What inspired the name Sushi Naked for your restaurant?

Sushi Naked is a new catering company in Vancouver specializing in what you may have already guessed: sushi served on naked models. The owner, Mike Keenan, claims he's catered "a few thousand events" in Toronto and plans to do even better here with our open-minded food culture. He makes the sushi in a friend's Japanese restaurant, which passes health inspections. But he also has his own sushi licence and an insurance policy to cover his employees.

But while the idea of eating sushi off a model's body might sound weird, it's actually quite common in Japan. The practice is known as nyotaimori and it dates back centuries to the geisha culture. It's also a popular form of dinner theater and is often considered an art form.

While many women embrace the practice, it's not without controversy. It's been called misogynistic and has drawn criticism from those who believe it objectifies females. It has also been banned in some countries because of health and moral concerns.

The models at Sushi Naked are not completely nude, but they do have to be covered with clothing. Guests can't touch the sushi models and they are not allowed to make lewd comments or gestures. The models are paid $500 a show and the tips are split with them. The models are not allowed to eat the sushi, but they can take breaks to eat and drink.

One of the models, Jade Dorfman, says she enjoys the experience. She's worked for Keenan since he started the business in 2010. The only real challenge is the boredom of lying still for two hours with nothing to do, but she said she does it because she wants to share the culture and tradition with Vancouver's Hapa population.

Some people criticize the idea of nyotaimori for being sexually exploitative, but it's actually quite safe when done properly. While some sushi can get spoiled when it comes into contact with skin, it's very unlikely to happen when the models are completely clothed and the sushi is placed on banana leaves or another barrier. Most restaurants that serve sushi with skin contact have strict hygiene guidelines and test their models for hepatitis.

A Honolulu restaurant stopped the practice after receiving letters of protest from the Department of Labor and Kathryn Xian, executive director of Safe Zone Foundation. However, the manager at RaKuen says his business has doubled since they stopped serving nyotaimori and he's confident his team will find a way to do it safely again in the future.

Whether you think it's disgusting, funny or just plain gross, it's important to remember that we have freedom of expression and we all have different opinions. If you'd like to eat sushi off your lover's body behind closed doors in the privacy of your own home, that's fine, but when it becomes public objectification, as nyotaimori does, then it crosses a line. And if you think it's OK to use women as living, breathing human plates, then you have very little understanding of gender equality and the history of this cultural tradition.