaps, but eat nonetheless she does. And maybe bring a student in tow in the kitchen. A bit unorthodox maybe, just that perhaps [member="Drystan_Marakos"] would have heard about the Crown Nebula on Trandosha and how Varindar, a Jedi knight, ran it as a true five-star hotel with a five-star restaurant in tow - definitely one of the more curious cases. Just that, whatever Drystan is having, Varindar will have it too, to get the cooking simpler with the limited skills Varindar possessed of cooking. Just because I bill the Order for every meal I had my pyro/cryo students eat while at the Crown Nebula doesn't mean I can actually run the kitchen; what matters in the guest experience at a hotel and at a restaurant is just not the same, and not simply because no-show rates are much higher; dealing with no-shows is quite different and I'm lucky that Trandosha isn't the most desirable, or else no-shows would cause problems to me, she thought, before she was due to another trip to the restaurant's kitchen for the purposes of teaching pyro/cryo.

"Welcome to the Crown Nebula Hotel. What can I do for you today?"

 

[Drystan Marakos]

Rarely had Drystan ever visited such a fine hotel... At least, in such a capacity where she could enjoy her stay.

Only a mere jaunt across the pond from Kashyyyk, the homeworld of the Wookies and the site of an SJO Temple, Trandosha had always fascinated the Jedi Knight. She had traveled there once before on a mission for the Alliance, but had only stayed for a few long, arduous hours. When she'd finally gotten passage off-world, it had been with an injured arm and a prisoner in tow. The planet's climate, like Kashyyyk's, was a far cry from her homeworld (which she never spoke of). Trees, rainstorms, and the right dose of humidity did wonders for Drystan's mind and body.

She had arrived, by invitation, at the Crown Nebula Hotel for a few days of rest and relaxation. Her time was her own, for this brief respite, and she would enjoy every moment she could. Plus, she happily remarked, "It's a chance to learn something!" Meeting Varindar, a fellow Jedi Knight, would be a treat. Some within the Order had spoken highly of Varindar's culinary prowess, and Drystan had to quell (more than once) her excitement during the journey. The Central Courtyard & Swimming Pool looked absolutely pristine, and the décor of the hotel warm and inviting. After settling into one of the Hotel's 29 luxury rooms, Drystan's instincts and training took hold; she explored every inch of the grounds, utilizing her skills in Counter-Intelligence to identify entrances & exits, blind spots, high points overlooking the hotel, and generally reach out with the Force, touching the minds of each guest and visitor in turn...

Finally satisfied, Drystan had found her way to the kitchens. She was dressed simply, her hair curled into a braid to keep it away from her face.

" I have heard, you know, that your version of Cloud-City Canapes is absolutely Nova!"

 

[Varindar Asyt]

Varindar checked Drystan in, to the Fresca Loft, prior to bringing the student to the day onto the hotel's kitchen. With the guest of the day getting the keys to the Fresca Loft, and also inputting her into the room tracking system, she could also feel that she had a taste of the Cloud-City Canape while in the room. But surprisingly, there are still some vacancies left, then again it's the low season. She could understand pretty readily if [member="Drystan_Marakos"] thought the Crown Nebula only had 29 rooms, albeit all of them with Cloud-City Canapes, thinking that perhaps when Drystan last heard about the hotel, she spent an overnight here with an injured arm and a prisoner in tow. Today, it has 93 rooms. Now, since she cashed in the last loyalty card in the restaurant, she may as well get a new one and punch the first hole in it when the pyro/cryo lesson ends, and is actually eating it. Just that preparing the ingredients for the meal is a key item for the lesson, but everything starts with the choice of meal that Drystan will make, especially in that sea of ingredients and cooking utensils.

"Today's lesson is about pyrokinesis and cryokinesis. But before we begin, I would like to know what is it that you like to eat"

 

[Drystan Marakos]

"I enjoy Correllian fare.. Fried meat sticks and a chilled hash."

 

[Varindar Asyt]

"The chilled hash I can take care of; it's a side dish offered as an option to these fried meat sticks"

Or rather, fried chicken skewers, she thought, since she had metallic skewers with chicken pieces in marinated batter; meanwhile, she took out a pot filled with oil, in which she intends to have [member="Drystan_Marakos"] boil so as to have the fried chicken skewers, well, fry. As for the chicken skewers, they are placed right next to the pan for the chilled hash, in another metal pot. She is preparing the chilled hash, with meat, rice and potatoes being mixed together with spices and onions, to be placed onto the plates whenver the skewers are ready to be placed on the plates. In addition, the mushroom and red wine gravy, cooked using Varindar's own recipe, was awaiting pouring into their designated pots, but that would typically happen once the fried chicken skewers would, in fact, be fried. Once the pan is in front of Drystan, the hotelier then delivers her lecture on pyrokinesis. Oh, of course, she doesn't have as much of an understanding of thermodynamics as Jessica would, but what she did know, was, in fact, related to phase transitions, e.g. from liquid to gas.

"With pyrokinesis, the aim is to make the molecules dance and the molecules' dancing tempo is called the temperature. Sometimes, you will find that the temperature won't rise (or, with cryokinesis, fall) any further for a while, before it starts rising (respectively lowering) again. When that happens, typically, the will be in a different phase, and the energy spent at that temperature plateau is called the latent energy. Now, try to make the oil molecules within the pan dance"

 

[Drystan Marakos]

[member="Varindar Asyt"]

Drystan listened intently, fully present with the Hotelier as she conducted a symphony...

Finally, with the pan in front of her, Drystan did as instructed. Taking a deep breath and opening herself to the Force, she visualized the outside world as a hologram; shrinking smaller and smaller, her perception of time slowed as her inner world became still.

Smaller... Smaller...

She moved her hand, extending an open palm toward the frying pan on the stove, and directed her consciousness into the very fibers of creation.

And then, deep in her core, she brought her awareness to the raging heat within her belly; her center, and her connection to the Force. Directing that heat outward would shift her focus into her more aggressive nature as she fed power into the oil. The strength of Will she applied was so great, that the air between her palms shimmered. Behind her eyelids, she visualized a steady glow of red, yellow, and white; within a few moments, there came to be a popping sound.

The oil was beginning to reach the perfect temperature. Drystan remained focused, continuing to feed the steady flame she'd willed into existance. The stove remained unlit.

 

[Varindar Asyt]

"Hehe: now that you see how to use pyrokinesis for cooking, I'll get the skewers in batter inside the oil. One word of advice for the future: applying pyrokinesis directly on the food is tantamount to oven-baking them. With that said, at this point it's about maintaining the temperature where it is"

Now that Varindar was putting in the skewers in batter inside the pot of oil that [member="Drystan_Marakos"] just boiled, it was thus time for her to get the side dishes onto the plates, and said plates would be near the pot so that, once the skewers were ready, they would be ready to be placed onto the plates, and then she could keep them under cloches so that they could eat the skewers at the end of the lesson. In fact, to have both courses ready when the lesson ends. For now, Varindar was busy fetching the powdered ice cream so that the next phase of the lesson could proceed, as well as two cups for holding ice cream; in this bazaar of cooking taking place, it was taking longer than usual and hopefully the skewers wouldn't be overdone by the time she was actually able to fetch both items and bring them to Drystan for her to use cryo on. Plus other cooks were there preparing other meals, such as the Scorekeeper's Specials, ants climbing a tree (despite the absence of any actual ants) and so on, so forth, watching the two as they use the Force to learn cooking.

 

[Drystan Marakos]

Drystan couldn't help her excitement. She smiled and nodded along with [member="Varindar Asyt"]'s instructions. "Rather than affecting the molecules of the oil and imparting heat, you're actually stirring the molecules of material? From the outside-in or the inside-out?"

Consistently maintaining her focus, directing a willful image of a roiling flame into the oil, Drystan assisted one-handed with whatever the hotelier required. The beautiful young woman couldn't help but spy on other cooks working in the kitchen, offering smiles and brief conversations with the few who seemed particularly interested. She was a skilled multitasker; her senses in the Force already heightened, she seemed to dance and flow about the space as-if she belonged there. ​

​

With a knowing look, she prepared herself to shift perspectives and assisted in timing the transition between components of the meal... The two worked as a team, communicating with each-other. ​

​

Drystan found she had some difficulty lowering temperatures, and it took her a few moments to truly grasp the "Art" of freezing molecules in place. ​

​

The blood within her veins was warm, but her heart felt cold. ​

 

[Varindar Asyt]

"You just hit a temperature plateau: take away some more energy from the powdered ice cream and put it into the oil! There's someone wanting a Scorekeeper's Special so the spare ribs is one place where you can put the heat from the ice cream"

So it was courageous of [member="Drystan_Marakos"] to attempt using the energy from the ice cream to maintain the oil's temperature. Now that the skewers of fried chicken reached the condition that she felt was proper to place in the plate and, from there, the cloches. Once the ice cream was ready, then they could have a seat at a table for two. It would be a bit awkward for the waiter, sure. Since the Scorekeeper's Special, placed on a skillet next to the oil pot, was still raw, she could always have the heat from the ice cream siphoned into the Scorekeeper's Special. To the extent that the ice cream in those cups was not yet freezing, in the hotelier's mind, Drystan was hitting the latent energy wall. Plus the utensils were being readied on the table that was earmarked for them: one fork, one spoon, one knife, bundled in the same napkin. At the same time, the lesson would soon end, and once the ice cream is ready, then they would sit down and eat, and then Varindar would know whether she is any good as a cook; just because she was cooking the mushroom and red wine sauce, doesn't mean that she is that great: typically cooks are more appreciated if they can cook whole meals.

 

[Drystan Marakos]

Shifting the raw energy between two separate states was a learning experience for Drystan. It required total concentration to find that switch; empowering a fierce activity to warm one item while drawing energy from a frozen state. Managing the proper flow, just as Varindar had indicated, taught the Jedi a very fine line between states of energy & states of activity.

Her brow moistened with sweat, Drystan inspected her work visually as well as through the Force - the preparation of both dishes was nearly finished: theirs' and the Scorekeeper's Special (Cooked through the Force, a treat indeed!)

"I understand... It's a matter of balance. Not taking too much, while giving just enough."

[member="Varindar Asyt"]

 

[Varindar Asyt]

"Now that the pyro/cryo lesson is over, we will get seated to eat what is cooked from what you learned"

So the third customer would get the Scorekeeper's Special prepared on another plate. [member="Drystan_Marakos"] ended up cooking three main courses and two desserts; now that the ice cream was ready, both courses were going to be on their table. However, the Scorekeeper's Special ordered by that customer was going to have different side dishes: two oven-baked potato wedges that Varindar cooked with the Force, rice and steamed carrots. Now that the components of the meal were ready, it was time for Drystan to be brought to the reserved table. And then, upon stepping out of the kitchen, Drystan would realize that the restaurant's dining room is, in fact, rather luxurious; then again, what would one expect out of a five-star restaurant? And then she will answer the question as to whether Varindar really is any good as a cook, and also whether a five-star restaurant really is worth the price difference compared to lower-rated restaurants that didn't have the plates or bowls served under cloches. And then they were having the waiter deliver the cloches and take them out in front of them before eating.

 

[Drystan Marakos]

With the work complete, Drystan was delighted to see the fruits of their labor. "Thank you, [member="Varindar Asyt"]!" She exclaimed.

Upon being shown to their private table, Drystan found herself relaxing in the quiet, peaceful ambiance of the restaurant. "A prime vacation spot, to be sure..." She sat across from Varindar, and was awed by the service... The waiter presented their courses with panache. A small candle flickered brightly on the table near her elbow, and Drystan held a hand over the small flame, drawing in the heat of the fire, appreciating it all the more after creating fire within herself.

Drystan waited until they were both ready, and then allowed herself the first bite of the meal they'd crafted together. "You are the finest cook in the Order..." She said over a sip of wine. Smiling, she felt empowered by the lesson.. She had learned a new ability, and found her interest in the culinary arts further fueled.

 

[Varindar Asyt]

"Thank you"

To be frank, the cooking landscape of the Order was obscure at best. Most Jedi that could cook seemed to cook mostly for survivalistic purposes, and a few could actually practice the culinary arts as, well, an art. She knew that Wu Yeoh seemed to favor Atrisian cuisine, while Varindar would love to see [member="Drystan_Marakos"] try her own recipes for the rest of the Order to eat. Well worth punching the first hole in the loyalty card for. Now the hotelier was confident that she could, in fact, cook adequately. Just because I can use pyro/cryo to cook for survivalistic purposes, didn't mean until now that I was any good as a chef, she thought, while digging into the fried chicken skewer. She had the assurance that Drystan could, in fact, become a chef, and maybe even the Rest's executive chef, in time. And, once the plate with the hash was finished, she then proceeded to eat the ice cream obtained via cryokinesis; even vanilla ice cream tasted different when prepared using the Force. But all good things had an ending, and the time for requesting the restaurant tab had arrived.

"The bill please; bill it to the Order"

 

[Drystan Marakos]

Drystan had greatly enjoyed the meal, and she cleaned her plate. The chicken skewers melted in her mouth and the ice cream satisfied her sweet tooth.. "Truly 5-star service.." She told her host with a wink.

Drystan was sure to show off her newfound skills; cooking was only one of many applications she could imagine for her ability to bend fire & ice. She ran a finger threw the melting cream and brought it to her lips, licking her finger clean. She was sure to enjoy the rest of her brief vacation. She watched as the waiter gave a nod to his Mistress and slipped into the back-end of the restaurant to do as was bidden.

"Perhaps..." Drystan started, with a smile. "You could show me around the hotel? A drink and a dip in the pool sounds lovely... if you'll join me."

(Thread complete, but open for more.)

 

[Varindar Asyt]

"Sure: I think the bar will go first, and I think we will have less guests at the pool once we're done. One word of caution, however: once you drank alcohol, it's probably best to wait an hour or two before going to the pool"

Due to the awkward circumstances under which the bar was built, it is on the fourth floor; Varindar would thus guide [member="Drystan_Marakos"] to one of the hotel's elevators, which would lead to all six floors in the hotel, and this one leads right next to the bar. And yet, the oft-given advice not to swim for about an hour after drinking is to reduce the risks of drowning. Sure, the bar would be quite different in feel from the restaurant on ground floor, but that's also because it's a more casual atmosphere. Yet, it was just as packed in the Little Green Men as it was in the restaurant, Bumba's Eatery; however, Drystan would meet with different guests since the patrons of the bar would be the sort of guests that would instead eat more casual items (and for cheaper than what is the case for a five-star restaurant) and/or drink. Plus Varindar would be seated at a location among the stools, next to where the barmen would work their cocktails for the guests to drink. That is not going to be a straightforward operation, she thought, while realizing that it would perhaps to be better to go to the pool in the morning.

 

[Drystan Marakos]

Drystan couldn't help but giggle at Varindar's suggestion of remaining out of the water briefly after drinking... If she did that, she'd never get in the pool!

She followed the hotelier through the lobby and up the elevator, exiting on the 6'th floor and entering "Bumba's Eatery"... which was actually quite busy for the evening. There were a number of interesting characters; all of them either on vacation or visiting from the nearby city. Upbeat music was piped through the speakers, and Drystan winked at Varindar..

"I like what you've done with the place..."

 

[Varindar Asyt]

Or rather, they were entering the Little Green Men... as [member="Drystan Marakos"] would find the bar to be lively with guests, Trandoshan or not, some of them came for the music, others came for drinks, and others still for food, and yet more for simply socializing. But it was premature to get her to drink the stronger stuff, such as the Asobi 95% tihaar, marketed as azeotropic goodness, so she had to be mindful of the guests. Especially those who came mostly for the music. Now, many of the regulars did, in fact, know Varindar in person since she knew Varindar came regularly to eat when she didn't feel like eating at the five-star restaurant downstairs. Which was often. And, for some reason, ladies as pretty as Drystan would be (and Varindar would acknowledge as much) don't seem to attract that much attention, probably because beauty was very, very common for the bar's regulars. To the average Trandoshan guest, it seemed that human/Near-Human ladies were all pretty with few exceptions, and the same held true of the Yoda look-a-like that was here tending to the bar. Which finally got around to serving the two.

"The music, do you like?" one of the eponymous Little Green Men asked.

"Yes; in fact, I'd like a glass of Carfax mead, please"