NOX - Dine in the dark @ Beach Road

~Invited Session~

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I have been on the lookout for different dining experiences now and then - authentic, touristy, poshnosh, budget and finally one that challenges me as a diner.NOX – Dine in the Dark, Singapore’s only ‘dine in the dark’ restaurant offers an unrivalled experience by stimulating a meal experience in the shoes of a visually impaired person.

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The inviting bar counter.

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Top Restaurant as voted by the folks of Wine and Dine.

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I fell in love with their stools and mosiac-ed floor.

For once, this is a post not centered on the food itself but solely on the NOX experience. We were ushered into the waiting lounge where we picked our cocktails, served our amuse bouches and given a rundown of the experience ahead.

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My amuse bouche looking great - seaweed, clams with a dash of sesame oil. I am liking this Japanese touch and wondered if the rest of my meal would have Japanese influences.

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Next we were handed a cocktail list to pick our choices.

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Rubus Pink ($20)
Raspberry, vanilla, rosemary

A very feminine drink that can be passed off as a mocktail even, I enjoyed it very much.

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Jealousy Looms ($20)
Sourz Apple, Kwai Feh, Lemon

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Key tags to our lockers.

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All belongings including my camera and all items that would illuminate light had to be locked up.

To be honest, I am a visual person and sometimes, I rely too much on the imagery to get me by - be it remembering directions through landmarks to writing lengthy blogposts with images to jerk the memory on the tastes and even the most fundamental - dressing up just to make the Monday blues go away. All these were put to test the moment I embarked on the NOX experience.

If life as a visually impaired could be summed up in bite sizes, here are my takeaways and strangely, this meal did evolve to more than just another dinner but more.

Live by faith and not by sight

Not intending to be preachy here but to take it literally - I dined in the faith of my leader. From the moment the doors swung open and Faizal led me up the stairs to my table, I had to trust him.

Taking things out of context, many a time I rely on what my eyes tell me to judge and perceive - and how many times have I been proven wrong? Have we lost faith in the human race in the presence of trials and tribulations? I am guilty of the above.


Food never quite tastes the same

Until now, I never quite realised how much I relied on visuals to get me by. There were 12 courses in total and by the time I made it to dessert, I actually had problems remembering my appetizers. We were taught to feel for the dish, take a sniff before eating. Thankfully the Chef took this into account and served food without bones.

Truth be told, I spent the good hour bashing around in the dark, from getting touchy feely around the table (I never once paid much attention to how big the table was, or ran my fingers around the corners of the table or even had to feel for my glass before.) to trying to hurt J's face by ramming my spoon of food into his nose. 

Technology has ruined the basic dining ettiquette

I am not sure when technology became the bane of meal times - the usual ritual for me goes, snapping photos for my social media platforms, whatsapping sometimes and both the Hubba and I are guilty of multitasking by combining both eating and playing games on our phones over meals.

How nice it was to have an entire meal to ourselves without any of the technological intrusions and concentrate on the food and each other - though most of the time was spent trying to avoid dropping our cutlery or knocking over our glasses in the dark!

One person's extraordinary is another's ordinary

I marvel at how the visually impaired get about their lives and as Faizal shared tidbits of his life with us, I could not help but gasp at how much he was just like any one of us. He married at first "sound" to a normal wife, goes to the supermarket to stock up groceries alone, counts facebooking as one of the daily must-does and holds a job that most may think impossible of a visually impaired.

I had problems making it past a meal in this darkness and here is one of the many who lead lives against their odds.We need not treat them like special people because having a disability does not turn the world against them, rather overcoming and making the most out of it does.

Thank you Faizal for teaching me to count my blessings and not take the most basic for granted. For sure, the very same night I stepped out of darkness, the world seemed alot more beautiful.

NOX is offering a luxurious 2-course (S$68++) and 3-course (S$88++) Mother’s Day Set Lunch from 11am – 3pm. In addition, mothers dine for free with every 3 paying guests!

On a regular basis, menus change every 2 months so they keep things exciting for returning guests. 

NOX - Dine in the dark
269 Beach Rd

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