VANCOUVER, Sept. 5, 2012 /CNW/ - Blind dining, one of the most intriguing culinary trends of the last few years, will finally come to Vancouver when Dark Table opens in Kitsilano in September. A hit in major cities like London, Paris, New York, L.A. and Montreal, blind dining is a unique opportunity to experience dining in a whole new way—in the dark. An evening at Dark table will offer adventurous Vancouverites a culinary journey through what is for most uncharted territory, where the familiar—food, drink and friends—becomes a wonder to be explored and discovered, as if for the first time.
Blind diners are guaranteed "a sensory experience like no other," states Moe Alameddine, owner of Dark Table and founder of O.Noir, Canada's only blind dining restaurants in Montreal and Toronto. Upon arrival in the lighted lounge, guests choose their meal from a first class menu that will rival Vancouver's best restaurants, and then be led to their table in the dark dining room by a blind server. Once seated, guests have the opportunity to adjust to the darkness and truly give themselves to this extraordinary experience.
Blind dining originated in Switzerland in the home of a blind man—Jorge Spielmann—who blindfolded his guests in an attempt to show them what eating is like for a blind person. Spielmann's guests enjoyed the experience immensely, and claimed that when their sense of sight was removed, taste, smell, hearing and touch were amplified to the extent that the social act of eating took on a whole new meaning. These initial dinners evolved into a restaurant concept that included a dark dining room and blind servers, a tradition that Dark Table will continue.
With an unemployment rate of 70%, the blind face obvious challenges in a society that is preoccupied with visual communication, but in a dark dining environment, the tables are turned—the non-sighted servers guide the sighted. While Alameddine is proud to offer employment to blind and visually impaired people, he admits that it is truly the blind that are offering this unique, eye-opening experience to the sighted. In the words of William Shakespeare, "There is no darkness but ignorance."
Dark Table will open at 2611 W4th September 20th of this year, offering Vancouver exceptional cuisine, superb service and a voyage to the unknown.
Image with caption: "www.darktable.ca (CNW Group/Dark Table Restaurant Inc)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20120905_C3544_PHOTO_EN_17461.jpg
SOURCE: Dark Table Restaurant Inc
Contact: Moe Alameddine
Address: 2611 W 4th Avenue
Phone #: 604-739-3275 (DARK)
Email: [email protected]
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