Most children are told not to play with their food, something WSU students ignored Thursday and Friday at The Blind Cafe.

For about five years, more than 10,000 people have been served, educated and sung to in the dark at The Blind Cafe. The Student Entertainment Board (SEB) hosted The Blind Cafe last week in the Fine Arts Building Gallery II.

Rosh Rocheleau, founder and executive owner of The Blind Cafe, said it’s an event that gives unique context to the blind community.

“I think my favorite part of The Blind Cafe is the moment at the very end when everyone is singing together and there is a synergy,” Rocheleau said.

It’s like being awaken from a collective dream where now the participants’ eyes are open, he said. During the event, three aspects take place: eating, a Q&A session, and music.

The mostly blind or visually impaired waitstaff led participants into a dark room where they sat and felt around for their food. Keani Kreienbaum, a senior linguistics major who attended, said trying to find her food was very entertaining.

She said it was a cool experience to learn what it might be like to lose vision.

Students said afterward that they didn’t realize how much they rely on their sense of sight to determine the texture of food.

In the darkness, students struggled to locate their food. Many reached for others’ plates or glasses, and the air filled with embarrassed apologies and nervous laughter.

Once participants were settled, assistant director of blind awareness educational impact and blind keynote facilitator, Rick Hammond, oversaw the question and answer portion of the night.

To start the conversation, Hammond jokingly said if anyone wanted to ask a question they could simply raise their hand.

Questions ranged from what living with limited vision is like to how to use a cane.

“One thing that’s important for people to know and realize is that blindness is one issue in your life, but it’s not the only issue,” he said.

Rocheleau performed original songs for the listening experience and invited the participants to sing along.

Students remarked at the uniqueness of this experience as an art form.

“(The Blind Cafe) brings art to a different level, rather than ‘Oh look at a painting or listen to this,’ it takes art to a whole different dimension, which I think is really good because I think students respond more positively to an event like this, rather than an art show,” said Courtney Collins, a senior finance major.

After more than an hour of sitting in the dark, Rocheleau lit a candle, causing a stir in the room.

Participants then rose, using their phones to take pictures of the revealed food.

Many were inspired to take down other guests’ contact information before leaving – a suggestion that the effects of the two-hour event were lasting and positive above and beyond the novelty of mystery of dining and musical entertainment.

“The things I love most about The Blind Cafe are the events and opportunities it inspires,” Hammond said.