'Dinner In The Dark' Benefit Coming Up At Hazlet-Area THE GOAT

UNION BEACH, NJ — David Burke is from Hazlet and he's not only a celebrity chef, but a celebrity fundraiser as well.

His Hazlet-area restaurant THE GOAT, conveniently located on Route 36 in Union Beach, will be the site of one such fundraiser, Dinner in the Dark, on Oct. 12 to benefit the New Jersey Blind Citizens Association, based in Middletown.

The event takes place from 6:15 p.m. to 9 p.m. and tickets are $100 per person, before taxes and gratuity. You can follow this link to buy tickets.

At Dinner in the Dark: A Culinary Adventure, host Burke will guide you on a blindfolded, four-course "sensory experience" dinner, with wine and cocktail pairings.

"Our chandeliers will not sparkle, but your taste buds will," he says of the event, which will be held upstairs in the Chandelier Loft.

At the dinner, the experience of losing one of your senses - sight - will open up other senses. For example, you can converse with people you don't know, smell the herbs and spices, and, of course, focus on the taste of the offerings.

Guests purposely will not know what the dinner is, so you can challenge your senses further. As the courses come out, Burke, who will emcee the event, will guide guests through the meal. If a guest may have an allergy to anything, just let the staff know ahead of time.

THE GOAT, known for its fun, goat-themed decor and casual feel, has a menu based on a wood-burning, Italian-American cuisine. GOAT stands for "Greatest Of All Time."

Burke is a Hazlet native and has a storied culinary and business career. The Atlantic Highlands resident has restaurants in many spots in New York and New Jersey and elsewhere, including Red Horse in Rumson.

And this event will serve a good cause.

The New Jersey Blind Citizens Association offers those with no vision or deteriorating vision services, programs and resources, according to its website.

The organization is celebrating 113 years of service.

"It is our passion to be able to continue on our journey of unlocking opportunities, opening doors and fostering an atmosphere of confidence, empowerment and community," the organization says.

New Jersey Blind Citizens Association is at 18 Burlington Ave., Leonardo (Middletown) NJ 07737. Contact the organization at 732-291-0878 or at [email protected].