Fresh Air Restaurant

Eventually you decide to visit the premier restaurant on Babylon 5.  This is Fresh Air, the only five-star establishment on Babylon 5.  It is found on the border of Red Sector and Green Sector, where it looks out into the gardens.  The proprietor is the famous chef, Emerson Briggs-Wallace, who has managed to develop a fine dining experience based on both human and alien cuisine.  So why not make a booking, or if you have done that already, why not go and wait to be seated?  A waiter is already approaching you...

Wait to be Seated

Good evening, and welcome to Fresh Air!  May I take you to your table?  Follow me over here, where we have a table ready for you, facing the gardens.  Once you are comfortably seated, would you like to see the menu?   Would you like to try some of the more exotic alien dishes on offer today?  We have:

Flarn - a Minbari tray-baked delicacy that takes over a day to prepare, with much prayer and religious ceremony.  There are fifteen stages of cooking, and the spices must be added in the correct order, otherwise the cook must start again.

Spoo - a mealworm-like creature with a meaty taste and gelatinous texture.  Some humans think it tastes like chicken.  The Centauri prefer it well aged for flavour, although the Narns prefer it fresh.  We never make that mistake!

Yogtree - a tree-worm native to Orion IV, but liked by many species.  We serve it chopped and fried, as finger-food, since over-indulgence may bring digestive issues to the sensitive.  It tastes like zesty chicken.  The Drazi eat it lightly-cooked, sometimes when it is still alive.

Ready to Order?

If you are ready to order, I can recommend a number of other dishes that we have on special offer today:

Breen - this is ground meat dish from Narn, which is quite similar to the Centauri dish Roopo Balls, and is said to be almost identical to Swedish Meatballs.  It seems that our different species have all invented the same dish!

Jurbeen - this is a Centauri dish, currently popular in their Royal Court, which consists of chunks of smoked Treel in a cheese and Rikling sauce.

What is Treel?  Well, that is a small blue and white fish-like creature that is raised on Centauri Prime as a food animal, and is used in several dishes.

What is Rikling?  Well, that is a kind of edible vegetable from Centauri Prime; the nearest Earth equivalent would be asparagus.

Grout Head - this is a Narn delicacy that consists of a cooked Grout's head.  You eat it in your fingers, so you will need more napkins for this.

What is a Grout?  Well, this is a domesticated food animal, somewhat similar to a pig on Earth.  You have never tried eating a pig's head?

Perhaps you would just prefer G'Quan Soup?  This can be made from a variety of different vegetables, the exact mix isn't important, and the soup is traditionally made to celebrate the hatch-day of G'Quan.  Every Narn brood member must bring their own vegetable.  So you didn't bring a vegetable with you?

Well, I suppose the simplest human-oriented food we do here is Zoon Burger with Jovian tuber fries.  Would that be satisfactory?  (Honestly, you could get that any day at Doug's Dugout in Red Sector).

To Accompany your Meal

What would you like to accompany your meal?  Would you like any cocktails while you are waiting for your first course?  We can recommend the following aperitifs:

Brivari - a distilled liquor, ordered in huge quantities by Ambassador Londo Mollari, so we always have some in stock.  This is also drunk in celebration by the Couro Prido, a Centauri duelling society.

Taree - a ruby coloured wine from Narn, made from a selected variety of mixed fruits and spiced with Klaga-bark.

What is Klaga?  This is a Narn tree, whose bark has a spiced flavour, somewhat similar to cinnamon.

Kompa - a strongly alcoholic drink made by the Llort.  It is the basis for one of their drinking games.

Jovian Sunspot - this is a favourite Earth cocktail made from cream of coconut, cranberry and apple juice, vodka and orange juice.  The trick is to float the vodka and orange over the red sunspot.

We also have Orcha, a refreshing non-alcoholic Markab drink made from blended fruit juices, chiefly Venda juice and something like ginger ale.  Venda is a fruit from the Markab homeworld.

Thank you; your order will be with you very shortly.  Enjoy your meal!  Can I interest you in this book of recipes by our head chef, Emerson Briggs-Wallace?