Naked Platter
Guests at a sushi bar in Hanover eat off the naked body of 24 year- old model Kim late October 13. The restaurant uses naked women as huge "platters" for the Japanese dish, dubbed "sushi a la Jungfrau (virgin)" which the restaurant owner says has been a huge hit at between 400 and 800 marks ($240- 480) per person. The restaurant is booked up for weeks in advance. Reuters

The naked platter, which has already created rage and sparked controversy in other global cities, has reached Australia. A naked fruit platter was part of the relaunch party on Wednesday night at the Cruise Bar in Darling Harbour, Sydney.

First Post reports that there were slices of watermelon placed on the female model’s legs, grapes on her crotch and bananas on her breast. The lifestyle Web site comments that the naked platter “would make even PETA cringe, a reference to the animal rights group which similarly uses near-naked models covered in various items, including fruits and veggies, in its campaign to promote being vegan.

Mashable reports that images of the women – who wore only skin-coloured underpants and lots of fruits on top of their bodies – invited a lot of negative comments on social media sites. One commenter said through a tweet that it was a return to the 1970s, while a man noted the stunt was “good for publicity but at what cost?”

Jane Oakley, secretary of the Greens Party in New South Wales, said when she needs to go on a night out, Cruise Bar won’t be on her list. In a Facebook post, she chastised the bar “for so openly showing your contempt for women and contributing to the disgusting view that women’s bodies are just a utensil.”

While Melanie James tweeted that the naked platter is unacceptable, Matt de Groot pointed out that it is not just women whose bodies were on display but also men who were “strutting around the venue half-naked.” Elias Jahshan confirmed that he didn’t “miss the buff gents in speedos.”

Naked Platter at Cruise Bar
The naked platter at Cruise Bar's relaunch party on Aug 26 Twitter/@Melanie_James

But women’s rights groups felt the naked plate objectified females and called for a boycott of the Cruise Bar. The issue of hygiene also comes up as the watermelon slices were placed on the model’s legs from where guests are supposed to get it and eat.

However, beyond the question of health, First Post criticises Cruise Bar for its treatment of women “as the sum of her body parts – not a person.” However, it acknowledges that other countries also have naked platters such as the US, UK and Japan where instead of fruits, raw fish or sushi is placed on a naked body for guests to dine on, although the model could either be male of female.

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