#simplified ui

Just returned from Berlin, where, amongst other things, I visited restaurant called Dunkel.

Dunkel Unsicht Restaurant is where you are seated, served, and eat in total darkness (Dunkel means dark in German).

To begin with, you order from a set menu, in the light. Then, your assigned server appears, asks you to put your hands on their shoulders and to follow you downstairs into the darkness of the restaurant itself.

Into total blackness. Really. Not even the luminous dial on a wristwatch could be seen anywhere.

The server seats you, gives you a quick verbal orientation as to what is, and will be in front, of you.

I enjoyed one of the best vegetarian meals I've had in years.

Awesome vegetarian meal at Berlin's Dunkel Unsicht Restaurant #nom #vegetarian #food #Berlin

A photo posted by Ultan Ó Broin (@uobroin) on Nov 18, 2015 at 12:13pm PST

I had no problems whatsoever in finding the cutlery, the breadbasket, or any of the food served (four courses). I ate as normal, at my usual speed, and when the meal was finished I emerged into the light, again guided by the server, without looking like I had been in a food fight.

An amazing, one of a kind experience! I even left a tip! Try it yourself if you visit Berlin.

So, what are the UX lessons from Dunkel? Why was it that I could so easily eat there without ending up in a complete mess?

Firstly, keep it simple. I didn't have to deal with for example, a complicated floral arrangement shoved into the middle of the table or other decorations. Everything in front of me was functional or consumable.

Secondly, do as users expect and things they familiar with from everyday use. The layout of the cutlery (yes, there was more than one spoon and no, I never used my hands), the position of plates, even where my drink was placed was familiar. They followed a pattern. No real surprises!

Thirdly, if you do need to provide guidance, keep it short and direct, yet encourage some discovery. For example, my dessert was constructed of three parts (of creme of pomegranate, mango chili sauce, and homemade praline) served in one of those swing-top glass bottles you need to flip open. Again, no problem in consuming the lot.

Keeping it simple, familiar, and providing easy guidance and a sense of discovery is an experiential approach, of course, also in the simplified UIs in Oracle's Cloud Applications.