TOWN Restaurant is a hypothetical upscale Chinese restaurant that combines a variety of Chinese cuisine to excite and delight their customers. TOWN’s vision for the future is to create experiential dining that is more than just a night out. They aim to bring quality and luxury across all aspects of their brand.  The approach of TOWN is to develop their brand with the understanding of both cultural and consumer insights. Within their vision always lives the promise of inspiring creativity, conversation and quality. TOWN’s audience is a high-end clientele who value a dining experience. The age range of their customers is early 30s-60s. They would like customers to come back for both personal dining and events.  TOWN’s mission statement is “To bring quality, style and the wish for good fortune to all of our guests. We provide a high-end experience through Chinese cuisine.”  The following design pieces reflect TOWN’s mission statement and vision for high quality and an exceptional experience.

TOWN’s table tent design advertises a tea special for weekdays at the restaurant. The design features the black, red and gray tones of the brand color palette. The logo is prominently displayed on a dark background with a slate texture that fades into an image of enticing warm tea. The transition between the slate background and the image is enhanced by the addition of two red chopsticks placed at a slight angle to give some contrast. The specials are listed in the brand fonts inside a white double line frame with a black background to allow the text to be legible and clear. The simplicity of this design supports the high end brand of Town restaurant.  When looking at this table tent, we notice the specials frame and text first, followed by the logo and then the subtle tea image at the bottom. If customers are seeing this table tent, it is because they are already seated at the restaurant so we want the menu items to be most prominent in the hierarchy of the design.

TOWN’s menu reflects quality and excellence in high end Chinese cuisine that sets this restaurant apart from the typical Chinese take out restaurant. The design uses the black, gray and red tones from the brand color palette. The menu text is set inside a simple double-line frame and accented by red chopsticks that serve as a visual divider at the top and bottom of the page. Opposite the restaurant logo is a line of the Chinese symbol for fortune echoing the brand logo. One chopstick stretches across the page in parallel alignment with the frame and the other is placed at an angle for visual contrast. Both the chopsticks and fortune symbols help bring the customer into the Chinese cuisine experience. Black text is set on a light gray background with a light slate texture for menu items and descriptions. Menu items are listed in Majesti Banner font to align with the restaurant logo while menu descriptions and prices use the other brand font, Athelas, which is more legible for smaller text sizes. The design decision to not include imagery sets this menu apart from the traditional Chinese menu and elevates the restaurant’s image. For purposes of envisioning the completed design, menu items were borrowed from Philippe Chow’s restaurant, Philippe, in New York City.

TOWN’s brochure is a mailed advertisement for the restaurant to attract customers. The cover of the brochure features a popular menu item as well as the logo, the restaurant’s vision and contact information. The front cover also features an opaque image of star anise, an ingredient used in Chinese cuisine, to fill white space above the logo. The fortune symbol is reiterated for repetition and balance. The back of the brochure features a photograph and biography of the executive chef and owner. The red chopsticks used in the table tent and menu are also used here as visual dividers. The chopsticks and fortune symbol reflect the red from the brand color palette and all text is in Athelas font, the preferred text of the brand that is legible in small font sizes. The location and contact information is printed on all pages of the outside of the brochure to ensure that the customer sees it. For the purpose of envisioning the completed design, the chef portrait and bio were borrowed from Philippe Chow’s restaurant, Philippe, in New York City.

The inside of TOWN’s brochure is the restaurant’s menu. The text emulates the actual menu the customer will see when they go to the restaurant with menu titles, descriptions and prices in the brand fonts. The red chopstick is used as a divider just as it is in other components of the TOWN collection. Inside the brochure, the red chopstick divider is alternated from bottom to top of each pages for variation. Images of menu items were added as well as the image of the tea that aligns with the table tent design. In addition to the contact information and restaurant logo, there is a paraphrase of the restaurant’s vision as well as a promotion for customers to receive a discount on their meal with a mention of the brochure. All three of the inside pages are framed out in a simple double line for consistency across all elements of the TOWN collection. Throughout all of the design pieces the red chopstick and fortune symbol are used as signature elements that carry across to unify the designs.

All the pieces of the TOWN branding suite were created using Adobe InDesign software.