Restaurant Research
Research Brief: High-end, possibly Michelin Star, Italian Restaurants.
In preparation for creating my own brand identity for a high-end Italian restaurant, I have chosen a selection of restaurant brands and websites to analyse.
Casa
My first case study is a restaurant situated in Bristol, chosen primarily because I had visited it recently and am familiar with the restaurant and it's website. The website while simple and uncomplicated had remained firmly in my memory. It had been really easy to navigate and I had easily been able to find a menu then book a table, I had also needed to call them to check allergens and that information was easily accessible.
The hand drawn logo type brain the predominant focus visually, but all of the actions offered no friction to find. There is also a high resolution large photograph of the restaurant interior, this is a fairly standard feature of similar websites, but it gives an inviting glimpse into the restaurant and what you can expect.
In the image, it shows the kitchen team at work, a long exposure, which creates a motion blur on the people, giving a sense of activity but also anonymity to the figures, it becomes about the activity not the individual. This is a technique I have noticed on a few similar sites.
The menu is changed daily and is a snap of the hand finished typed sheet, showing specials and seasonal dishes. While the photo itself isn't tremendous the daily alterations with hand written additions give it a bespoke, personal touch which makes it feel special.
Sloan Street
I then had a little rummage around the restaurants located on and aroundSloan Street which is the intended locale of the project. The websites all very much follow the formula on the home page - hi-res image of the restaurant, some interior, some exterior, all with a subtle but easily located call to action 'book' button in top right hand corner, mostly in a gold colour.
Big Mamma Group
This group of restaurants is one I kept encountering in my research, they are a French owned, international chain of one off laid-back trattorias serving authentic Italian food in kitsch and extravagantly decorated unique settings. Each restaurant draws heavily on Italian heritage for it's look.
On the website they use a lot of animation in transitions between pages, the whole website is very slick and while the animation could look a little naff and out-dated, manages to come off as contemporary. It combines the new and old in a kooky but chic way.
The website collates the groups large collection of European restaurants, each restaurant is very different in its style, other than it is extravagant, overstated and Italian. The website does well to combine these individual characters in a way that lets them shine but also unifies them.
The simple yellow 'book' button on each restaurant stands out, even if the name above it disappears into the background. The striking location images do most of the work selling the experience and more information can by found by scrolling down.
The restaurant I hope to create would be one that fits right in amongst these motley crew of misfits, eclectic and busy. As well as creating a dynamic website such as this.
Primary research
I took several research trips up to London, here is some of my documentation along with some brief explanation for including it.
High-end chain restaurant. Simple, stylised logotype. The Art Deco font, gold on dark green conveys class with little effort.
Jacuzzi is part of the Big Mamma Group.
Decorative script
High-end chain restaurant. Simple, stylised logotype. The Art Deco font, gold on dark green conveys class with little effort.