This Orange Is The New Black Prison Restaurant Is Not Okay

We can't wait for the upcoming season of Orange Is The New Black. And normally while we love any good food-and-pop-culture combo (looking at you, Saved by The Bell Diner), we’re not so excited about the latest TV show-inspired restaurant. To promote the new season of OITNB, a diner in Singapore is serving "prison" food. For two days, The OverEasy Diner will be turned into Litchfield Penitentiary Cafeteria, serving up food meant to resemble the kind of fare served up to our favorite inmates on the show. Where to even begin? First off, the idea of pretending like you’re in prison is offensive, especially when considering the state of the United States prison system. Many female prisoners in this country are unfairly caught up in the system due to domestic violence, poverty, and unfair sentencing laws (a fact that OITNB highlights well). Not only that, but guests are being served nutraloaf, a food that has been accused of being cruel and unusual punishment. Of course, this nutraloaf is nothing like the version served in real prisons, The chef told Mashable that it was made of mushrooms, cheddar, quinoa, pumpkin, and nori. So basically a fancier take on meatloaf. In past seasons, Netflix promoted the show using food in other ways, such as the Crazy Eye’s Pies foodtruck, a throwback to the famous “I threw my pie for you” line. It's disappointing to see this most recent marketing stunt seemingly making light of prisoner’s lived experiences.