Diners get a taste of what is like to be blind

Fumbling through the dark to find the alarm clock is one thing, but trying to eat a meal while the lights are out has the makings of being one messy experience. Despite the dangers, more than 40 guests were brave enough to dine at Fetcham Village Hall to eat a "Dinner in the Dark".

The event was staged by the Surrey Association for Visual Impairment (SAVI), which took its inspiration from the London restaurant Dans Le Noir, where diners are served in the dark by blind or partially sighted waiters.

Diners had to eat in pitch black, with no mobile phones or any other light source allowed, which led to calamitous incidents including the Mayoress of Epsom, Jean Steer, spilling a bottle of wine.

Alan Fricker, a professional chef who cooked for the guests on the night, said: "I have to say that we were a bit crafty because we made the starter a bit difficult to eat with plum tomatoes, olives and balls of mozzarella cheese. I hope the pasta and bolognese sauce didn't lead to too many dry cleaning bills."

While the diners saw the funny side of the night, SAVI said it was also trying to impart a serious message to the guests about the difficulties of everyday life for the blind and visually impaired.

Lance Clarke, the chief executive of the charity, said: "Basically we wanted to use the night to help raise awareness of what it is like to be blind or visually impaired. We wanted the night to underline how difficult it is for someone who is blind to do the day-to-day things we take for granted - like eating. Some of the guests, who were all sighted, didn't cope very well and found the experience quite difficult but they all went away with a much better idea of what it was like to be blind. The waiting staff also coped brilliantly, moving and serving with consummate ease - it was the rest of us who were stumbling around."

Proceeds from the dinner raised more than £500 for the SAVI. The money will go towards the financial support grants that the charity gives out to the visually impaired across Surrey.