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Out of sight: This is what it's like to dine out in complete darkness

Out of sight: This is what it's like to dine out in complete darkness

Pizza Hut creates a dining experience with darkness and visually impaired servers to raise awareness of disabilities
14 Sep, 2015

KARACHI: I spent my Friday night having my dinner in pitch black darkness. Before you start empathizing and swearing at K-Electric under your breath, you should know it was a 100% by choice.

A clumsy eater in total brightness opting to eat with no light makes no sense, right? However, I couldn't resist experiencing the unique journey Pizza Hut has brought to town. A common tourist attraction in London, Toronto and Kuala Lampur, this dining in the dark venture is the first of its kind in Pakistan.

A theme you didn't see coming

Walking into Pizza Hut was like walking down memory lane; I hadn't been to one in around a decade so the concept has definitely worked as a marketing ploy. The glass outside the restaurant had also been blacked out to keep in line with the theme.

Or has the glass always been like that? Who knows, like I said, I went there after nearly ten years!
Or has the glass always been like that? Who knows, like I said, I went there after nearly ten years!

Rather than transforming the entire restaurant into a dark room, they've chosen to just allocate a separate portion to the theme, which sits behind a gray curtain.

Lockers have been placed outside for guests to deposit their belongings as no light emitting devices of any kind are allowed inside. Upon spotting those, I started to feel some anxiety due to my cellphone attachment issues.

We were told to pick one out of the four options provided before we entered our dining area: chicken, vegetarian, beef and for the more adventurous lot, the mysterious Chef Special, according to which they would serve you a three course meal.

I'm a picky eater as it is so I decided to be boring and stick to the tried and tested choice that is chicken. In retrospect, vegetarian would have been the smarter choice.

What you don't see is what you get

Before entering, we were introduced to the polite Mohsin, who waited on our table. He instructed that my friend place his hand on his right shoulder and I place mine on my friends' so that he may lead the way. Once inside, he told us to follow the sound of him snapping his fingers and led us to our seats by holding our hands.

Spoiler alert (regarding the menu)!

We were served a soup as an appetizer. I had anticipated it would be really hard to use cutlery or have soup when you can't even see the bowl. However, it was easier than I thought. I still don't know what soup we had -- I could just figure out it had potatoes, chicken and a lot of pepper. Not the best but then again Pizza Hut isn't really known for soup, is it?

Our appetizer
Our appetizer

We were then served our main course; my best guess was that it was pizza before even taking a bite and I was spot on. We weren't told exactly which pizza it was so while I had hoped we'd get Chicken Fajita, what we ended up with was most certainly not that.

I gave up on using a fork and a knife 30 seconds into trying, it was time to use our hands. We definitely had some difficulty breaking apart the slices; pieces of mystery meat landed in our laps, dropped a mushroom (or two) on presumably the floor, there were some empty bites but no mammoth mishaps.

Even so, I felt like a baby without a bib.

We later found out we were served chicken jalfrezi pizza (pictured). Never in a million years would I order that otherwise
We later found out we were served chicken jalfrezi pizza (pictured). Never in a million years would I order that otherwise

Last but not the least, we were given dessert, which was a decadent chocolate lava cake. Definitely my favourite part of the meal and the most challenging! Chocolate sauce can get stringy and drip and using a spoon was a lot harder than I had predicted! I was literally holding my hair back and hovering right over the plate in an effort to not drop any syrup on my jeans.

Molten lava cake...I think. It's hard to tell these pictures apart
Molten lava cake...I think. It's hard to tell these pictures apart

Even though the music was on, we could hear the other tables way too clearly. Maybe they were loud, maybe our other senses were heightened. I won't lie; by the time we were done with dessert, I was a little relieved. I felt slightly claustrophobic and my head hurt and so I called Mohsin for a quick shoulder-led exit. I came out of the room, disoriented and with greater compassion for people with disabilities.

Looking at the bigger picture

While it makes for a novelty weekend activity, dining in the dark is not just about that. It highlights disability in a way that catches up on you after. Customers get to step into the shoes of others and realize that what we found so disorienting is their everyday life.

Saba Hassan of MCR Pvt. Ltd, the group operating Pizza Hut in Pakistan shares: "The Dark Restaurant effectively makes its diners realize that disability is created only when an environment is disabling: a sighted person is unable to function fully in a dark space, and hence is temporarily disabled. And on the flip-side, if people with impairments are provided an enabling environment, then he/she will not be disabled."

The amazing thing about this initiative is the fact that they make their staff feel productive and proud, upholding their dignity; it's not a charity. The pop-up event has managed to raise awareness about impairment and Hassan adds that people have been very receptive so far.

"Guests have loved the experience and really connected with the idea behind the concept. Mothers have come in with their children to teach their kids about empathy and hoards of the youth seeking adventure have come to dine. During the day, we invite students from underprivileged schools to have a meal at a very subsidized price and at dinner the experience is enjoyed by the public with the aim that the next generation of Pakistanis is sympathetic to the cause."

She also reveals, "[The response] has been so overwhelming that we're considering taking the concept to Islamabad and Lahore in the coming months."

The Dark Restaurant has been extended due to popular demand till September 20. Go check it out for yourselves: Rs. 450-600 is a small price to pay for changing the way you see the world.

Comments

Aamir Sep 14, 2015 06:05pm
Hahahaha. I LOVED the photos in this. Good job writer.
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Yusuf Bhatia Sep 14, 2015 09:45pm
I will definitely try this out when I visit Karachi. We have a similar dining concept here in Toronto as well. Glad to see there are people in Pakistan who care about educating the masses regarding disabilities and special needs.
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Ovais Sep 15, 2015 01:21am
I dont know whats so special about this idea.. in pakistan almost everyone dines in the dark atleast thrice a week or maybe more, i am talking about load shedding obviously :-P But still i like how its not just about eating in the dark but about creating awerness , kfc did something similar by hiring disabled people
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Talha Sep 15, 2015 08:59am
Given the cleanliness standards here, Would you really trust a restaurant in Karachi that much?
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Saad Farooq Sep 15, 2015 09:09am
Great. Now you can serve me whichever meat you like :-)
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anonymous Sep 15, 2015 09:29am
Very interesting! I have not known any restaurants that has this kind of service, and I am talking about in the UK, US, Canada, India
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graphicalman Sep 15, 2015 10:40am
We had one in Montreal for years. It's not a place frequented by Desi. It is called O.NOIR and includes higher end dining experience. No nihari and siri paye.
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kallan Sep 15, 2015 11:59am
@Yusuf Bhatia I dont think this is a Pakistanis idea by any mean. A Pakistani would be too concerned about money and not the impaired however the parent company in USA could have encouraged the franchisee in Karachi to try this novel idea
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Apache Sep 15, 2015 03:15pm
What a foolish idea
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Jhk Sep 15, 2015 04:51pm
Taking concept to Lahore " . Now a days i wont eat anything in the dark. I am talking about meat. Lol.
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Jude Allen Sep 16, 2015 11:09am
If I am not mistaken, some Pizza Hut restaurants in Lahore or Isloo were in the spotlight for poor food hygiene standards and fines were imposed. That being the case, I reckon eating in the dark at Pizza Hut is not the best idea. I think Pizza Hut needs to focus more on quality and safe food rather than gimmicks to lure in gullible customers. Secondly, I've noticed a mushroom growth of Pizza restaurants like 14th street, California, Broadway etc all of which boost really better pizzas than pizza hut. Even the one infamous Dominos known for their dry pizza dough and come around in introducing some great changes and competitive prices. Pizza Hut is no more a brand name and the last place Id if I needed to have a great pizza experience.
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aslam shaikh Sep 16, 2015 10:00pm
With food quality gone down, Pizza Hut really needs these kind of gimmicks
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Ahmed Sep 16, 2015 10:38pm
the death of creativity. what a stupid idea, and people actually fell for it....
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Suhbat khan Sep 17, 2015 01:49pm
you must be a dependent n nonsense gourmet to dine out in such unhygienic scenario recently pronounced by our pro active administration.
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Amna Sep 19, 2015 07:46pm
Hahahaha! Loved it :)
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Gillani Sep 19, 2015 09:50pm
After LFA raids over food restaurants and eateries, I am getting more conscious about strategy of eating completely in darkness. LOL
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Vijay Sep 20, 2015 07:50am
Great concept !! Alas, I have not heard of a similar restaurant in India. ".....makes its diners realize that disability is created only when an environment is disabling!"- how true
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