By: Sasha Azeez
Event taking place on Nov. 10, at the Humber Room, North campus.
Would you eat a meal in complete darkness?
University of Guelph-Humber business students will be hosting a dine in the dark event Thursday night at the Humber Room at the college’s North Campus.
The unique experience requires guests to ditch their sight and utilize their other senses.
The event will benefit the Canadian National Institute for the Blind which supports Canadians who are blind or partially sighted.
“We provide low vision, deaf, blind services and provide support when it comes to independent living skills,” a CNIB representative told Humber News on Thursday.
But you don’t have to come to Humber to eat in the dark on just one occasion.
A manager with Toronto’s dine in the dark restaurant, O.NOIR, which has been in business for eight years, told Humber News the experience does more than just stimulate the senses.
“Everyone comes in, we take their order then bring them into the dark,” said Ashley Simpell.
“You end up feeling what it is like to be visually impaired for about an hour and a half,” she told Humber News.
Simpell said some people who suffer from claustrophobia can’t sit through the experience, but, for the most part, it’s a very positive and humble experience for guests.
People who can see “need to know what they have and how lucky they are,” said Simpell.
Waitstaff at this dine in the dark restaurant are all blind or visually-impaired, offering them an opportunity for work.
“We’re in a workspace giving others the opportunity to work in a restaurant. Not many people who are visually impaired have the chance to do that,” said Simpell.