When I was working at IRCAM, I often walked past a restaurant called "Dans le noir" on rue Quincampoix (that I just learned how to pronounce recently). It is a concept restaurant that aims to sensitize to the experience of blind people by having you eat in the complete darkness. That means absolutely no light. I have never experienced darkness like this. You do not "get used to it." We had go in single file holding on to the person in front of us. Our waitress, Olivia, was blind and led us to our table. They presented a 3-course meal.

At first, I had a similar reaction to my first time diving. A feeling of complete helplessness. I was afraid to move, to step. But then I gave in and began to trust the people that were leading me. In fact, the blackness was quite expansive and instead of feeling closed in, I began to feel like I was standing in a limitless room. It made me think a lot about The House of Leaves and this monstrous space that invades a families home that you cannot see the beginning or end to.

I was unfortunately separated from AssRay and my friend (the only people I knew) and was kind of talked on to the end of a table with three empty spaces around me. It was very unnerving, not being able to see and having only a couple of strangers' voices to bring me back from the blackness. But in retrospect, I was able to have a very personal and very thought-provoking experience. Here is what I experienced:

- cauliflower smells like sour trash
- utensils are a total waste of time. Why the hell use them if we were given fingers, teeth and water?
- I eat a lot less when I can't see my food.
- parsley has an incredibly strong flavor.
- picking up a piece of meat with your hands and tearing off a piece with your teeth is totally satisfying
- when your hearing has begun to pick up every little nuance of pitch, timbre, and tone quality, a group of drunk actors from Southern California trying to organize a sing-along of "All you need is love" cease to be your friends
- when I touch things I can see them for a split-second. I created a whole room in my mind just by touching beams and walls and tables. I pictured a man's arm when I brushed against it as I reached into the darkness for the bottle of wine.

They just opened one in London. Although the food and wine was mediocre at best, it was one hell of an experience.