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| - First...
THE FOOD:
Pre-fixe pay structure:
$32 for 2 courses (main + app, or main + dessert) or
$39 for 3 courses (app + main + dessert)
-add a $6.50 glass of merlot (only option by the glass) and the total, including tax and tip = $50
i had the main+app combo.
for the app, i chose the grilled portobello mushroom with balsamic and shaved parmesan (quite passable) and for the the main, veal described as lightly battered with a lemon glaze, vegetables and roasted potatoes. everything about this entree reminded me of the 'special holiday meal' a workplace cafeteria might offer employees, come christmas or thanksgiving -- except that I'm confident that a cafeteria version would've been better. the veal had been pounded into oblivion so as to be paper-thin, yet was still rawhide-like in texture, completely void of taste, including any hint of lemon flavouring. the vegetables and potatoes were...string beans and... potatoes, doused with oil and salt (and the potatoes accompanied w/ -- I'd guess -- a 'clubhouse'-type chicken gravy)
THE EATING-IN-DARKNESS EXPERIENCE:
the initial cheaps laughs that came from being in absolute darkness (e.g. trying to connect glasses for 'cheers-ing', constant din of glassware breaking, using ones hands to locate and paw food off the plate after giving up on the fork-stabbing) wore off pretty quickly. And, sure, it gives pause as to how it would feel to be visually impaired/blind but, of course, only in a fleeting way (having the comfort of knowing sight will be yours again very soon).
Soon enough, my thoughts turned to
a) the racket they've got goin' on, since they've a captive audience (no other place offering this experience in TO) and considering the price and how sub-par the quality and quantity is (not to mention the money saved on décor and electricity), this joint's a goldmine
b) wishing someone would open up a place with the exact same concept but with decent food -- a little competition would have 'o noir' down and out within 2 weeks.
and that would make me happy -- partly because the food on offer is COMPLETELY incidental to the gimmick of eating in pitch-darkness but, mostly, because it's insulting to diners everywhere to serve cafeteria-grade slop but merchandise it under the philosophy of 'thoughtful/exotic dishes created to challenge your palate as you use your remaining 4 senses to distinguish flavours perhaps otherwise unappreciated.' Eesh.
BOTTOM LINE: save the (minimum) $50/pp this'll cost you for patronage at establishments that actually attempt to deliver what they're trying to sell(!)
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