EAT in darkness
The idea of eating in total darkness may seem strange if you are sighted, but of course is perfectly normal to an unsighted person.
In 1999, a blind clergyman, Jorge Spielmann, had the idea of opening a restaurant in Zurich staffed by blind waiters. It is called Die Blinde Kuh (The Blind Cow), and the waiters wear bells on their feet, so you can hear them approaching. Diners are met at the entrance and led in procession to their tables. The toilets are lit, but diners have to be guided there by a waiter.
The venture has a serious purpose - to give blind people work, and at the same time to teach sighted people what it is like to live in a blind world.
Before opening his restaurant Spielmann sometimes used to blindfold guests at his home to encourage them to pay more attention to the food and the conversations going on around them. "I just want people to experience the world on our terms."
...have a blinding experience
Take Action
Is a blind restaurant a good idea? Could the idea catch on? Might blind restaurants spring up in other cities? What do you think?
If you go to any of the cities featured above, make a point of going to dine at a Blind Restaurant, and find out for yourself.
Back home, contact an organisation for blind and visually impaired people active in your town or city, and suggest that you work together to organise a blind evening (with masks) at a local restaurant.
Find Out More
Die Blinde Kuh: www.blindekuh.ch
Dans le Noir?: www.danslenoir.com
Unsicht Bar: www.unsicht-bar-berlin.de
And in Berlin, Paris and London...
Dans Le Noir? (In the Dark?), which has branches in Paris and London, is run on similar lines to The Blind Cow. It was established by the Paul Guinot Association, which helps France's blind and visually handicapped.
Adapting a building to make it totally blacked out can b e expensive. There can also be difficulties with health and safety regulations.
The Unsicht Bar (Invisible Bar) in Berlin gets round the problem by requiring diners to wear masks over their eyes. The restaurant was started by an organisation of blind and visually impaired people, and most of the staff are blind.
Besides promoting awareness of blindness, the idea of a blind restaurant is of interest to experimental psychologists, who are keen to find out how lack of vision affects our experience of taste.
And, if an account of a one-night experiment in New York is anything to go by, the darkness can make for a very intimate dining experience!
What blind people say
"We hope the restaurant will serve as a bridge between people who can see and people who can't." - Paul Guinot Association
"See what it's like in the dark. Here, we're on an equal footing with other people. And for once we can hold a hand out to others." - a visually impaired waiter in a pitch-black restaurant
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Ever thought of eating in the dark?
Why not go to one of these restaurants, and find out what it's like?
- Die Blinde Kuh (The Blind Cow) in Zurich: www.blindekuh.ch
- Dans le Noir (In the Dark) in Paris with a branch in London: www.danslenoir.com
- Unsicht Bar (The Invisible Bar) in Berlin: www.unsicht-bar-berlin.de
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