Restaurant Design Trends for 2015

Just what exactly does it take to ensure your diners enjoy their experience to the fullest? Good food is a given, but what about the space they’re dining in? More and more, people are being enticed by restaurants with appealing spaces, with something unique on offer that will make their Instagram accounts pop and treat their eyes to a visual feast. Here are some of the design trends we predict will really take off this year.

Open Kitchens

More and more, diners enjoy being a part of the entire restaurant experience. This means that they want to know what’s in their food, how healthy and fresh it is, how kitchen standards are, and more. Having an open kitchen essentially shows diners that you have nothing to hide. They can see what ingredients are being used, the cooking methods used, hygiene standards and how professional the chefs are. It essentially adds another layer to the overall dining experience, which is never a bad thing. At the end of the day, [1]“it’s all about honesty and openness.”

Global Eclecticism 

Unless your restaurant has a very specific theme, it is often a good choice to create a globally inclusive feel in your dining space. Think vintage posters, the odd curio that’s just different enough to draw the eye, but familiar enough to earn appreciation from customers. The idea of cobbling together unrelated items, bright colors and unique décor is to the idea of how interconnected the world is becoming and how people of different cultures are mixing more and more, which is also a trend we are seeing with food. [2]One of the pioneers of this design philosophy is Stonehill & Taylor, a design firm based in New York. 

One Space Multiple Experiences

A restaurant that is only known for one thing can often thrive for a time, but over time that one trick pony act may get stale. One of the new trends we see taking the restaurant industry by storm in 2015 is the idea of creating different experiences within your restaurant space. Creating levels with different type of seating, playing with light in different portions of your restaurant, having a bakery or café portion and a full-service portion, bar areas, chef-side tables, the list goes on. Providing multiple experiences in your space means customers will be able to return time and time again, but will not feel like they are repeating the same experience over and over. [3]Parts and Labor Design are one of the pioneers of this design philosophy.

Raw Décor

Raw décor adds a natural and homey feeling to any restaurant space. By raw décor, we mean hand-crafted items, natural woods, rough edges-basically as unpretentious as you can get. This rustic look and feel works great with restaurants that want to give off the image of being a home away from home. Customers can feel comfortable if the décor isn’t spotless and perfect because they will know that they can simply be themselves and relax in such an environment. 

[1] https://www.bighospitality.co.uk/Article/2014/06/23/Design-Restaurant-design-trends-for-2014

[2] http://www.foodrepublic.com/2014/09/02/fall-preview-2014-upcoming-trends-in-restaurant-design/

[3] http://www.foodrepublic.com/2014/09/02/fall-preview-2014-upcoming-trends-in-restaurant-design/