When O.NOIR restaurant opens on Sept. 15 in Montreal, diners will be literally left in the dark.

O.NOIR, Canada's first dark restaurant, asks customers to leave their cellphones, cigarette lighters and any other electronic gadget that illuminates in a series of lockers before entering the dining room.

When you eat in the dark "your other senses are fully heightened," said Moe Alameddine, the restaurant's general manager. "It creates a fun atmosphere and ambience."

Alameddine said the experience helps customers gain a better, if limited, understanding of what it's like to be blind. All of the wait staff at O.NOIR are visually impaired and five per cent of the profits are directed to local organizations that support visually impaired Quebecers.

Visually impaired workers suffer from high unemployment rates, Alameddine said, adding that he was frustrated by government agencies offering training but not following up with jobs.

"Someone had to break the ice," Alameddine said. "I took the risk and I’m doing it."

Dark restaurants have opened in Europe, Australia and the United States. Jorge Spielmann, a blind pastor in Zurich, opened the first dark restaurant in 1999. He said he aimed to provide jobs for the blind and foster understanding about visual impairment.