Dans Le Noir: Eating in the Dark

The best cooks in the world are constantly looking for new dishes, new combinations and they love experimenting with food. But having dinner is also about the atmosphere, right? For a romantic night out with your hubby, you’d pick a different restaurant then you would for a bachelor party. But what about eating in the dark? It’s the newest restaurant in Barcelona: Dans Le Noir.

The concept is simple: the surprise menu costs €39, the a la carte menu €34. A waiter guides you to your table, where you sit down and try to discover your knife without cutting yourself. You never realise how difficult it is to drink without actually seeing your glass until you try it. Don’t worry if you have to go to the bathroom, you’ll not break your neck, since (like in kindergarten) you have to ask to the waiter to accompany you. Another advantage: when your glass of wine is empty, you can secretly drink that of your neighbour without anybody noticing!

It’s not that we are scared of eating in the dark; it’s that we are a little worried about what we are going to eat. Because let’s be honest: €39 for a menu without drinks is expensive. And imagine you don’t like to food at all. The first dish tastes like wilted lettuce with sour tomatoes. Then they give you fried potatoes (drowned in oil) with a leathery steak and overcooked beans and for dessert you get a vanilla flan. But when you exit, they tell you that you had a cucumber-tomato salad with balsamic vinegar, followed by tenderloin steak with oven French fries. What you thought to be overcooked green beans were actually ‘green asparagus’. The dessert was a home-made flan with cinnamon and caramel sauce. See my point?

Truth to be told, I have never been there. As I said before, not seeing what I eat sounds as appealing to me as a visit to the dentist. The ‘Dans le Noir’ is not the first one in Europe, there is also one in London and one in Paris. But generally people agree: don’t go for the fabulous and delicious food, but go for the experience. It sure sounds romantic, talking without seeing each other. You can flirt as much as you want!

Looking for an original holiday in Barcelona? Instead of eating paella every day, sharpen your senses and taste the food without seeing it in ‘Dans le Noir’. And instead of sleeping in a shabby tourist hotel, rent the best apartments in Barcelona for a lovely stay.

Tags: dans le noir, dark restaurant