Cooking

Overview

Cooking is one of the confirmed ancient Chinese handicraft systems in The Bustling World, sitting alongside weaving and smelting as core production skills. Players can prepare food as a personal activity or scale it into a commercial operation by opening and running a restaurant as part of the game's business system.

From handicraft to business

Like other production skills, cooking follows the game's progression from manual crafting to mass production. Early on, players handle everything themselves. As their operation grows, they can hire workers, set up production lines, and establish transportation networks to distribute their goods. A player who starts as a lone chef working out of a small kitchen can eventually run a restaurant chain.

Chef is one of several job roles available to players early on, alongside shopkeeper, farmer, miner, and logger. This makes cooking an accessible entry point into the game's production economy. The food produced through cooking ties into the economy and trade system.

Cooking contests

Cooking contests are one of the leisure activities available in the game. Players can enter competitive cooking events where winning brings both honor and in-game money. These competitions are part of the game's community events alongside martial arts tournaments, horse racing, and Luban building contests.