It is Friday evening at the Palm Court Hotel, and all hell has broken loose.
In the centre of a large function room, two women are on their knees playing a game that requires them to moo at each other.
A man with a face tattoo dances around them, shouting instructions into a microphone with language as colourful as his shirt.
Amazingly, only a few of the people sat at tables around the room are paying attention to this display.
Most are engaged in unruly conversations with the wait staff, who are chucking baskets of burgers and fries around.
“There’s your food,” one waitress says. “Eat it if you want, I don’t care.”
Behind me, and next to a sign with the words ‘F*** off’ in white neon, a young boy is engaging in a middle-finger duel with a waitress.
“Don’t you know children should be seen and not heard?” the waitress shouts.
The boy, blissfully unobstructed by Victorian child-rearing norms, tells her to do one.
Welcome to Karen’s Diner, the dining experience with a difference.
What happened at the Karen’s Diner pop-up in Aberdeen?
I’m here with three friends on the invitation of Karen’s On Tour, a pop-up offshoot of social media sensation and global restaurant chain Karen’s Diner.
Started in Australia, the diner is probably best described as a ‘restaurant experience’, one in which staff are rude, obnoxious and downright foul-mouthed.
The obvious reaction to this is? Sounds like a typical restaurant experience to me.
But Karen’s Diner has perfected the art of the withering put-down and low-heel humour, and the chain has been a massive success.
There are now seven across England and Wales, with others dotted all over the world.
Meanwhile, TikTok videos of mid-meal party games and staff giving both barrels to delighted customers have racked up millions of views.
This weekend, Aberdeen has been given the chance to take part in the fun. For Friday, Saturday and Sunday, Karen’s On Tour has rolled into town and taken over one half of the Palm Court on Seafield Road.
So, while my colleague Karla Sinclair goes behind the scenes as a Karen waitress – you can read about her experience here – I’m out front in the middle of the mayhem.
The verdict on Karen’s Diner in Aberdeen
What did I think?
It was a night that the phrase ‘not my cup of tea’ was invented for.
The experience’s Australian roots shone through in the disdainful way the staff treated us. No one chucks an insult or a curls a lip like an Aussie.
But transplanted to a Friday night in an Aberdeen hotel and there were times that it fell flat.
After a long week of work, I was more in the mood for a quiet night chatting with friends, something that is impossible at Karen’s Diner – by design, of course.
The food was also a let-down. For £40 per person, customers might expect more than children’s party fare. And the long communal tables meant people were packed in tight.
That said, others in the room seemed to be having a great time.
There was always something going on, and the games constantly cycled. The food is not the only thing you are paying for.
For example, every time someone ordered the sole vegan option on the menu, everyone joined in a foul-mouthed chant questioning that person’s life choices.
The trick, it seems, is to launch yourself in head first.
Throw a few middle fingers. Engage with the staff and don’t hold back.
Because, trust me, they certainly won’t.
Karen’s Diner is at the Palm Court Hotel all weekend. The pop-up will return at the end of June. Tickets can be purchased here.
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