It was established in the early days of “Deep Space Nine” that Commander Sisko (Avery Brooks) was the son of a Creole chef, Joseph Sisko (Brock Peters). It had also been mentioned in several previous episodes of “Star Trek: The Next Generation” that people still went to diners and bistros when not onboard the Enterprise. This indicated that the dining experience was still cherished and that going out to eat remained a ritual. With the Siskos, it was further cemented that many Starfleet officers keep ingredients on hand to cook food in their rooms. Not everyone, it seems, has to rely on the convenience of food replicators.

“I’d like to lose the replicators.,” Behr admitted. “[…] They’re my least favorite thing in ‘Star Trek.’ A society that uses replicators is a doomed, finished society.” Behr didn’t elucidate as to why, perhaps feeling that it would turn food into a utility rather than a source of pleasure and nourishment. Writer Hans Beimler posited that Sisko’s cooking skills were indicative of the importance of hobbies in the future. Cooking, Beimler noted, is a social exercise, something you do to nourish others. That, he felt, reflected positively on Sisko’s character. He was the type of person to take pride in his work, therapeutically devote himself to something other than being a station commander, and take care of his son and his friends with a spicy meal.

Behr and Beimler weren’t the only ones who liked handmade meals over replicators. Executive producer and longtime “Star Trek” head honcho Ronald D. Moore even spoke out against the frustrating convenience of replicators in the book “The Science of Star Trek: The Scientific Facts Behind the Voyages in Space and Time” by Mark Brake.