The Dinner Party

I love to cook!  That is a given though, because why would I be a part of a cooking blog if I didn't.  One of the reasons I love to cook is because of the creativity it affords me.  I can think of nothing better than putting new flavors together and thinking of new ways to serve the dishes.  This was the case this week when I invited some of my friends over for dinner.

It was Halloween night and those of us without kids who didn't feel the desire to pass out candy decided to get together.  (For the record, I left a huge bowl of the sugary treats outside for kids to take.  I'm not heartless.)  I told them to come after dark and to bring nothing but their senses.  Little did they know, I would be taking one of those senses away.  We did Dinner in the Dark.

That's right.  I took away their sense of sight for the meal.  I had heard about a restaurant that does every day.  Everyone is served in a completely darkened room.  I loved the idea and thought that it would work if I did little tasting bites of food.  So I came up with 10 dishes, made them bite size and served them to my guest who had been blindfolded.  My wife served as the table captain helping people find the food on their plate and not spill their wine. Stemless wine glasses are a good idea here.

Here are a few of the dishes I served.  Proscuitto wrapped Melon,  Tomato Soup and a 3 Cheese Grilled Cheese, and a Steak, Potato and Asparagus Bite.  There were a couple desserts too including a Candy Corn crispy rice treat in honor of the holiday.  Everyone was impressed with the food and all in all the dishes were a success.

Here is the funny thing though.  As much as we think we know what food tastes like, this dinner party proved that our eyes have a lot to do with that.  One girl at the party thought that the tomato soup was French Onion.  Another thought that chocolate chips were mince meat.  These things could never be confused by sight, but without that sense we become accostomed to we aren't as sure of things as we once were.  Thankfully, everyone knew what the steak and potatoes were.

Next time you want to have a dinner party, think about how you will present the dishes and be creative with how you serve everything.  Life is an experience, and that includes everything that happens in the kitchen as well.