Munch (BDSM)
Encyclopedia
A munch is a low-pressure social gathering for people involved in or interested in BDSM
, usually at a restaurant. When available, munches often use a private room. In the UK, the venue is usually a pub, and people are free to arrive and leave within the specified hours. The primary purpose is socializing, though some munches also have announcements from local organizations. Munches often help those who are curious about the lifestyle meet others who may be able to help them become more comfortable and better informed. Munches can also be a place to get advice about or pass on anecdotes about BDSM experiences.
Unlike a play party
, most munches are casual affairs that exclude fetish attire or BDSM play, though a rare few include covert Master/slave interactions or other play. Some munches may have a specific focus, such as spirituality
or whip
s. Others may be restricted to a specific group, such as women or submissives.
and the BackDrop Club existed, there were few informal ways to meet others socially within the scene. The USENET
group alt.sex.bondage was a common meeting ground on-line, as was a San Francisco-area email list then known as BABES (Bay Area Bondage Enthusiasts Society).
One of the alt.sex.bondage and BABES members, by the name of STella organized a social meeting at Flames, a coffeehouse in Santa Clara, California. It was a quiet meeting in one corner of a family-orientated coffee house.
After that, an informal rotation of meeting sponsors and locations was instituted, with widely varying amounts of success. Not long afterward, STella suggested that a standard time and location be chosen, and selected Kirk's Steakburgers http://siliconvalley.citysearch.com/profile/11346356/?brand=smx_restaurant-nc at 361 S California Avenue in Palo Alto, as it had both great hamburgers and a spacious patio where attendees could meet in relative privacy. This was known as the "burger munch". (That Kirk's location was demolished around 2005, though a few other locations still exist.)
The Kirk's burger munch attracted a large and often spirited crowd, with discreet play. As time went on, the atmosphere became less discreet and people started bringing in outside food. Ultimately, the management insisted that the group stop meeting there.
Many of the original participants found another social gathering just down the street, though STella requested they not use the name "burger munch". The name was shortened to "munch" and the gathering took on a quieter tone. The organizer of the first spin-off munch, Miss Vicki, still runs a munch in the SF Bay Area (www.TheMunch.org).
Munches, like anything change with time and the increased acceptability of BDSM, "the lifestyle", or WIITWD (What it is that We do). Many have evolved in depth to include more people, topics and philosophies. While some munches remain traditional asking that no expressions of identity be expressed, others are open to the wearing of collars or pride emblems. Each munch is different and reflects the personality of the group that attends it, make sure to ask the host or attendees for what to expect at a particular munch.
The term "Burger Munch" was not only used at the Palo Alto munch, but was also used in Boston in 1994 and possibly earlier, meetings being held at Mr Bartley's Burger Cottage in Harvard Sq. Someone very active in the scene at that time and today has said that the first munches in the US were called "burger munches" and were in SF, LA, and Boston.
Some of the Boston attendees became somewhat famous, or infamous, as they were models for images in the noteworthy book Screw the Roses, Send Me the Thorns.
BDSM
BDSM is an erotic preference and a form of sexual expression involving the consensual use of restraint, intense sensory stimulation, and fantasy power role-play. The compound acronym BDSM is derived from the terms bondage and discipline , dominance and submission , and sadism and masochism...
, usually at a restaurant. When available, munches often use a private room. In the UK, the venue is usually a pub, and people are free to arrive and leave within the specified hours. The primary purpose is socializing, though some munches also have announcements from local organizations. Munches often help those who are curious about the lifestyle meet others who may be able to help them become more comfortable and better informed. Munches can also be a place to get advice about or pass on anecdotes about BDSM experiences.
Unlike a play party
Play party (BDSM)
In BDSM, a play party is also a social event in which people practice BDSM and socialize with like-minded people. The organizers often provide some large pieces equipment to which people can be tied while the party goers usually bring their own whips, canes, restraints etc....
, most munches are casual affairs that exclude fetish attire or BDSM play, though a rare few include covert Master/slave interactions or other play. Some munches may have a specific focus, such as spirituality
Spirituality
Spirituality can refer to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality; an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.” Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop...
or whip
Whip
A whip is a tool traditionally used by humans to exert control over animals or other people, through pain compliance or fear of pain, although in some activities whips can be used without use of pain, such as an additional pressure aid in dressage...
s. Others may be restricted to a specific group, such as women or submissives.
History
Munches started in the 1980s, prior to the widespread introduction of the web. At that time, meeting members of the BDSM scene was a bit more difficult, given the then-prevalent bias against BDSM and the resulting lack of places to meet those of the same interest. While organizations such as the Society of JanusSociety of Janus
The Society of Janus is a San Francisco, California based BDSM education and support group, and is the second oldest BDSM organization in the US. It was founded in August 1974 by the late Cynthia Slater and Larry Olsen....
and the BackDrop Club existed, there were few informal ways to meet others socially within the scene. The USENET
Usenet
Usenet is a worldwide distributed Internet discussion system. It developed from the general purpose UUCP architecture of the same name.Duke University graduate students Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis conceived the idea in 1979 and it was established in 1980...
group alt.sex.bondage was a common meeting ground on-line, as was a San Francisco-area email list then known as BABES (Bay Area Bondage Enthusiasts Society).
One of the alt.sex.bondage and BABES members, by the name of STella organized a social meeting at Flames, a coffeehouse in Santa Clara, California. It was a quiet meeting in one corner of a family-orientated coffee house.
After that, an informal rotation of meeting sponsors and locations was instituted, with widely varying amounts of success. Not long afterward, STella suggested that a standard time and location be chosen, and selected Kirk's Steakburgers http://siliconvalley.citysearch.com/profile/11346356/?brand=smx_restaurant-nc at 361 S California Avenue in Palo Alto, as it had both great hamburgers and a spacious patio where attendees could meet in relative privacy. This was known as the "burger munch". (That Kirk's location was demolished around 2005, though a few other locations still exist.)
The Kirk's burger munch attracted a large and often spirited crowd, with discreet play. As time went on, the atmosphere became less discreet and people started bringing in outside food. Ultimately, the management insisted that the group stop meeting there.
Many of the original participants found another social gathering just down the street, though STella requested they not use the name "burger munch". The name was shortened to "munch" and the gathering took on a quieter tone. The organizer of the first spin-off munch, Miss Vicki, still runs a munch in the SF Bay Area (www.TheMunch.org).
Munches, like anything change with time and the increased acceptability of BDSM, "the lifestyle", or WIITWD (What it is that We do). Many have evolved in depth to include more people, topics and philosophies. While some munches remain traditional asking that no expressions of identity be expressed, others are open to the wearing of collars or pride emblems. Each munch is different and reflects the personality of the group that attends it, make sure to ask the host or attendees for what to expect at a particular munch.
The term "Burger Munch" was not only used at the Palo Alto munch, but was also used in Boston in 1994 and possibly earlier, meetings being held at Mr Bartley's Burger Cottage in Harvard Sq. Someone very active in the scene at that time and today has said that the first munches in the US were called "burger munches" and were in SF, LA, and Boston.
Some of the Boston attendees became somewhat famous, or infamous, as they were models for images in the noteworthy book Screw the Roses, Send Me the Thorns.