‘Dining in the Dark’ at Cinnamon Wild Yala
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Imagine taking a night time stroll in the forest. The sounds and smells of nature accompanied by a refreshing breeze, the tingling sense of awareness from the quiet, the tangible dark that blankets your surroundings and sets your senses to an exquisite sense of consciousness; that thrill of the unexpected.Now imagine dining in that darkness.
Exploring unchartered waters, Cinnamon Wild Yala stirs the mysterious territory of dining in the dark, personifying the day to day fine dining experience with a heady twist of sensory awareness. It is a sensual feast to the daring diner; a moment to feel completely alive with that special someone.
Upon arrival the property’s main bar ‘Pug Marks’, the diners are escorted to a secluded unlit dining area in the wilderness within the hotel guided by well-trained staff and offered a signature cocktail customised to the individual palates of the diners or the option of selecting from an extensive list of fine beverages. The dinner itself is a five course Prix fixe dinner that is a mystery menu that has the diners discovering the subtleties of flavours never thought of but taken for granted due to the distraction of sight. With the flowing wine and the heady scents of food combined with the calls of surrounding nature, it is an experience that sets lasting impressions which are more of a soulful memory than an actual recollection, a moment to be felt than remembered.
It is a process of eating, identifying, connecting by identifying the distinctive flavours and textures that signify one dish from the other. The mystery menu is a careful selection of dishes bursting with flavour and is only constrained by dietary restrictions of the diners if any and informed by the client in advance inclusive of any vegetarian or vegan meal preferences. Even the table setting is arranged to heighten the culinary experience of the diner with much effort taken to minimise the visual impact. All culinary selections are tailor-made to suit the nationality and individual preferences of the diners to create an exciting sequence of dishes designed to enliven and mystify.
At the end of the dinner, the guests are presented with photographs of the dinner which can then be used to compare and contrast with the wild guesses and the impressions of the diners. Each diner is presented with a token signifying the experience, a tangible memory of the moments spent in the dark. What can be most exciting is the sudden disregard to the mundane rituals of dining. A guest is at complete liberty to prod and poke at their food, sniff at the surrounding scents or even abandon their cutlery altogether. ‘Dining in the dark’ at Cinnamon Wild Yala is a personification of Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts’ flair for exciting and exhilarating experiences, always the first to engage their clients with memorable, lasting experiences.
