Exquisite Tastes Upgrade?

[EpicAlex]

8

With the release of the Rocketry Upgrade coming up, I thought I'd suggest a new upgrade which can help with getting Morale high enough to get into space, primarily with the food that will be consumed. It will involve new foods that can be eaten and utensils to eat them with, ranging from silverware and plates to advanced machines that make good food. So, I hope you are reading Klei, cause here's what I have in mind;

First lets start with the simplest. A new room for the room overlay. The Kitchen. It will require One cooking device (either being the microbe mix her or electric grill or another cooking device), 1 sanitizing device (like a sink or hand sanitizer), and 1 device for cleaning dishes (either a dishwasher or a sink) with a min size of 12-96. The size could change but their can be big kitchens. It will give 50% increase with cooking speed for all cooking utensils. And it will require a chef (teir 4 if I'm right) to be present within the room to do so. Or it won't work. Also, when ceramic plating, or other research related to cooking with new utensils, a sink can have two modes. Hand washing or utensil cleaning and will have a little sign above it which it will say which. Either a hand sign or plate and fork sign.

Mechanics.

Main and Side Dishes. Their will be two food qualifications that will either call them a main dish or a side dish. A main dish is the major part of the meal and it doesn't need to be eaten on ceramic plating or with silverware. A side dish is a low calorie item that gives a high morale bonus that needs to be eaten with plating and silverware. It will also be able to be eaten along with a main dish to give a "Fulfilling meal" buff which will give a +6 morale (hey some of the food will be quite high so its fair). And this mechanic will probably be capable mid to late game though, so that's the trade off for high morale. And side dishes will consist of snacks, drinks, sides and desserts.

Steak. I always felt like you should be able to eat meat without it being -1 quality. So, I think you should be able to make Steak on the electric grill with 1600 kcal meat + 20 kg water to make 2800 kcal steak. Water is also included cause who doesn't like a juicy steak?

Plates and silverware. Plates and silverware will give an enhanced enjoyable experience. Eating with plates will give 2 morale and with silverware adds an additional 2. They will be made in a Stations or Utilities tab device called a Utensil Station/Crafter. It will take in ceramic or metal to make dishes, being plates and bowls, and then make silverware. The utensils will take a small amount of materials to make, however it will produce a high-ish amount of power and a lot of heat released. Dishes and silverware will need to be cleaned after use, in either a sink (manual labor) or washing machine (automated labor).

New Food Making devices. They will take refined metals to craft and will come in a couple of varieties, including a snack machine, drink machine and dessert machine. Some machines will require input like the drink machine for water and will require manual delivery of items, like bristle berry. Other machines will either require a lot of power or produce a lot of heat. Depending on which it is. And there will be one final machine for space exploration. A nutrient condenser. It will mash any amount of calories into a 4000 calorie Nutrient Bar with little power and beat produced. However has a -1 food quality and doesn't decay. And the condenser can take any of the food items you have to make it (like 1 pepper bread to make 1 nutrient bar or 5 meal lice to make 1 nutrient bar) Just need to input it.

Food Dispensary. A specialized device for storing food and dishes and automatically prepares food. It can store 300 food items, 100 silverware and dishes. It will require refined metal and requires 480 power. It has a 2x3 size. 

Washing machine. A machine for the kitchen where dishes will be washed automatically once a load has been put in. It can take 50 dishes and 75 silverware. Has a 3x2 size and requires refined metal, power and an input and output for water and polluted water.

Possible new plants0

Cherry bush (Hydrogen cherries): produce two different types of fruit based on light or darkness.

Cave Banana Tree (cave banana): an interesting fruit, however it seems familiar somehow (ds reference!)

Succulent root: produce either 3 leaf fruit if given water or 15 bitter bite pods if polluted water. It grows in a dry area

Alien Lithops: a decoration item for hot areas. Hardly needs watering

New biome: Sandy/Dry biome. A hot and dry zone that can hardly sustain life. Mostly consists of sand and sandstone.

New critter: Skitter. A timid lizard that feasts upon the fruit of the Succulent root (either bitter bite pods or leaf fruit). Will run away from duplicants if approached. Has three variants. Venomous, Tropical/Glider, and Vibrant skitter.

That's pretty much it with those ideas. Sorry if its a little janky and unguided. But I wanted to put up this idea for the next Upgrade. I also have a few set piece ideas I'll post later. Thanks you reading and have a good day

[ImpalerWrG]

Some of this I can get behind, a Kitchen building, but not tied to a job tier.  Rather a 3rd cooking device like an Oven should be what you access with a top tier chef.

Plates and Silverware as items being moved and cleaned is too many moving parts.  I'd say give us an improved tier of dinning table, the dining equivalent of the comfy bed.  The table is considered to come with it's own cutlery.

Processing food into some kind of special form that becomes astronaut rations I like.  But still feels like it should reflect it's original quality some how.  Maybe a simple reduction from what it originally was?