A modern view of life skills

IN A very short time, Dylan McGrath has become one of the most famous and infamous chefs in the State.

Television viewers were recently given a full-on look at his passionate pursuit of a Michelin star for his Mint restaurant in Ranelagh, a pursuit which ultimately proved successful.

At times his shouting and swearing made for uncomfortable viewing, but it also provided a window on the huge strain that running a small but ambitious restaurant can visit on its proprietor.

McGrath will display a less confrontational side to his character tonight in the latest Guerrilla Gourmetprogramme on RTÉ. The programme puts some of the Republic's best known chefs in unusual situations to see how they will cope.

McGrath visited the Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind (IGDB) headquarters in Cork to meet and cook for six Irish Guide Dog clients who have been on the organisation's mobility and life skills course.

He also met the catering staff at the IGDB's national headquarters and training centre in Model Farm Road, Cork.

Not known for doing things by half, he walked with a blindfold and also walked blindfolded with a guide dog to replicate the circumstances for the visually impaired.

Two of the six clients of the IGDB were selected to go to Dublin where McGrath cooked for them in the Royal Hospital in Kilmainham. For Dominique Farrell, from Artane, and Daniel Fitzpatrick, from Carrickmacross, Co Monaghan, the exercise was an instructive one for those fortunate enough to still have their sight.

The 18 guests were served by waiting staff in a completely blacked-out room to illustrate the difficulties and challenges in the restaurant setting for the visually impaired.

Daniel Fitzpatrick, who lost his sight in a car accident four years ago, says: "I've been in restaurants where I have had to ask the people on the next table to summon waiting staff for me, because clearly I can't see where they are. The first thing I would advise is that waiters and waitresses should check on blind people every 15 minutes or so to see if they are alright.

"Blind people need to know where they are in restaurants, they should not be backed into corners. They also need to know where the toilets are and what food is where on their plate. They also need people to take the time to read the menus to them."

Fitzpatrick says the whole exercise, which will be shown tonight on RTÉ1, was not without its funny moments. "All you could hear is the sound of glasses breaking and people holding on to each other going to the toilet."

IGDB mobility instructor Jessica Amberson says there are basic steps that restaurateurs can take to make life easier for blind people.

"There are foods that visually impaired people will have problems with," she says. "For instance, garden peas or shredded salad are best avoided. A steak with a large piece of fat or any meat that needs a lot of cutting can be difficult for them, and there are problems too with a fish with a lot of bones in it.

"A plain plate is much easier for a visually impaired person to use than one with patterns that often confuse."

Teaching visually impaired people how to cook is one of the principal aims of the IGDB's independent living skills course. Sudden blindness is hugely traumatic for anybody and can shatter the confidence of somebody who once took simple tasks such as cooking for granted.

Something as fundamental as still being able to cook is critical for those who want to pursue an independent life despite being visually impaired.

The IGDB's class covers everything from food preparation, including a safe way of chopping vegetables using the forefinger and thumb, to weighing and measuring, recipes suitable for the visually impaired and using electric cookers.

The IGDB has set up a resource kitchen facility that is fitted with adaptive and standard equipment and appliances.

The living skills course can be taken as a residential or day course at the modern training centre, with its fully-equipped kitchen - it can also be combined with any of their other training courses.

Any persons over 16 years with significant visual impairment may apply, especially those experiencing difficulties living independently. Clients availing of the service range from students heading off to university and away from home for the first time, to a man in his late 70s who simply wanted to be able to make lunch for his wife.

The independent living skills courses have been so successful that three more are currently being run on a trial basis: the use of gym equipment, exercise walking, horse riding and swimming, gardening and using travel and transport.

For further information, see www.guidedogs.ie