Pokémon Scarlet and Violet’s Paldea region is full of delicious Pokémon

Look, it’s no secret that people eat Pokémon. This happens both in anime and video games. But it’s hard to ignore just how many delicious, food-based Pokémon there are in Pokémon Scarlet Violet. They’re everywhere, including in meals and sandwiches used as buffs in-game.

Let’s begin with the Pokémon that are literally, explicitly food. I’m thinking along the lines of Lechonk, or Oinkologne, whose name is literally a play on bologne. Ham was an essential ingredient for sandwich making in the past. SwordAnd Shield.) Scarlet Violet have three Pokémon that are made out of olives (Smoliv, Dolliv, and Arboliva), two that are chili peppers (Capsakid and Scovillain), a sushi-like fish creature (Tatsugiri), and two dogs made out of bread (Fidough and Dachsbun). Combine any of those with rock-salt Pokémon Nacli, Naclstack, and Garganacl, and you’ve got a tasty meal.

A screenshot from a menu in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. An image for “Klawf al Ajillo” is highlighted. There is a whole Klawf claw (which looks like a crab claw) in the soup bowl, so large it sticks out of the side, along with the soup.

There’s even a sandwich ingredient made specifically from Klawf Sticks, likely a Pokémon version of imitation crab. Julia Lee, a Guides writer suggested it might mean Klawf Sticks were made from readily available fish such as Magikarp. According to the item description, though, it’s ground up Klawf shells — though there’s got to be something else in there.

Beyond sandwiches, there’s also a bunch of food served at restaurants throughout Paldea. Like sandwiches, these give passive buffs for activities like finding eggs and/or Pokémon of a certain type. Klawf, Toedscool are two of the most distinctive ingredients in these meals. In Klawf al Ajillo, served at the Go-For-Broke Grill, there’s a big ol’ Klawf shell sticking out of the bowl. Honestly, it looks delicious.

A screenshot from a restaurant menu in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet. “Pickled Toedscool and Cucumber” is highlighted. The dish looks like a mix of cucumber, mushroom, and pepper.

At Jade Palace Garden, there’s the Pickled ToedscoolAnd Cucumber dish, made from Toedscool, which is canonically a Pokémon that’s “chewy and very delicious,” according to its Pokédex entry.

Beyond Pokémon as ingredients, the food in Pokémon Scarlet and Violet is visually fantastic — maybe the best looking food in a Pokémon game. You will find a number of restaurants, cafes and small vendors along the streets. There’s a surprisingly large variety, which is nice for food-in-games-appreciators like me. It’s the small details like this, rather than a bloated open world, that make these spaces feel more intimate and lived-in; to know what the people of Paldea eat means feeling a little bit closer to its inhabitants, and learning a little bit more about their world.