Unusual Dining Experience - 10/22/09 01:59 PM
Last week my daughter took me to a restaurant called Onoir in Montreal.
The thing about Onoir is that all the waiters are blind and everyone eats in a totally (and I mean totally) dark room.
You enter a dimly lit lobby, read the menu (which includes 'surprise' dishes) and make your choice. Then you are introduced to your waiter who instructs the whole group to make a left-hand-on-shoulder-train and he leads you into the dining room and to your table.
He then explains things such as sighted person would often explain to a blind person - table here, chair there, how the table is set etc. He then makes sure you are safely seated and assures you he will be back (phew!).
Periodically, he reappears with a quiet 'hello' and oversees getting the food he has brought onto the table.
You are given a knife and fork, but I think the majority of people would resort to fingers very quickly - I mean who would know??
When we had finished eating, our waiter asked us if we needed the washrooms/restrooms and led us there and waited to take us safely through the dining room to the lobby.
(Yes the restrooms were lit - but only dimly).
It was an amazing experience. My daughter chose the 'suprise' main course, so had to guess what she was eating.
I was told beforehand that the total lack of light would enhance all of my other senses - and I found that to be true. The food was great anyway, but I found myself making extra effort to really taste the food.
Apparently there are similar restaurants around the world. If you ever have the chance to visit one, it is an experience not to be missed.
Corrina
The thing about Onoir is that all the waiters are blind and everyone eats in a totally (and I mean totally) dark room.
You enter a dimly lit lobby, read the menu (which includes 'surprise' dishes) and make your choice. Then you are introduced to your waiter who instructs the whole group to make a left-hand-on-shoulder-train and he leads you into the dining room and to your table.
He then explains things such as sighted person would often explain to a blind person - table here, chair there, how the table is set etc. He then makes sure you are safely seated and assures you he will be back (phew!).
Periodically, he reappears with a quiet 'hello' and oversees getting the food he has brought onto the table.
You are given a knife and fork, but I think the majority of people would resort to fingers very quickly - I mean who would know??
When we had finished eating, our waiter asked us if we needed the washrooms/restrooms and led us there and waited to take us safely through the dining room to the lobby.
(Yes the restrooms were lit - but only dimly).
It was an amazing experience. My daughter chose the 'suprise' main course, so had to guess what she was eating.
I was told beforehand that the total lack of light would enhance all of my other senses - and I found that to be true. The food was great anyway, but I found myself making extra effort to really taste the food.
Apparently there are similar restaurants around the world. If you ever have the chance to visit one, it is an experience not to be missed.
Corrina
It sounds like a really neat evening!
