Gu Changchuan, executive chef of the Sihai Hotel, is fired by his boss, Zhao Dehai, on the grounds that he is too old and earns too much. After repeatedly failing to find another job, he applies to work at Yunyan, a small restaurant across the street. His exceptional cooking wins over its owner, Su Wanqing, and his signature dish, oil-blasted shrimp, makes the restaurant an instant hit. Zhao Dehai repeatedly tries to sabotage him but fails. Eventually, the hotel loses its stars and goes bankrupt after being caught using expired ingredients, and its assets are put up for auction. Gu Changchuan joins forces with Su Wanqing, Wang Shoucheng, and others to purchase the hotel and rebuild Yunyan, eventually restoring the hotel's five-star rating. Gu takes on apprentices and passes down his culinary skills, establishing a rule that no veteran chef will ever be dismissed because of age again. Thus, he makes his comeback, going from a fired chef to the man once again in charge of the kitchen.