Almost 100 diners share this intimately spaced dining experience in groups of 12 per table. The Blind Café utilizes various venues to facilitate the optimum dark experience the café concept is built upon.
When I was contacted by the Blind Café to come experience their concept and write about it I immediately said yes. It is a ‘pop up’, or temporary restaurant where the diners spend 2 hours in the dark serviced by actual blind wait staff. The café circulates between a handful of edgy towns providing 2 nights of 2 seatings per night before moving on. I was excited, loving anything off the beaten path and unusual, however the first thought on my mind the day after accepting was whether I’d feel claustrophobic? I’m NOT claustrophobic but clearly the unknown of the event was beginning to work me a little.
The organizing staff of the Blind Café encouraged not knowing much before going which I understood, however I did speak with founder Rosh Rocheleau about the origination of the idea. Rosh is a songwriter and was touring in Iceland where he encountered a temporary blind café in Reykjavik. It presented more as a concert in the dark where Rosh felt like he got to know a handful of strangers only in the dark with whom he still keeps in contact. The focus afforded by the concept attracted his attention, recognizing participants can’t be texting on phones and the like while engaging with others and listening to the music. Rosh was moved to spearhead the idea in the U.S.
Somewhere in the development of the concept for Rosh was the thought to fold in actual blind waiters. In speaking with a blind person Rosh knew, she encouraged the idea. Rosh is careful to couch the café’s experience to NOT be attempting to emulate an actual blind experience as most blind people have some experience of light or sight. It does open a forum for diners to learn more from the blind staff however about their experience and level the playing field for the blind with the sighted when in the café. The Blind Café has become a business which Rosh indicated was required for its sustainability though they possess a 501c3 nonprofit status in Boulder and will be doing fundraising work to benefit puppy guide dog programs.
SPOILER ALERT! The following text is a map of the evening and my personal reflections on my experience. Should you desire to attend the Blind Café personally this will disclose aspects of the evening you may choose to experience ‘fresh’.
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Our dinner had been placed at our seats prior to entering the café. I promptly placed my hand into my dressed salad before fondling my way around my plates to gain a sense of orientation. My dining partner-friend and I used clock orientation to converse about what the food might be (e.g. ‘there is something crunchy at 1:00 I can’t figure out’)
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When arriving at the Blind Cafe diners were given a number corresponding to the table where they’ll be seated. We were then assigned a blind ‘seater’ who would ferry us in to our designated dining spot. Each table seats 12 so each side of the table was lead in by a different seater. Greg was our seater and instructed me to place my hands on his shoulders with all following diners to do the same and we wound into the abyss in a sort of conga line.
I have never been somewhere so dark. The café is in the complete absence of light. One’s eyes do not adjust allowing better movie-theatre type vision; you spend 2 hours in the dark unable to even see the person sitting 2 inches away.
As we began to wind into the seating area I broke a low grade sweat. I felt creeping anxiety begin and with it the potential to burst into a full blown panic attack. I had never experienced anything like this prior and it was a very unsettling experience. Greg gently situated us at the table, placing my hand on the back of my chair, leaving me to wiggle into the tightly choreographed seating. I was between a wall and a writer friend I’d persuaded to come along for which I was grateful once settled in for the evening.
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After being seated, getting the tactile lay of the land and especially after the verbal presentation portion of the evening begun so there was a focus, my angst subsided. I think it was rooted in the complete disorientation the experience introduces. Intentional or not, it all seemed deeply metaphorical of life’s experiences, often having nothing to do with sight.
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The tables were preset with the evening’s food. We were briefed in the waiting area about what we’d expect to find and where. There was a plate of salad immediately in front of us, a cheese plate to our upper right, and dessert to our upper left. Water would be found directly above the main plate. There was no formal dinner bell signaling dining had begun but everyone began the awkward process of orienting themselves to their food and the communal bread in the middle of the table and dug in.
I found myself quickly uncomfortable using the plastic fork needing to more directly connect with my food to understand what I was eating and merely to feel connected to the food overall. I began to eat with my fingers to decipher the meal which was mainly local from the long list of known sponsors Rosh read aloud with thanks. I felt a bit of trepidation when I was unable to determine a food until I had it in my mouth. Somewhat of a Darwinian response I think or perhaps resultant from watching too many episodes of Gordon Ramsey’s ‘Kitchen Nightmares’.
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At one point in the evening I found a rogue set of legs underneath my chair coming from the opposite side of the table. I gently nudged them feeling sure someone had lost their podiatric way in the dark though they did not move. I believe my tablemate must have been lying down in their chair in order to stretch that far.
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Normally when dining out my recap is all about the food. This was really all about the experience though the food was good and seemingly thoughtful for the textures it offered. Cured has supplied some dried cheeses which was plated with a large piece of Haystack Mountain goat cheese, some seasoned almonds and a bit of fig. The main dish was a lettuce salad with a variety of other things on the plate. Hoot ‘n Howl farm provided sorrel for the salad. There were chunks of potatoes, beets (my nemesis, which I found abrupt to learn they too were attending the dinner but only realizing it once they were in my mouth), carrot. I encountered some foods that were a combination of two foods but presented as one that I could not figure out. Dessert was a skewer of fruit with Noosa yogurt to dip, a Cocomel caramel and sort of mini soft popcorn ball. The café did a great job of serving a locally sourced meal.
I did not eat much and was not very hungry. All the food was cold intentionally so there was no smell to engage the desire to eat and I surmise for me the absence of a visual dance of enticement encouraging the interest to eat played a role as well. The experience of even locating one’s food was a task. My friend finally grabbed the hands of the man across the table who had his hands in her plate I surmise trying to locate the communal bread in the middle of the table.
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Me, admittedly having squirreled my water bottle into my lap for the evening for fear of accidentally ‘sharing’. I’m sure not in the spirit of the event but I’ll admit my foibles. And it was 90 degrees.
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The room is very loud and I’m unsure if that is acoustics from the manner used to make it so dark, diners speaking more loudly or one’s hearing being more primed in the absence of sight. After some dining time the blind seaters (I use that term specifically since all the food is pre-placed on the tables therefore really not exercising the blind staff as traditional waiters) speak to the group about their personal sight experience and answer questions. This segment is kicked off by chiming of a Tibetan gong; we the diners were pre-educated to be silent when we heard it. Obviously asking questions was different since no one can see raised hands. Diners would yell out questions at a pause which the seaters would address.
The range of experience spanned blindness from birth to Sabina who has been gradually losing her vision over the past 5 years and now has just lost her ability to see the sun. She described the process as experiencing a death and she is working through the grieving of it though you could hear the strength in her coquettish voice. Another of the group discussed his perception of color sharing he can’t see color but if a light is shined through color he can perceive the differences based on the energy they emit; red being the strongest. This section of the evening was thoughtful and interesting, allowing something most of us rarely have time for; putting ourselves in someone else’s shoes (as much as that is ever possible) for a few minutes.
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The concert portion of the evening. Listening to the music in the dark definitely heightened the attention to all the sounds.
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The evening moved into a concert section lead by Rosh. It was a modern folk music genre with Rosh on the guitar (I think) and vocals, two violinists (one providing vocal duet to Rosh) and a cellist. The music was enjoyable though candidly I began to feel trapped. I had lost any sense of time and therefore could not gain orientation to how long we’d been there and how long it would last. By this point I would not say I was uncomfortable but ready for the evening to wind up. This was partially contributed to by the room being quite warm and the thermostat being adjusted, you guessed it, in the dark driving the heat in the room higher.
After the last song which folded in the diners to sing a chorus in unison several times, Rosh wrapped up the evening with his thanks and by lighting a small candle in the middle of the room. I don’t think I’ll ever forget those first rays of light. I was disoriented and the room as I had envisioned it from our serpentine path to our chairs was completely different than my mental picture. I felt a bit dizzy and was looking forward to some air.
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The tone set by the café staff was warm, welcoming and kind. I had not realized there would be a concert performance and despite being comfortable letting the evening flow I was grateful when Rosh announced they’d be doing three more songs to merely have an orientation point to where we were in the evening. I thought a lot about our blind seaters, their shared experiences of the tasks we find so simple in daily living and how they find their orientation points in life.
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In my conversation with Rosh before the dinner he expressed the heart of this effort and what he feels he’s best at is connecting people through this experience. As with any dining experience I believe connection with dining mates is a function of who you sit with. I noted during the evening I became very quiet and inward, more of an observer of the experience often reflexively keeping my eyes closed. I also had thought it presents a forum for many types of people to thrive. Introverts who really aren’t socially comfortable have the benefit of the cloak of darkness to bolster their social confidence. With diners really only have physical and vocal cues from which to react to each other it brings everyone to the same level.
In the end I’d say the Blind Café is about a few different things. It does afford a window into a literal blind experience. It provides a sensory deprivation experience prompting social engagements and reflections which are unique to each diner, dining group and only reveal themselves in the moment. My experience was that it also does connect people in a different way to each other. There is an immediate reliance on each other for help and working together to merely dine so any social reticence or pretense goes out the window; you are automatically a team of sorts, all coming from the same lack of experience. I feel confident everyone will walk away learning something, about themselves or others. The Blind Café presents a Petri dish for a whole new social engagement.
To learn more about the Blind Café or to sign up for a dinner, click here.
Heidi says
Loved this article… to be free of visual constraints and to just viscerally enjoy the evening!
Holly says
Blind dining is all the rage in France at the moment, but to create an experience of tasting the food with no other distractions.
Your post was great. It really gave me a feel for what's been going on in the chicer cities than mine. The part about the legs showing up was kind of freaky. 🙂
I don't think I'd want to experience it though. While I like the message this Cafe sends, I feel seeing and smelling the food is all part of the culinary experience. And I'd be afraid of not being able to see what I was eating – not knowing. Do they do anything special for people with food allergies?
Boulder Locavore says
Holly I completely agree about enjoying food through all sensory modes. I went into this really suspecting it was more about the experience than the food and was right; the food and eating it was secondary. Though they don't want to tell you much before you go which I respect as it keeps your mind open for a more organic experience, I did ask about the food before going since I cannot eat gluten for medical reasons. They did tell me the only gluten was in the communal bread so I was ok.
They arranged vegan plates for diners too (that was interesting to try to find the vegan diners in the dark I'm sure; a bit like a game of Marco Polo). The legs were odd especially after nudging them and them not moving. It's hard to say 'excuse me, can you move your legs' since no one has an idea who you are talking to in the dark. I was happy when they finally withdrew!
Garden Girl says
The photos are hysterical. I'm not sure I could have endured that experience, for purely visual reasons. Since my grandmother has gradually lost her vision over the last 2 years, I have been intrigued by how she perceives her surroundings as it waxes and wanes.
I loved the part about the blind staff's experience with their blindness and I know I would have enjoyed that part of the evening. Great Post!
Boulder Locavore says
Being so visual I think what your Grandmother is going through would really be challenging. I could really imagine as Sabina described it would feel like a death. There was a discussion about whether the blind seaters felt it would be more difficult to lose vision or be born without it; they unanimously felt having vision and losing it would be more difficult.