Original story concept · 18+

The Restaurant After Hours · Reunion 009

Original title: 下班后的餐厅·重逢 009

Synopsis only

Before the restaurant closes for the night, a customer orders a dish long since removed from the menu, and head server Cheng Lan recognizes him as Meng Qiao, an old friend from the days when the two of them prepared to open a small restaurant together. Each once blamed the other for the venture's failure, yet this time they must resolve a booking mistake together. After finishing with the last table, they speak for the first time about the real losses and pressures, and decide to return the old deposit, leaving the dream of their partnership in the past.

An original story concept created for this site. Its fictional characters and plot are not the plot of a namesake work. Summary only; no full novel.

Edited by: Huangguo Drama · Updated: 2026-10-13

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Scene illustration based on the summary

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A returning chef shows a menu to the owner of a neighborhood restaurant. — An old menu brings the returning chef back into the restaurant owner’s day.

A restaurant owner listens as a chef holds an old menu in the kitchen. — The menu gives their reunion a concrete subject.

Two adults stand in a neighborhood restaurant after the chairs have been cleared. — The restaurant remains the shared setting behind the unfinished conversation.

Characters

Cheng LanOriginal concept · Restaurant head server
A fictional adult character, the restaurant's head server in the story.
Meng QiaoOriginal concept · Out-of-town chef
A fictional adult character, an out-of-town chef in the story.

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