Restaurant Remodel

Restaurant Remodeling goals

• Develop a more welcoming entry
• Increase the percentage of customer preferred tables throughout the restaurant,
• Increase the feeling of intimacy in several locations
• Add interesting decorative details that could be changed by the manager.

Great food but a challenging setting

was holding back the success of this local restaurant. The restaurant was in the basement level at the back of a building. Only a few tables were desirable. The bar area was 40% of the seating but few wanted to sit there. If you did, you were isolated from the cozy part behind tall oak bureaus.
The lighting was poor. Lighted paddle fans for the rooms and wall sconces lit the white walls which had been painted with dark green murals.

The Restaurant Interior Design Plan:

The restaurant remodel plan is to open up the atmosphere with low curving walls and removing the paddle fans.

Create romantic lighting in the bar area and contrasting with brighter lighting in the lower galley area. Provide a flexible lighting system to encourage art on the walls.

Add eye catching elements in several locations within the restaurant. Create different but harmonious color palettes for each of the three dining sections in this remodel.

The new entrance features a low, curving stone wall. After the restaurant remodel, while waiting to be seated, track lighting draws your eye to the artwork and invites you explore deeper in the space.

The lower galley looks outside in the summer. For the winter, white birch branches were bunched outdoors and covered with small white lights.

The lighting plan was upgraded with two systems of lighting. The general lighting is now provided by dimmer controlled mini- halogen floods. For interest and to eliminate side glare, we added handcrafted mesh skirts. We positioned them to light the walkways directly and indirectly fill the narrow dining room with a proper level of light. Over the tables, a separate circuit controls low voltage pendant lights with custom shades. The lights were selected to gently fill illuminate just the very center of the tables, creating an romantic feel and highlighting the color coordinated table settings. The lighting also served to draw patrons eyes into the dining area while still maintaining privacy.

The old metal stair rail was replaced with antique trackwheels and a large gear. The fresh paint colors selected by the interior design team add character and warmth without dominating. This allows a wide variety of art to be displayed .

Color now defines and connects different areas. Red and cream table cloths and bar stools provide a warm flow throughout the restaurant.
The hanging lights are inexpensive low voltage pendants with handpainted shades, pinned together with a clay "Olive".