Miscellaneous food (food)

In order to survive or regain stamina during Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, Naked Snake must eat food. This article contains information about the miscellaneous food in the game that isn't a plant or animal.

Calorie Mate

Main article: CalorieMate

• Ration Name: C MATE
• Initial Taste: Outstanding
• Stamina Recovery: Large

On all difficulties below Hard, you start off both Virtuous Mission and Snake Eater with one or more of these, and can find a few more during the missions. This is the ultimate food. It gives tons of stamina, tastes excellent and will keep you satisfied for a long, long time. You can get them from some soldiers that you defeat or hold up, especially later in the game. You can also find them in locations from Bolshaya Past Base to Svyatogornyj East. You don't need to acquire this item to get the Markhor ranking and/or the EZ Gun, but it is very useful regardless. Calorie Mate is a real-life brand of nutritional supplements, though its presence in Snake Eater is an interesting anomaly; Calorie Mate is primarily sold in Japan and only found in international markets in the US, meaning it is extremely unlikely to be among the supplies of either the American or Russian militaries, and it was first released to the public in 1983, making its appearance in 1964 outright impossible.

Instant Noodles

Main article: Instant Noodles

• Ration Name: NOODLES
• Initial Taste: Outstanding
• Stamina Recovery: Large

Considered a technological marvel in the 1960s. It's cheap, easy to cook, healthy and delicious. All the person needs to do is add some hot water and the noodles are ready to eat. It is among the ranks of the Calorie Mate for the ultimate food. They were invented in Japan during the early 1960s. You can get them from some soldiers that you defeat or hold up, especially later in the game. You can also find them in locations from Ponizovje Warehouse to the Groznyj Grad Sewers. They also can be found in almost all the provision warehouses scattered throughout the game. In addition, when meeting up with EVA at the Krasnogorje Mountaintop, she will supply Naked Snake with Instant Noodles, which she states to be the "food of the space age." You don't need to acquire this item to get the Markhor ranking and/or the EZ Gun, but it is very useful regardless. When EVA is shot with a tranquilizer dart, she remarks "MMM... Instant Noodles." Also, when Snake calls EVA about his backpack missing his food, EVA will admit that she did steal and eat the Instant Noodles, but denies stealing the rest of the food that Snake caught. Instant Noodles are also EVA's favorite meal. Instant Noodles were also popular among the GRU soldiers stationed at Groznyj Grad, popular enough to give EVA (as Tatyana) a hard time trying to locate three of them. She gave Naked Snake two packets of them as a gift (its heavily implied that EVA ate the other packet).

Russian Ration

Main article: Ration

• Ration Name: RATION
• Initial Taste: Terrible
• Stamina Recovery: Moderate

Russian-issue rations, given to its soldiers. It is reputed to taste extremely bad, but is very healthy, recovers a lot of stamina and will never spoil. Frequently found in and near enemy buildings. You can get them from many soldiers that you defeat or hold up. You can also find them in locations from Bolshaya Past Base to Zaozyorje South. You don't need to acquire this item to get the Markhor ranking and/or the EZ Gun.

Baltic Hornet's Nest

• Ration Name: NEST
• Initial Taste: Tasty
• Danger Level: Medium
• Stamina Recovery: Moderate

Hornets nest honey

Described as the "perfect food for survival" by Para-medic, since it has many nutrients, tastes good because of the honey and is commonly found. This is also one of the more dangerous things to hunt though, since when you knock it down, a horde of hornets will come at you and keep attacking, and will take out a chunk of your health. However, if you wait until enemies are near and shoot it with a silenced weapon, the hornets will attack the enemy instead! This is very useful when trying to cross Dolinovodno undetected during the Virtuous Mission. Dremuchij Swampland is the first place where you can find it, and the last place to find them is Svyatogornyj West.

On a side note, the honey can be used as a burn ointment, so when a nest is knocked down, an ointment will appear beside it. The nests can also be used during The Pain battle to reduce the amount of hornets he can use (they can also be used to catch his dangerous "bullet bees"). The last place that you can find a hornet's nest before this battle is during the battle with Ocelot at Bolshaya Past Crevice, although shooting down the only nest here that you can actually reach will probably make the hornets attack you.

Hornets will follow you around and attack your enemies instead of you if you are wearing The Pain's "Hornet" camouflage uniform.

Hive of Pain Hornets

• Ration Name: P.H.NEST
• Initial Taste: Tasty
• Danger Level: High
• Stamina Recovery: Large (All!)

The Pain's hornets can transform a normal hornet's nest into a special kind of hornet's nest. This hornet's nest never spoils, and it restores all of your stamina when eaten! There are two ways to change a hornet's nest into a Pain Hornet nest. The first is to throw a hornet's nest onto the ground when The Pain's bees are out; some of them will be drawn into the nest and transform it, limiting the number of hornets or bullet bees (as appropriate) that are available to him.

The second method to acquire these is to have your hornet's nests in your equipped items when The Pain sends his hornets to swarm over you and hold you in place. Any nests equipped when this happens will change into Hives of Pain Hornets. You don't need to get this special nest to get the Markhor ranking and/or the EZ Gun, but these improved hornet's nests are very useful regardless.