Dark Dining? We think you should give it a try.

I have lived in Nairobi long enough to know that darkness only means one of two things:

1. It is night

2. The electricity company is having one of its moments

Sometimes it’s both and it’s never a pleasant experience. Have you ever tried having dinner in the dark? Or dark dining as it is popularly known? It is not only messy but it is cumbersome. The candle light doesn’t do much for visibility and more times than often you end up with curry on your shirt. This just means more laundry — oh wait, there’s no electricity so you can’t turn on the machine. It’s just one big mess so you go to bed and leave the dishes in the sink lest you break some in the dark.

On the flip side candle lit dinners are pretty romantic. It is not exactly dark dining but it suffices. Imagine some smooth music playing in the background preferably jazz, a round table with a frilly white cloth set with fine china. The plates have a fine blue line that circles the edge and a gold finish. On either side is the silverware wrapped in pristine cream linen. A bottle of Sauvignon sits pretty in the middle and two medium sized crystal wine glasses are half full with the deep red liquid. It is a far comparison from the first scenario. It makes for an exciting dining experience that you get to enjoy using all your senses.

You can imagine my surprise when I came across a restaurant that takes away one of your senses to enhance the dining experience. I must admit I was blown away by the idea itself. Located at the Tribe hotel in The Village Market, Gizani (which is Swahili for darkness) offers a dining experience in complete darkness. Visually impaired individuals will attest to the fact that because of their impairment their other senses became enhanced. I think this is the concept the restaurant is trying to bring out.

My mind was further blown away when I learnt that all the staff that will help you through the experience are visually impaired as well. How’s that for an experience? When you really think about it you realize that you really do not need to see your food in order to enjoy it. You get to enjoy other aspects of the food like the aroma, the taste and even how it feels should you use your fingers. To me this sounds like the ultimate dining experience. The idea though unique to Kenya has existed for quite a while now and its origins can be traced back to Paris — some say this is the world food capital.

Sadly Yum cannot bring such an experience to you, but, it is a definite winner. I personally will make a visit, go through the whole experience and write about it for your benefit. But should you be willing to try it out at home we can provide a number of gourmet restaurants you can order from:

1. About Thyme

2. For You

3. Cedars

4. Osteria

5. Brew Bistro