Dinner in the Dark

Its a Thursday night and it's time to treat yourself. You're at a restaurant with some loved ones and you can see the waiters hurrying around you, the drops of wine you have spilt on the tablecloth, the food arranged aesthetically on your plate. 

Now imagine you can't see any of that. It is pitch black. This is Dinner in the Dark.  

"You take for granted the fact that you can see what your next step is going to be; and this is mentally exhausting at first." Says Zahir Hertz, a waiter who is legally blind and serves food in pitch black in a restaurant in Los Angeles, "Then you get more comfortable with it, and when you get more relaxed you begin to enjoy it."

Serving dinner in the dark allows Zahir and others like him to still have a good job despite their lack of sight. 80% of all perception is through the eyes, and by abandoning that major sense a person is forced to rely on all the other senses, which become enlightened and heightened. This can be experienced by diners, a unique cuisine that encourages you to awaken your senses and completely re-evaluate your perception of taste and smell as you dine in complete darkness.

"Part of the game is playing with what you know, should know, don't know and don't see."

Diners were surprised how much their evening was changed and what new senses they began to experience. "I could smell it was a white wine coming before it reached the table," exclaimed one diner, "And those vegetables smelt like never before."

The purpose of the dining experience is putting together foods to challenge taste buds and your sense of taste. The dining experience as most often people eat with their eyes, but the whole eye concept is taken away and people have to have trust in the food. The chef has even done some clever tricks with the plate to help diners.


It became apparent that people found their eyes were closed as they did not need them. It was claimed they become so enlightened by their other senses that the room began to look how they wanted it to look. One diner commented "I thought it was really interesting to think about how i was visualizing dinner in my mind could have been different to someone else's visual experience at the table" 

Here you can watch the full video of the customers, chef and waiters experience

 Dinner in the Dark is also an Enactus Sheffield project at Fitzwilliam & West in Sheffield City Centre.

The unique dining experience is perfect for birthdays, anniversaries and a meal out with family and friends. We have events available on the 9th and 10th of December at very reasonable prices with wine included.

To book visit the website http://dinner-in-the-dark.wix.com/dinner-in-the-dark
Or interact with us on the facebook page 
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dinner-In-The-Dark-Sheffield/224173841092761 


*