The dining experience is something people do daily, not thinking about how they use their senses while enjoying their meal. Dining in the Dark changes that by giving a meal with no sight at all, so people experience what a blind or partially sighted person would when they eat. The evening is held at the Painted Hand Casino in partnership with the CNIB.
This is the second year for Dining in the Dark says Christall Beaudry with the CNIB. While it’s new to the area, it’s an event that has been taking off around the world, including having dedicated restaurants for the experience.
During the evening, guests will be given a blindfold at the start. They will then have a blind or partially sighted person guide them through the four-course meal, giving tips on how they go about eating every day and how to best experience the food.
“It’s just a glimpse of what it’s like for someone who has to navigate every day in the world being blind. We use it as an awareness tool, but it’s also a lot of fun, people come out and have a great time,” Beaudry says.
Part of the fun is how being unable to see the food affects your experience of eating it, Beaudry says.
“Their other senses are really heightened. The sense of taste and smell and the textures are really heightened. You find you taste things a lot better, you hear things in the room a lot more than you do when you have your sight. It’s an interesting experience because you realize that you rely on your other senses when you don’t have your sight. They’ll walk away with a heightened awareness of what it’s like to be blind or partially sighted, but also a unique experience in using their other senses.”
For the guide to the meal, Beaudry says it’s a chance to be the one with more experience at the table.
“A lot of times they’re the underdog, and it really gives them the opportunity to showcase their skills and talents, and really make people aware that they are capable of a lot of things.”
The money raised at Dining in the Dark is going to support the 15,000 people in the province with blindness or partial sight, and allow CNIB to continue support them as they live a normal life.
“Everything from driving you around in your community or telling your black pants from your navy pants, to counting money, those are skills that CNIB helps our clients with every day.”
Dining in the Dark takes place June 26 at the Painted Hand Casino. Tickets are available at the Painted Hand box office.
