Okay, we have heard of themed restaurants here in the U.S. and other cities around the world and have even dined in a few. There is everything from aquatic themes to trains, race cars, cartoons and a lot more, but a restaurant where you eat in the nude? Even for me, given our personal lifestyle, that is a bit of a stretch. That being said, apparently it is having a huge success in, where else, Paris, the City of Love. So just what is it all about?

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France already boasts hundreds of beaches, campsites, and spa centers meant to be enjoyed in the nude, and now, the famously clothing-optional country is breaking new ground in naturism. The first nude restaurant in Paris opened to the public a couple of months back, in November 2017. Local naturists are already big fans of the new dining spot.

Per a translation from English-language outlet The Local, the new eatery is aptly named O’Naturel and is located in Paris’ largely residential 12th arrondissement, on Rue de Gravelle. O’Naturel seats 40 diners and offers full course meals for around $35. Before entering the main dining room, guests are asked to remove all their clothes and leave them in the restaurant’s wardrobes. The view into the restaurant is blocked from the street, and the neighborhood’s residents, so far, seem perfectly at ease with the new addition. “It doesn’t bother me at all, or my neighbors,” one local man told the newspaper. “We don’t see anything from the street. We know what’s happening. It’s not a massage parlor.”

Managers Mike and Stephane Saada told Le Parisien that they kicked off their restaurant’s grand opening weekend with a dinner exclusively for the Paris Naturist Association. “They’ve supported us from the beginning, and we reserved our first soirée for them,” the Saadas said, adding that the club members who were present seemed to be happy with the experience.

While this is the first nude restaurant to break ground in France, there a few clothing-optional restaurants already exist around the world. Bunyadi, London’s first nude pop-up restaurant, opened last year and is currently fundraising in order to reopen for a second season, and at Innato, located on Spain’s Tenerife Island, some parts of the “aphrodisiac menu” are served on the wait staff’s nude bodies.

As for the menu at O’ Naturel, it is obviously done in the French style. The menu is varied and much like many here in the states. There is lobster, shrimp and other seafood and other varieties for appetizers along with a variety of salads. The main courses feature seafood, steaks, chicken, lamb, vegetables and rich desserts. They also serve wine as well as coffee, tea and soft drinks

So, if you are planning a European vacation and Paris happens to be on your destinations list, and you have an open mind and like to experience new things, keep O’ Naturel in mind. One word of warning however. If you should go to this establishment and then look around at the other diners do not ever say to the waiter, “Where’s the beef?”

While there may restaurants like this in Paris, London and Spain, chances are there will be more restaurants of this type opening in other European cities where nudity  is not something to be ashamed of or embarrassed about. As for here in the U.S. you can be sure that this will never happen in regards to a nude restaurant being open to the public in any city, town or state.

Art Koch, National Features & DVD Editor, NightMoves Magazine and AAN

Info for this feature from www.cntraveler.com, www.nydailynews.com