Cook, Serve, Delicious! 3?!

Cook, Serve, Delicious! 3?!

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Perfect Day Achievement Guide (Spoilers Ahead!)
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A guide to getting those Perfect Day Achievements!
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First things first
This is a guide to getting the Perfect Day achievements in Cook, Serve, Delicious!? 3. It does not contain guides to the other achievements, e.g. the all golds in one area. Of course, there are no "right ways" to complete the perfect day, so if you have a strategy that works for yourself, use it!

General tips apply to trying to achieve perfect days - some of these have been mentioned by others elsewhere in guides and in the discussion boards:
  1. As your menu has to hit a certain amount of points through food alone, use the minimum number of prep stations possible so that you don't have to juggle too many orders at the same time.
  2. Limit the amount of food that needs two stages of preparation, especially for Holding Station (HS) foods, as these make up the bulk of your orders. Prioritize foods that require only one stage of preparation.
  3. Buy food truck upgrades.
  4. Use foods that you are familiar with, and if you're not, practice them!
  5. Keep an eye out for the cooking, burning and losing freshness times of foods, so that you can balance out your menu. This information is not provided in the food catalog and on the food selection screen.
  6. Try out the other days along the route where the achievement day is, to get a feel for the tempo of incoming orders.
  7. When there are no day modifiers to them, HS foods go through three cycles of service as indicated by the border around the order - blue > yellow > red. You must serve the food when the borders are red, or else you will get a bad score for the order. Preparing HS foods in the HS when the order is ticking down shifts the order to the next stage of service; red food borders will immediately tick down as soon as you've prepped the HS food, so autoserve if you can.
  8. You can use a technique called (patience) bounce-back with HS foods - deliberately let your HS foods run out and prep them again in the HS when you are at a stop. This pushes their order timers back up, but it also moves them down to the next level of patience (blue > yellow > red), so use this strategically!

Some abbreviations used:
  • SO: Special Order foods; food that is ordered between stops or by VIPs during a stop
  • HS: Holding Station foods; food that you prep before reaching a stop and that is served at a stop. If your holding stations are full and you want to check your upcoming orders, the default key to press is F9.

Where keyboard inputs have been listed, these follow the default settings for a QWERTY keyboard unless specified.

With that out of the way, let's get cookin', chef!
1. Boise, Idaho
I Don't Need Tutorials
Route A (Chef University), Day 3

6-point menu needed
Menu: Simply Solids 0, Simply Solids 1
3 HS + 3 SO
Maximum points available on this route is 6
Use 3x -point foods for HS and 3x -point foods for SO

Comments
It's time to spend your hard won cash on some 1 point foods, as those are the only ones permissible for this level's Perfect Day achievement. Hopefully you didn't go ham and purchase pizzas and calzones from your days of training in Cook, Serve, Delicious!! 2; if not, earn your CrumbCoin and come back here to redo the level.

Good selections for HS foods here will be the slices food items (Brisket, Ham, Sausage and Turkey) as they are autoserve, provide many servings, and lose freshness slower than other food items in the same category like Medovik, Baklava and Moussaka. Consider using Satay for a quick prep and cook cycle.

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Simply Fried
Route B (Harmonica), Day 3

18-point menu needed
Menu: Fried Fantasy, Simply Solids 1
4 HS + 3 SO
Maximum points available on this route is 20, using
  • 4 HS: Cannoli , Chicken Sandwich , Foodtruck Fries , Chimichangas or Funnel Cake
  • 3 SO: Fried Seafood , Fried Chicken (3), Samosas or Chicken Fried Meats (2)
Minimum points reached using
  • HS + SO
  • HS + SO

Comments
This is already a toughie for having at least three double-prep HS food items, but if you're a CSD2 pro you'll find it quite the breeze - and maybe even pick up more money with Cannoli! It's a good food to learn and master since it has one of the highest number of servings in the game, and is slightly simpler for a 4-point food. Just make sure to get Cherry, Mint, Chocolate Sauce and Chocolate Chips right, and you'll master Cannoli in no time.

Foodtruck Fries are a go-to staple for padding your menu with autoserve foods that have huge servings and stay fresh for a while! The options are tricky at first, but you'll get the hang of it. Chimichangas and Funnel Cake are HS-optional and can be prepped as they come in, so you could use this to your advantage.

As for SO, the two 3-point foods are easy enough and can be autoserved when cooked, while the 2-point foods have a second prep stage. Samosas cook faster than Chicken Fried Meats.

Since there is some leeway in the menu, you can use 1-point foods if you're not comfortable with the higher point options.

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Buttermilked
Route C (Hazelwood), Day 2

21-point menu needed
Menu: The Freshest, BYOBBQ
4 HS + 2 SO
Maximum points available on this route is 22, using
  • 4 HS: Pho , Hamburger , and any two of Ballpark Burger, Bean Burger, Dosa, Hotdog or Sinigang +
  • 2 SO: Any two of Gazpacho, Smoothies, Salad or Taiwanese Shaved Ice +
Minimum points reached using
  • HS + SO
  • HS + SO (Shish Kabob or Steak)

Comments
Another toughie with at least three double-prep HS food items and two complex SO food items. Pho is confusing with Chives, Cilantro and Lime, so you could rebind the keys, whereas Hamburgers follow the standard keybind conventions (N for any type of onions, S for Swiss cheese, Z for pretzel buns). Both of them have their merits: Pho has less ingredients, Hamburgers are HS optional and can be prepped as the orders come in.

Dosa is the fastest double-prep 3-pointer to make, requiring only a selection of chutney and curry with relatively easy keybinds. Sinigang is an autoserve soup, and will provide a good balance to whatever menu you build.

There are overlaps in the ingredients and keys for Hamburgers and Ballpark Burgers, but you can get swamped with orders quickly, so be warned!

Salad is slightly less complicated than Taiwanese Shaved Ice for the instant prep options. Smoothies are more straightforward with Blueberries only to watch out for, and remember to put the Cover on! Gazpacho can be used to delay incoming HS orders although they 'burn' somewhat quickly, so be warned. Also, some of the keybinds are tricky here (A for Avocado, V for Vegetable, P for White Puree and W for Watermelon).

Steak is probably the easiest here as you can mash the autoserve. Shish Kabob is only tricky for Sausage (default U), Shrimp (default H) and Squash (default Q), but you'll have enough practice with Sausage and Shrimp (and even Chicken, default K) in other foods to be able to prepare it.
2. Moab, Utah
No Friend of Mine
Route E (Simmered), Day 3

23-point menu needed
The Deep attack (Closes 1 HS slot) at the 4th stop
This day has 5 stops
Menu: Friendsgiving
5 HS + 2 SO
Maximum points available is 25, using:
  • 5 HS: Pizza by the Slice , Deluxe Nachos , Pho , and any two of Ballpark Burger, Chicken Sandwich, Hotdog, Lasagna or Sencillo Tacos +
  • 2 SO: Okonomiyaki , Ice Cream Sundae
Minimum points reached using
  • HS (Chili, Corndogs or Puff Puff) + SO
  • HS + SO (Onigiri or Cookies)

Comments
I hope you're getting used to having many double-prep HS foods, because that's how the achievement days are going to be like. The menu set up with the fewest double-prep HS foods is Pizza by the Slice (good to learn since it has a 5-point SO counterpart), Pho, Lasagna, any other 3-point food though Ballpark Burgers are easier and are HS-optional, able to be prepped in a order station, and Chili. Deluxe Nachos lose freshness quickly at the same rate as Sencillo Tacos, so having both of them on the menu is risky.

The default keybinds for Okonomiyaki's first prep stage share a few things in common with Chow Mein, but if you're getting confused, rebind your keys. Also the keybinds have been changed slightly, for CSD2 players. Ice Cream Sundaes should be pretty straightforward at this point; just watch out for Raspberry Sherbet and Cookie Dough.

As this is a long day, the key is to persevere and take your time with the orders.

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The Big Game
Route G (Stale Chips), Day 5

21-point menu needed
Menu: Tailgate Traditions
3 HS + 3 SO
Maximum points available is 23, using:
  • 3 HS: Hamburgers , Deluxe Nachos ,Gumbo
  • 3 SO: Pizza , Small Custom Subs , any of Fried Chicken, Baked Hot Wings or Traditional Hot Wings
Minimum points reached using
  • HS + SO
  • HS + SO (5) (Corn Chip Pie or Stadium Nachos)
  • HS (Chili, Seafood Boil, Ribs, Chopped Brisket Sandwich, or Roast Beef Sandwich) + SO

Comments
It's probably a good idea not to do Hamburgers and Nachos together, so you could do a pretty easy set up with Hamburger/Deluxe Nachos + Gumbo + Chili/Seafood Boil. Seafood Boil is arguably the easier 2-pointer with only two recipes that differ in Red Crab (default R) or Blue Crab (default B), then dump the rest of the ingredients in. A helpful tip suggested in the discussion boards is that you could rebind the keys for the remainder of the ingredients, using SEAFUD or SEAFOD, or even ASDFGH/FGHJKL.

As for the SO food, Pizza and Fried Chicken can be autoserved. Small Custom Subs, Corn Chip Pie and Stadium Nachos are served instantly. Baked and Traditional Hot Wings needs a second prep stage but don't burn too quickly. They are prepped identically in the second prep phase, but Traditional Hot Wings have an extra choice in the first stage for Traditional (default T) or Boneless (default B) wings, while Baked Hot Wings only needs... Wings (default W).

There is a tiny change to Small Custom Subs from CSD2, as the default key for Tuna is now T.
3. Wall, South Dakota
Silly Soups
Route A (Piping Hot), Day 3

18-point menu needed
The Deep attack (Closes 1 HS slot) at the 1st stop
Menu: Hot Soup
4 HS + 1 SO
Maximum points available is 18, using:
  • 4 HS: Pho , and any 3 of Soup, Sinigang, Gumbo, Bouillabaisse or Chowder ++
  • 1 SO: Ramen

Comments
Who doesn't love a good (autoserve) soup? Bouillabaisse has 5 recipes and 1 page of ingredients, but Crawfish, Clams, Monkfish and Mussels will trip you up if you're not careful. Both Sinigang and Soup have 6 recipes, while both Gumbo and Chowder have 4. By now you should have done several stops with Pho; remember to practice it!

Ramen may seem daunting at first but they are a good way to slow down your overall menu as the cooking time will spill over into the stops. They are also relatively straightforward to learn. Probably the only problems you'll encounter with the ingredients are: Corn (default R), Mussels (here default M instead of U, in Bouillabaisse), Butter (default U), and the final page of ingredients. Sesame Seeds take precedence here with S being the default key, but if you've done other food with Sesame ingredients (e.g. Wok Dishes), you may want to rebind that to E. Scallions are default C (similar to Wok Dishes), while Salt and Pepper is default P.

Space out your Ramen orders by batch cooking - let 2 to 4 cook at a time, then when their timers hit, say, a quarter of the cooking time, start another batch. This should help you manage the second prep phase for them.

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Oh No
Route D (Milkmaid), Day 5

15-point menu needed
The Deep attack (Closes 1 HS slot) at the 1st stop
This day has 2 stops
Menu: Entire Menu
2 HS + 1 SO
Maximum points available is 15, using:
  • 2 HS: any 2 of Deluxe Poutine, King Potato, Sushi or Tamales +
  • 1 SO: Bibimbap, Burrito, Calzone, Creme Brulee, Hot Lattes, Iced Lattes, Pasta, Pizza, Ramen, Roulade, or Tacos

Comments
At this stage, you probably won't have enough truck upgrades for HS freshness, HS slots, rejuvenator and cloner to tackle this with ease. The 5-point with the most servings is Deluxe Poutine, but it has a complicated second prep phase with various ingredients that begin with the same letter or are bound to the same key over the different ingredient pages. However, it's a good idea to start practicing it now as it will pop up in later challenges!

Try the two autoserve HS, Sushi and Tamales. The keybinds have changed slightly for Sushi from CSD 2 (Fried Crab is now default C and Tuna is now default T). For Tamales, look carefully at Shredded Chicken (default K), Spicy Chicken (default S), Shredded Pork (P) and Spicy Pork (R), and make six tamales every time. Sushi orders will start ticking down the moment they enter the slots, but do remember that you can let them run down the clock twice before you have to ultimately serve them.

The danger of using Deluxe Poutine and/or King Potato here is because of the huge number of orders (and small serving portions of King Potato), you might feel short on time before the orders start ticking down. However, if you've mastered them, or if you play using a mouse or controller, which trumps memorizing keys, go ahead and use them!

One way to approach this is to use SO foods to cover for the poor HS servings and the rapid incoming orders for a 2-day stop. The idea is to have SO foods occupy as many order slots and for as long as possible to delay incoming HS orders. This is even better if you've upgraded the SO order delay.

Ramen and Pizza will take a long time to cook and are good choices; the second phase prep for Ramen is offset with your HS food being autoserved. Calzone is surprisingly straightforward for a 5-point and cooks on a longish cooking time (about the time it takes to do a Medium Well Steak), so you could possibly let some finished orders sit in the order slots until you need to serve them. Bibimbap will cook fast, but will also occupy a slot for a while, which you could use to your advantage.

Creme Brulee might be a big brain strategy to keep your SO slots occupied since they cook extremely fast. If you've upgraded the perfect cook SO, you'll have a tiny bit more time on the orders before they start to burn. Do these in batches of 2s or 3s.

If the gold medal still eludes you, retry this map with more truck upgrades later.
4. Wichita, Kansas
Fiesta?
Route B (Roasty Toasty), Day 4

19-point menu needed
This day has 2 stops
Menu: Fiesta!
3 HS + 2 SO
Maximum points available is 22, using:
  • 3 HS: Tamales , Deluxe Nachos , Sencillo Tacos
  • 2 SO: Tacos , Burrito
Minimum points reached using
  • HS + SO (Empanadas)
  • HS (Chimichangas) + SO (Tostadas)
  • HS (Jalebi, Sopapillas or Brisket Slices) + SO
  • HS (Churros) + SO

Comments
As any cook who's worked shifts at Esteban's in CSD2 will be able to tell you, the combination of Tacos and Burritos in a menu is a particularly deadly one. Besides having complex second prep stages, they also cook fast and burn fast. Still, if you'd like to use them since they're SO food, do them in batches and practice them. Be careful with the Refried Beans and Black Beans, and with Fire Sauce, Lime Sauce and Wrap+Foil Wrap. Having both of them allows you to only put in one double-prep HS food, which could be better since there are only 2 stops for this day.

If you don't want two 5-pointers in your SO foods, then using Tostadas for SO and Chimichangas for HS is a good way to balance out your menu. Tostadas are custom orders, but there is a chance of you getting some with no meats, thereby saving you one prep phase. Chimichangas can be prepped in the order station, which can help you with your tempo. They do tick down fast and lose freshness fast when on the HS, so watch out.

Having Deluxe Nachos and Sencillo Tacos on your menu is risky, given that they lose freshness equally fast. Some Deluxe Nachos orders can be as complicated as a Taco or Burrito order. However, one good thing about using these foods together is that the same keybinds apply across the ingredients.

Putting Churros on the menu is not the best idea, as the orders will tick down fast.

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Da New Foodz
Route D (Mushroom), Day 2

21-point menu needed
Tasteville attack (Extra orders) at the 1st stop
Menu: Da New Foodz
2 HS + 3 SO
Maximum points available is 22, using:
  • 2 HS: Deluxe Poutine , any of Banh Mi, Gyro, Pho, or Torta
  • 3 SO: Roulade , Bibimbap , Halo Halo
Minimum points reached using
  • HS (Ballpark Burger, Bouillabaisse, Chicken Tikka, Dosa, Eggs Benedict, Pasta Salad, Ratatouille, Sencillo Tacos, Sinigang, Sisig) + SO
  • HS + SO (Boba Tea, Borscht, Bunny Chow, Ceviche, Chicken Kiev, Egg Foo Yung, Empanadas, Haemul Pajeon, King Cake, Pad Thai, Palak Paneer, Shepherd's Pie, Soda Floats, Solyanka, Zrazy)

Comments
Both Roulade and Bibimbap cook fast. For Roulades, take care with the White Chocolate, Whip and Blueberries, remember to cut 5 times, and they should be okay. For Bibimbap, the trick is in knowing that there are only 4 recipes, and that you can double check the order names: Beef X requires Beef while Tofu X requires Tofu, while X Sunrise requires Fried Egg and X Sunset requires Raw Egg. Every other ingredient gets thrown in.

If you cooked some beef in the first stage when the order doesn't call for it, just don't put it in with the ingredients in the second prep phase and you'll get a perfect on the order. Tofu is already included in the second stage, and Bibimbap orders are always either beef or tofu, not and.

It's a good idea to use an autoserve 3-point, with Bouillabaisse and Sinigang preferred over Pasta Salad (small servings, tricky keybinds, lose freshness fast) and Ratatouille (frustrating to recheck up to 3 pages of ingredients if you miss a key). The two autoserve soups also tend to stay fresh longer than the 4-pointers, although you could make use of Gyro's large serving sizes.

Palak Paneer is surprisingly tricky for a 2-point SO, so remember to practice it beforehand. Likewise with Halo-Halo for a 3-point SO, but at least it's served instantly.
5. Marietta, Oklahoma
Pour One Out for Crazy Dave
Route D (We All Scream), Day 5

19-point menu needed
Angry Customers (HS orders will start at lowest patience/red border)
Menu: Bowls of Love
3 HS + 4 SO
Maximum points is 30, using
  • 3 HS: Deluxe Poutine , and any two of Bouillabaisse, Chicken Tikka, Japanese Fried Rice, Pasta Salad or Sinigang +
  • 4 SO: Bibimbap , Creme Brulee , Pasta , Risotto or Souffle
Minimum points reached using
  • HS + SO (Halo Halo) (any 2 of Cereal, Ceviche, Eggplant Parmigiana, Pad Thai, or Steamed Mussels)
  • HS + SO
  • And other combinations

Comments
Here the Deluxe Poutine is skippable, and with good reason, since we're facing Angry Customers. The easy way to balance the menu out is to have 3 autoserve 3-point foods in your HS, and with the options available, Bouillabaisse, Japanese Fried Rice and Sinigang are your best bets. Chicken Tikka is somewhat tricky for its seasonings, and again Pasta Salad has small servings - though this time it may be useful for the instant prep. Putting food with less points in HS is okay, but that means you'll need to make trickier SO food, and you'll earn less.

To complement these HS foods, Risotto + Souffle is slightly better than a 5 point + Halo Halo only if you're familiar with them (say, after many shifts in XLR Purple in CSD2). Having Creme Brulee and Souffle on the menu is risky, since they burn fast and the second prep phase for Creme Brulee does take a bit of time. If you're a Bibimbap pro, you can definitely put it on the menu to balance out burn time and prep times.

Rounding off the lineup are 2-pointers, and Steamed Mussels is your best delaying tactic - it takes a long time to cook, is relatively easy, and can be autoserved. Another long cooking food is Eggplant Parmigiana, but it requires a second prep phase. Pad Thai cooks fast and needs a second prep phase. Cereal and Ceviche are instant serve.

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Obese Jake's INSANE Challenge
Route I (Starving), Day 5

23-point menu needed
Angry Customers (HS orders will start at lowest patience/red border)
This day has 2 stops
Menu: Chickenbits, Sandwich Heaven
3 HS + 5 SO
Maximum points available is 30, using
  • 3 HS: Banh Mi, , Torta , and any of Chicken Tikka, Chicken Sandwich, Grilled Chicken Sandwich or Pulled Pork Sandwich
  • 5 SO: Wok Dish: Chicken , Small Custom Subs , Subway Sandwiches , and any two of Baked Hot Wings, Traditional Hot Wings, Fried Chicken or Chicken Breast +
Minimum points reached using
  • HS (Chicken Tikka OR Pulled Pork Sandwich) (Croque Monsieur) (Tandoori or Satay) + SO
  • HS + SO
  • And other combinations

Comments
With the above menu set up you can completely autoserve your HS foods, or bang out Pulled Pork Sandwiches if that floats your boat - they have large servings and only 2 recipes. Satay here is a strong choice, as you can prep them fast, they cook fast, and only have 1 serving less than Tandoori.

You will probably skip the Torta and Banh Mi on this level, so that leaves us with harder SO food. Doing both types of Subs and both types of Hot Wings is a good idea since they are prepared extremely similar. For your fifth SO, the Fried Chicken is a better option for your cooking tempo than Chicken Breast, although Chicken Breast is arguably simpler.

If you're feeling a need for a challenge, slot in the Wok Dishes: Chicken since your HS are autoserve anyway.
6. Midland, Texas
The Slow Dance of Death
Route A (Modern Chow), Day 3

28-point menu needed
This day requires 3 extra prep stations
Menu: DANCE PARTY 2008
5 HS + 4 SO
Maximum points available is 30, using
  • 5 HS: Sushi , King Potato , Chicken Tikka , and any 2 of Pig's Blood Cake, Koeksisters or Khachapuri +
  • 4 SO: Creme Brulee , Whole Cakes , Sashimi , Salad
Minimum points reached using
  • HS + SO (Borscht, Corn Chip Pie, Escargot, Oysters, Samosas)
  • HS + SO (any 2 of Agedashi Tofu, Fresh Fish, Fried Chicken, Fried Seafood or Ice Cream Sundae)

Comments
You may be thinking - two compulsory 0-point foods in HS? Surely this must be easy...

Unfortunately not, as your 5-point foods will spoil your fun. Without many truck upgrades, Sushi and King Potato serve tiny amounts, and you'll find that the Sushi and 0-point foods start ticking down at about the same time. Thankfully they are all autoserve, but this is no consolation when you have a ton of King Potato orders coming in. One strategy is to let some timers tick down while you serve up some King Potato or make extra foods in your HS. Khachapuri is probably the least useful 0-point here - Koeksisters are HS optional and can be prepped per order, and Pig's Blood Cake is instantly served.

There are 6 recipes for King Potato with overlapping ingredients and steps; the key to mastering it is to get the second page of ingredients right.

With a compulsory Creme Brulee on the menu, you should look to balance it out with things that take longer or shorter time to serve. Whole Cakes cook long but are not so great here, as they will spill into your stop orders. That leaves us with fast service options. Salad is a strong pick here. Sashimi still proves to be a challenge under time pressure, and with several keybinds changing from CSD2 it's a risky pick. Still, instant servings Salad and Sashimi could be useful here, and if you're using those two foods, Corn Chip Pie or Oysters will make everything but the Creme Brulee instant servings.

If you're only using a single 4-point SO food, you'll need to fill the other two slots with 3-point foods. The options here are all good picks with Ice Cream Sundae being another instant serve food. Agedashi Tofu is simple enough and cooks fast but will need another prep stage, so it's probably the least useful here.

If the gold medal eludes you, try this day again with more truck upgrades.

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Grilled to Perfection
Route C (Grilled), Day 2

26-point menu needed
Impatient Customers (HS orders will start at middle patience/yellow border)
This day requires 3 extra prep stations
Menu: Just the B's Please
4 HS + 4 SO
Maximum points available is 31, using
  • 4 HS: Banh Mi, , Bouillabaisse , Ballpark Burger , Bean Burger
  • 4 SO: Bibimbap , Burrito , Beef Wellington , Breakfast Burrito
Minimum points reached using
  • HS (Baklava, Beignets, Bibingka, Biscuits and Gravy, Boiled Eggs or Brisket Slices) + SO (Boba Teas, Borscht, Breakfast Sandwich, Bunny Chow)
  • HS + SO (Baked Hot Wings)
  • HS + SO
  • And other combinations

Comments
You will have to do one 5-point SO food to hit the required points, and Burritos with Breakfast Burritos might be a good idea since they share ingredients and steps. Just remember to cook in batches, the difference between Refried Beans and Black Beans, Wrap and Foil Wrap.

If they're still confusing, Bibimbap is the way to go - hopefully you've been practicing it! Beef Wellington is overly straightforward for a 4-pointer with only 2 recipes, and will easily fill the 4-point slot. Baked Hot Wings is the only 3-point available for a 3-point slot. If you have a 2-point SO food, everything should be simple to use except for Bunny Chow, which has two prep stages.

If you have any 1-point HS food on your menu, the best ones are the autoserve - Brisket Slices are the best with huge servings, then Baklava and Boiled Eggs. The main problem with Baklava is that it loses freshness fast. Bouillabaisse is good for the autoserve, and Ballpark Burgers can be used to balance out your tempo as they are HS-optional.
7. Houston, Texas
Does Anyone Actually Like Houston?
Route C (Cream Dollop), Day 4

24-point menu needed
Firekickers attack (Empties all HS just before stop) at the 3rd stop
This day requires 3 extra prep stations
Menu: Just the B's Please, V thru Z
3 HS + 3 SO
Maximum points available is 25, using
  • 3 HS: Banh Mi , and any 2 of Bouillabaisse, Ballpark Burger or Bean Burger
  • 3 SO: Any 3 of Bibimbap, Burrito, Wok Dish: Beef and Pork, Wok Dish: Chicken, or Wok Dish: Shrimp and Vegetables ++
Minimum points reached using
  • HS + SO
  • HS + SO (Beef Wellington, Breakfast Burrito, Whole Cakes)

Comments
What IS it with Houston.

This is a tough day, so get to practicing your menu choices. The Wok Dishes have a slightly different set of sauces between them with keybinds all over the place, so pay attention to those. Problematic sauces are Sweet and Sour, Spicy, Sesame, Soy, Oil, Orange Peel, Honey Glaze - you get the drill. The vegetables in the second prep phase are all the same, however. Among the 5-point SO foods, they are probably the easiest with 2+3 ingredient key presses.

Also: Bibimbap!

One advantage of using Banh Mi here rather than the line up of all 3-point HS is that you can stick Beef Wellington into an SO slot, and the HS orders won't tick down as fast at the stops. Just be careful with Cilantro and Carrot, and that the default Onion key (N) is close to the default Bun key (B) so you may end up finishing the sandwich faster than you thought.

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Skill But Mostly Luck
Route F (Sketchy), Day 3

26-point menu needed
VIP Customers (SO orders during stops)
This day has 5 stops
Menu: Random Foods
4 HS + 3 SO
Maximum points available is 35, using
  • 4 HS: 4 'random' 5-point foods which will be Deluxe Poutine, King Potato, Sushi and Tamales +++
  • 3 SO: 3 random 5-point foods, from a potential list of Bibimbap, Burrito, Calzone, Creme Brulee, Hot Lattes, Iced Lattes, Pasta, Pizza, Ramen, Roulade, Tacos, and the Wok Dishes ++
Minimum points reached using
  • HS + SO
  • HS + SO
  • HS + SO
  • HS + SO
  • HS + SO
  • And other combinations

Comments
This menu is highly dependent on what foods you have at this point in the game. Usually you will be able to buy everything by now, and it's likely that you've used a good 75% of all the 3-point and above foods. If you have been tackling the previous challenges, you will own all four of the 5-point HS foods.

In terms of statistics, you want to try to get 3-point and 2-point HS foods as quite a number of them are autoserve, and you want 3- to the occasional 5-point SO foods as you will have VIP customers throughout the day. You can tempt fate by loading in two 5-point HS foods, hoping for Sushi and Tamales (what a dream combo), but it's likely that you'll end up with one of the other two (ew). Still, King Potato is not too bad if your other HS items are on the simpler side.

For 5-point SO foods, you want to hope for Pizza and Calzone, but if you've done the previous challenges, you will have Burritos or Tacos, Bibimbap, Creme Brulee, Ramen, Roulade and Wok Dishes sitting in your food catalog. Some of these are not too bad, and if you get them, they are better than others.

If you don't get what you like, simply exit the day, and reload with the random menu set up already. Restarting the day gives you the same food items again.
8. New(er) Orleans, Louisiana
Saints
Route I (Teragone), Day 3

22-point menu needed
Esteban's attack (Hacking - prevents visuals on order slots) at the 2nd stop
VIP customers (SO orders during stops)
This day requires 3 extra prep stations
Menu: Sebucosto 1991
3 HS + 3 SO
Maximum points available is 22, using
  • 3 HS: King Potato , Deluxe Nachos , Slice of Pie or Pasta Salad
  • 3 SO: Beef Wellington , and any 2 of Chicken Breast, Quesadilla, Steak or Shish Kabob

Comments
For a route that takes us back to the good ol' days of Teragon Tower (CSD2), this route is not pleasant, no sir.

Remember to master the 6 recipes for King Potato, rebind your keys if it's giving you a headache, and remember that you have three rounds of service - take your time to make sure the order is right before serving it out. In this case, delaying the service of your only autoserve HS will keep you from being overwhelmed with King Potato and Deluxe Nachos orders. For this purpose, Slice of Pie is fantastic, as it will take some time to cook, provides good serving sizes, stays fresh longer that Pasta Salad, and is straightforward to make.

You should seriously consider getting the hack-blocking truck upgrade here if you haven't done so.

As we will have VIPs visiting us during the stops, your SO foods should be something that you're familiar with. If you haven't mastered Beef Wellington by now, you should. Steak is an easy choice and will help you close off order slots, but VIP orders might mess with your tempo if you're serving out individual orders rather than spamming autoserve. Quesadillas, Shish Kabob and Chicken Breast take roughly the same amount of time to cook.

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The Typing of The Dead
Route J (Blood Road), Day 1

22-point menu needed
Esteban's attack (Hacking - prevents visuals on order slots) at the 2nd stop
VIP customers (SO orders during stops)
Angry Customers (HS orders will start at lowest patience/red border)
This day requires 3 extra prep stations
Menu: Stretchy Pants, BYOBBQ, Friendsgiving
6 HS + 3 SO
Maximum points available is 37, using
  • 6 HS: Tamales , Pizza by the Slice , Hamburger , Deluxe Nachos , Pho . and any of Ballpark Burger, Bean Burger, Chicken Sandwich, Gumbo, Hotdog, Lasagna or Sencillo Tacos
  • 3 SO: Wok Dish: Shrimp and Vegetable , and any 2 of Sliders, Souffle or Okonomiyaki
Minimum points reached using
  • HS (best choices are Chili, Stew) (best choices are Baklava, Brisket Slices, Ham Slices, Medovik, Sausage Slices, Turkey Slices) + SO
  • HS + SO (Cookies, Htapothi Sti Skhara, Onigiri)
  • HS (Chicken Nuggets, Churros or Turkey Leg) + SO (any 2 of Ice Cream Sundae, Shish Kabob, Steak, Traditional Hot Wings) (Borscht, Chicken Fried Meats, Sizzling Fajitas)
  • And other combinations

Comments
There are so many ways to hit the more than the minimum requirement on this route, and with an upgraded truck this should be a breeze. Pick up some extra money with more difficult foods.

If you're not getting this day, make sure to balance out your menu with more autoserve HS foods, as well as simpler SO foods to prep for VIP orders. The SO orders will come in fast and will fill up your stations just as you hit a stop. Getting the hack-blocking upgrade here is a great idea.
9. Jackson, Mississippi
Bowls of Sadness
Route D (Icy), Day 2

31-point menu needed
Max Wieners attack (HS foods lose freshness extremely fast) at the 1st stop
Impatient Customers (HS orders will start at middle patience/yellow border)
This day has 2 stops
Menu: Fire & Ice, Bowls of Love
2 HS + 6 SO
Maximum points available is 35, using
  • 2 HS: Deluxe Poutine , and any of Bouillabaisse, Chicken Tikka, Japanese Fried Rice, Pasta Salad or Siningang
  • 6 SO: Creme Brulee , Pasta , Bibimbap , and any 3 of Gazpacho, Japanese Crepe, Milkshakes, Risotto or Souffle ++
Minimum points reached using
  • HS + SO
  • HS + SO (Frozen Lattes, Halo-Halo, Ice Cream Scoops, Ice Cream Sundae, or Stuffed Peppers)
  • HS + SO (Cereal, Ceviche, Eggplant Parmigiana, Gelato, Pad Thai, Steamed Mussels, or Yakizakana)
  • HS (any 2 of Chakalaka, Chili, Coq au Vin, Green Papaya Salad, Oatmeal, Rote Grutze, Sizzling Apple Pie or Soto Ayam) + SO
  • And other combinations.

Comments
The SO orders will come in very fast over the two stops, so make sure you're using a menu that you're familiar with. A good thing with this is that you could cook all the SO foods first, then prep the HS food after. You could easily offload all the point requirements into the SO food, and consequently use simpler HS foods.

There are two ways to approach this level: either bring SO foods that will take long to cook (and hence you can delay prepping the HS food), or bring fast cooking SO foods so you can (auto)serve everything fast and quickly, to counter the effects of the Max Wieners attack. From this menu, however, you'll most likely be using faster cooking foods like Creme Brulee and Bibimbap.

The higher-point HS foods will generally stay fresher than lower-point ones, and are better for use here. If you're having trouble with keeping the HS foods fresh, upgrade your truck and come back for this challenge.

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Never Give Up
Route H (Caramel Drizzle), Day 5

31-point menu needed
Max Wieners attack (HS foods lose freshness extremely fast) at the 1st stop
Menu: Wieners Dinners, Wrap/Roll/Fold
4 HS + 3 SO
Maximum points available is 34, using
  • 4 HS: Tamales , Sushi , Deluxe Poutine and Gyro or Cannoli
  • 3 SO: Calzone , Roulade , Burrito
Minimum points reached using
  • HS (Foodtruck Fries or Hotdog) + SO (Halo-Halo or Pork Loin)
  • HS + SO (Japanese Crepe or Breakfast Burrito)
  • HS + SO

Comments
If you don't have the super attack upgrade, this one is a pain to do as your HS foods will lose freshness rapidly. Other than that, it's a recap of some of the early food and menus that we've done so far. Pick the HS and SO foods that you're more familiar with, since there is some choice in the menu. Again, you can use a reduced amount of prep stations to your advantage by letting it fill up with SO foods, which you can work on first before making food in your HS.

Deluxe Poutine is certainly doable here, but you'll need to check on your HS to make sure they aren't out of freshness in between orders. Cannoli and Hotdogs are HS optional, and you could take advantage of this by making the orders when they come in while you clear out your HS and recook food. Even Sushi is HS optional!

Maintain a steady rhythm when preparing the food, as a wrongly done Tamales or Sushi will put even more time pressure on yourself.
10. Mobile, Alabama
Easy Peasy
Route E (Poached), Day 5

34-point menu needed
Max Wieners attack (HS foods lose freshness extremely fast) at the 1st stop
Impatient Customers (HS orders will start at middle patience/yellow border)
This day has 5 stops
Menu: Autoserved
8 HS + 1 SO
Maximum points available is 34, using
  • 8 HS: Tamales , Sushi , Pizza by the Slice , and any 5 of Bouillabaisse, Chicken Tikka, Chow Mein, Chowder, Enchiladas, Foodtruck Fries, Gumbo, Japanese Fried Rice, Lasagna, Pasta Salad, Ratatouille, Siningang, Slice of Pie or Soup ++++
  • 1 SO: Calzone or Pizza

Comments
By this stage you should already have most, if not all, truck upgrades. The best strategy here is to not lose your cool over the 5 stops, especially with the Tamales and Sushi prep.

The orders will spike on the first, third and fifth stop. You'll probably find the first stop rush daunting; you could either do all the SO orders first then work on your HS while they cook, or do the HS orders first, or do a quick batch of 3 or 4 SO orders before working on the HS food. Calzone is a great choice as you can quickly make them, but they cook faster than Pizzas.

With maxed out rejuvenator and cloner upgrades, the HS foods will refresh nicely between stops. However, Sushi will tend to run out, so make sure to top it up regularly.

As for your 3-point HS foods, most of them provide the same amount of servings, except for Foodtruck Fries (4 extra), Chow Mein (2 extra), Ratatouille (1 extra), Pasta Salad (1 less) and Enchiladas (3 less). Avoid the low serving ones, and see if you can slot in the ones with higher servings.

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Lemon Squeezy
Route H (Endgame), Day 1

34-point menu needed
Max Wieners attack (HS foods lose freshness extremely fast) at the 1st stop
VIP customers (SO orders during stops)
Impatient Customers (HS orders will start at middle patience/yellow border)
This day requires 3 extra prep stations
Menu: Entire Menu
4 HS + 5 SO
Maximum points available is 45, using
  • 4 HS: The Fab Four (Deluxe Poutine, King Potato, Tamales, Sushi) +++
  • 5 SO: Any 5 of Bibimbap, Burrito, Calzone, Creme Brulee, Hot Lattes, Iced Lattes, Pasta, Pizza, Ramen, Roulade, Tacos, Wok Dish: Beef/Pork, Wok Dish: Chicken, Wok Dish: Shrimp/Vegetable ++++

There are too many combinations to list here...

Comments
With this challenge, the trick is in balancing your menu so you can tackle all fronts of the challenge. You'll need to be able to handle 10 prep stations, impatient customers and well as VIPs. What this means is that your SO menu will generally be skewed towards simpler, autoserve foods.

You could set up an SO menu with varying cook times, serving types (autoserve + second prep phase), and burning times, such as Bibimbap + Ramen + Calzone + Pizza + Creme Brulee, to use all 5-pointers. There are definitely easier combinations than this!

Remember to use foods that you are familiar with, and practice, practice, practice!
11. Nashville, Tennessee
Square Dancin'
Route C (The Classic), Day 2

29-point menu needed
Sushi Nest attack (Attacks reduce effectiveness of truck upgrades) at the 1st stop
Impatient Customers (HS orders will start at middle patience/yellow border)
This day requires 2 extra prep stations
This day has 2 stops
Menu: Too Good
4 HS + 5 SO
Maximum points available is 29, using
  • 4 HS: Banh Mi , Pasta Salad , and 2 of Beignets, Ham Slices, Poutine or Turkey Slices +
  • 5 SO: Roulade , Tostadas , Quiche , Club Sandwich , and one of Fried Chicken or Fried Seafood

Comments
Orders will come in extremely fast for this level, so make sure you know your menu thoroughly!

Be careful with the Banh Mi Cilantro and Carrot ingredients, and try to do them first before serving the other HS foods. Beignets and Poutine may be too unwieldy here to use so stick with Ham and Turkey Slices. Remember to refresh the Banh Mi and Pasta Salad immediately after the first stop.

For the SO foods, be careful with White Bread and Wheat Bread on Club Sandwiches, and the rest should be straightforward. Pick Fried Chicken or Fried Seafood based on which you're more comfortable with, and be careful with Fried Seafood's keybinds for Clam, L and Calamari, C.

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Dawn of The Final Day
Route J (Dead End), Day 1

40-point menu needed
Sushi Nest attack (Attacks reduce effectiveness of truck upgrades) at the 1st stop
VIP customers (SO orders during stops)
Impatient Customers (HS orders will start at middle patience/yellow border)
This day requires 3 extra prep stations
Menu: Complex Solids 3, Complex Solids 4, Complex Solids 5
5 HS + 4 SO
Maximum points available is 44, using
  • 5 HS: The Fab Four (Deluxe Poutine, King Potato, Tamales, Sushi) +++, and any of Banh Mi, Cannoli, Deluxe Nachos, Gyro, Hamburger, Pho, Pizza by the Slice or Torta
  • 4 SO: Any 4 of Bibimbap, Burrito, Calzone, Creme Brulee, Hot Lattes, Iced Lattes, Pasta, Pizza, Ramen, Roulade, Tacos, Wok Dish: Beef/Pork, Wok Dish: Chicken, Wok Dish: Shrimp/Vegetable +++
Minimum points reached using
  • HS (best choices are the soups: Bouillabaisse, Chowder, Gumbo, Sinigang, Soup and the other autoserve foods: Chicken Tikka, Chow Mein, Enchiladas, Foodtruck Fries, Japanese Fried Rice, Lasagna, Pasta Salad, Slice of Pie, Ratatouille) + SO
  • And other combinations.

Comments
Flexible menus allow you to use the food that you know how to make, and if you've reached this point, congratulations! Remember to check on your HS foods, and always keep the Sushi ready as you'll get bad orders if you can't remake them while they are ticking down.
6 kommentarer
Limecrete 29 dec, 2021 @ 8:09 
Nashville, Route B (Chantilly), Day 5 is my Everest. It's the one I just can't get a gold medal on, so if you or anyone has any tips, I'd love to hear them.
arkus locke  [skapare] 5 jun, 2021 @ 4:17 
Hey pyrox, feel free to do so! I personally haven't completed the game because I've been playing other games, but more guides would be great!
Electro 3 jun, 2021 @ 12:38 
Thanks a lot for this guide, I just managed to reach 100% completion of this game with your help. Would you mind if I made a new post with the Iron Cook Speedway achievements?
arkus locke  [skapare] 12 sep, 2020 @ 20:04 
I just got back to the game, so I'll be inching my way to the competition perfect day challenges!
The Mogician 21 jun, 2020 @ 21:31 
Bibimbap is one of the best 5 point SO's out there, together with the calzone. They saved my Dawn of the Last Day achievement run. Bibimbap can stay cooked without getting burnt for a long time, allowing you to free your hand to handle the other dishes.
The Mogician 21 maj, 2020 @ 0:53 
For Easy Peasy, you need a maxed out menu, so you need 5:5:4:3:3:3:3:3+5.

For HS, you need sushi and tamales. For the HS4, I suggest going with sliced pizza since it is autoserve. For the 3s, stick with autoserves. I went with sinigang+pie+soup+fries+boubuillais. You can swap sinigang with chowder depending on whichever one you feel easy. Fries is a good choice since they come with 16 servings if upgraded to the max.

Most of the HS food shouldn't run out in the stops as long as you keep an eye out. When there is only a few SO left, throw out the depleted HS foods and recook them. However, take care that sometimes sushi can run out and sushi customers are impatient, so I suggest always keep an eye out for the sushi.