Design it Yourself: Brand Identity for a Modern Restaurant

Hyo Song August 15, 2024 · 3 min read

Welcome back to another edition of our Design it Yourself series, where today we’re setting the table for success with a tutorial on crafting a modern restaurant brand identity. Whether you’re launching a new eatery or refreshing an existing one, establishing a visually compelling brand can attract more customers and create a memorable dining experience. Let’s get started!

Step-by-Step Tutorial

1. Gathering Your Assets: First, let’s assemble the building blocks for our restaurant brand:

Hand Drawn Fish Logos Collection by Createvil for your primary logo (Hand Drawn Fish Logos Collection).
Absintio Typeface by Onepillar Studio, offering a stylish classic look (ABSINTIO Stylish Classic Typeface).
Mockups to visualize your brand in real-world settings, such as billboards, matchboxes, menus, and more (Barcelona Billboard Mockup, Matchbox Mockup, Menu Food Paper Mockup).

2. Creating Your Primary Logo: Open Adobe Illustrator and select a graphic from the Hand Drawn Fish Logos collection. This collection features beautifully intricate designs that can represent the freshness and quality of your restaurant’s offerings. Adjust shapes, sizing, and orientation to customize the logo to your taste, making it unique to your brand.

3. Designing Your Wordmark: Using Absintio, create a wordmark for your restaurant. Experiment with italic and regular weights of this transitional serif typeface, which is inspired by the herbal complexity of Absinthe. Its detailed letterforms will convey a sense of heritage in your branding.

4. Establishing a Color Palette: Develop a 5-color palette that complements your restaurant’s atmosphere and cuisine. Opt for warm hues that reflect the flavors and aromas of the dishes you serve.

5. Expanding Brand Elements: Take the primary logo and explore its use on various merchandising items found in a restaurant setting, such as matchboxes. In Illustrator, copy and modify your fish logo, playing with repetition and orientation to create dynamic designs that maintain brand consistency across all items.

6. Applying Your Branding to Mockups: Now, bring your brand to life by applying your logo, typeface, and color scheme to high-resolution mockups. Use the mockups you’ve gathered to simulate how your branding would look on everything from restaurant menus to outdoor billboards. This step is crucial as it provides a realistic preview of how your brand will interact with customers.

From the signage outside to the matchboxes on your tables, each element plays a part in crafting a memorable brand experience. So dive in, use these tools, and watch as your restaurant brand comes to delicious life right before your eyes.