Diners at THE GOAT by David Burke will enjoy their fine dining meals blindfolded. A percentage of the proceeds will benefit the New Jersey Blind Citizens Association. Courtesy David Burke
By Judy O’Gorman Alvarez
You may have heard about the “dark dining” trend – eating a meal without seeing your food, either blindfolded or in a darkened room – to enhance the other senses and increase gastronomic pleasure.
Starting around 1999, restaurants in a handful of cities worldwide have offered the experience, and dark dining has appeared in movies and TV shows.
Now, noted chef David Burke has brought the concept to adventurous and curious diners in the Two River area.
During Dinner in the Dark events – held at either Red Horse by David Burke in Rumson or The GOAT by David Burke in Union Beach – guests are blindfolded and guided through a four-course dinner paired with signature cocktails and wines by Chef Burke and his culinary team.
The next Dinner in the Dark event will be at 6:15 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 12 at The GOAT by David Burke and will not only be a culinary treat for diners but will benefit an organization that has been working with blind people for more than 100 years. A percentage of the proceeds from that dining experience will benefit the New Jersey Blind Citizens Association and its programs. Tickets are $100 per person and are available online at thegoatbydb.com. All past Dinner in the Dark events have been sellouts.
Casey Webb of Atlantic Highlands knows a bit about food. As the host of the food reality show “Man v Food” on the Cooking Channel and a good friend of Burke’s, he was eager to try Dinner in the Dark.
“This sounded like a lot of fun,” he said about attending a recent dining in the dark experience, which frees you from the typical dinner table pastimes of people-watching, chatting and certainly texting – or snapping photos of your food.
Webb explained how he was blindfolded, led into a private dining room, and directly to his chair.
“You don’t have the luxury of sight. And your other senses have to kick in – your hearing, your sense of touch, of taste and smell. So it’s really this kind of immersive experience,” he said.
Webb is a food explorer of sorts who travels the country to experience different tastes and dishes but enjoyed staying home for this one. “You’re led into this experience and David’s at the helm,” he said. “He’s hilarious and he makes it just really lighthearted and fun. And then you’re getting his food – which is incredible.”
Webb noted that dining without seeing when you aren’t used to it can lead to mishaps: Drinks could be spilled, utensils dropped. “So you had to be ginger about it and the staff would hand you your drink. It kind of forced you to slow down, which was nice.”
Webb said diners – some in groups and others solo – tried to identify the various ingredients without seeing them.
“You’re tasting things deeper and richer and you’re taking your time,” he said. “I felt like I was a lot more patient with my food. It was a slower, relaxed, fun, joyful kind of experience.”
Chef Burke said the idea for his “Dining in the Dark” events came to him while at one of his nine award-winning New Jersey restaurants located in Morristown, also the site of the highly regarded The Seeing Eye dog training program, whose mission is to train guide dogs that help blind people be more independent. The special service dogs are often seen on the sidewalks with their trainer and new visually impaired owner.
New Jersey Blind Citizens Association (NJBCA) is celebrating 113 years of service to the blind, visually impaired and those with deteriorating vision. The nonprofit works to unlock opportunities, open doors and foster an atmosphere of confidence, empowerment and community for their “campers” at its facilities in Leonardo, Camp Happiness. The organization offers free services to the blind and visually impaired community.
Years ago, NJBCA held blindfolded dinners to give the family and friends of their community a sense of what it is like to be visually impaired. After hearing about Chef Burke’s “Dinners in the Dark” events, Sarah Thoma, NJBCA executive director, asked Burke to hold a dinner to benefit the organization and simultaneously raise funds for and awareness of NJBCA’s programs and campers.
The results – no shot in the dark – have benefited all.
Tickets for the Oct. 12 Dinner in the Dark are available online at thegoatbydb.com.
This article originally appeared in the September 28 – October 4, 2023 print edition of The Two River Times.
