Dans Le Noir

Yesterday xugglybug and bethanthepurple met me at work and we caught up. bethanthepurple then went her own way so xugglybug and I went off to a restaurant that we'd booked earlier in the break. The restaurant was called Dans Le Noir. This place has the dining area in complete darkness with blind waitstaff. Before entering the darkroom (fnar!) you choose the type of meal you want (meat, fish, veg) and then you enter. The dish served is a surprise. They tell you what you had when you leave the dark room.

I was given rare beef on a bed of noodles with pak choi and brocolli. I "identified" the meat correctly but the veg as fennel and carrots. I'd not had pak choi before so this is another veg to add to my 101 in 1001 list (item 91). I got the brocolli wrong, I think, because it was headless and the stalks were served as slices, in the way that carrots often area.

It was a really fun experience. The first thing I remember when entering the dining area is that when I had sat down I felt incredibly dizzy. It went after 5 minutes or so though. It was culturally weird too because normally when dining out you'd make eye contact or perhaps wave to catch a waiter's attention. Naturally this wouldn't work with blind staff, let alone in a darkroom so beforehand we were introduced and when dining called out to one other by name. We were guided to our seats conga fashion, by placing our hands on the shoulder of the person in front and following.

I had no idea how big the place was but as best I could work out it was set out as two long tables about 10 feet apart and 20 feet long. It did mean that we were sat next to other dining couples but it wasn't too instrusive. (Except for the noisey group of 14 on the other long table. grr).

Well worth a visit, especially if you like the element of surprise in your food.