The 8 Secrets of Good Restaurant Design — How Designers Make Dining Out Feel Magical

Have you ever wondered what makes a restaurant truly memorable? And no, I am not talking about the food, as we know that plays a crucial part in determining whether or not an eatery is worth the check, let alone returning to. What I mean with "memorable" is the ability of a place to stick with you long after you have stepped out of it, to want to share it.

Think of the sum of elements that comes to define a space — is it naturally lit or dimly illuminated? Does its interior decor lean more towards minimalism or maximalism? Are its seating areas soft and upholstered or boldly brutalist, cut-in-stone? What music is playing in the background? From creating the right ambiance and soundscape to choosing the best materials and acknowledging the community you are serving, everything must be meticulously pondered when aiming to excel in restaurant design.

One way to approach this is by ensuring that the restaurant "is really about the senses," Diana Melichar, president of Melichar Architects, tells me. "Of course, the three ingredients for a great restaurant are good food, good service, and appropriate pricing," she says. "So, if the good food part handles the taste portion of the experience, it comes down to the architectural and interior design of the place to hit the other senses."

But what are the insider secrets and best practices guiding designers in the development of a new restaurant project? Three industry experts weigh in.

1. Know Your Audience

It might sound self-explanatory, but the first and foremost consideration people should take into account when approaching the making of a new restaurant is the type of audience this will provide for. As Faber and Company's founder and creative director Tony Matters explains, "it all starts with the customer; who are they? What inspires them? And what journey do we want to take them on?" The more you understand the diner, "the more tailored the experience can be." But it doesn't end there.

The introduction of a successful business has the opportunity to create a knock-on effect in the local community, "so it is important to think about the wider public the restaurant will affect," interior designer and content creator Dan Lovatt tells me. For the designer, it is about anticipating the impact you would like to make in that area and understanding how to achieve it. Creating a restaurant "is an opportunity to make a statement about the values your business stands for," he says. "Whether your focus is on the local artists you wish to showcase, the fabulous local produce, or the nightlife you wish to facilitate, the cultural scope of the project is one of the biggest decisions to make at its initial stage — it is so crucial that it should be at the forefront of the design process."

2. Be Thorough

Impressive interiors might be enough to hook guests in momentarily, but lack of thoroughness and "rushed" details can easily spoil your restaurant's reputation. To safeguard its status, "each touchpoint and experiential element should feel special, with every design contribution given extra consideration for the guest and how this might feel for them," Dan says.

To create a lasting memory on a consumer, "every single detail from the napkins and the light switches to the facilities need to be carefully pondered to make it easy to navigate for the customer," he adds. "The functionality and impact of each space is paramount to the success of the design." While project leaders may want to keep a spend low for an overall better investment, "the selection of materials is fundamental for getting this right, as cheaper fixtures and fittings will wear easily, compromising the overall aesthetic of the place."

3. Predict Staff Needs

We have already made a point about aesthetically pleasing design not being enough for a restaurant to pass the test, so what are the overlooked aspects of this specific design field deserving further attention? If it is true that food destinations are meant to accommodate the needs of diners, that is even more necessary when it comes to facilitating those of staff. "Restaurants are one of the most challenging spaces you can design," Tony Matters says. "They need to be highly functional, with huge pressures placed upon them during the busiest periods of service."

Dan Lovatt concurs. According to the interiors influencer, truly great design enhances "the productivity of the space", making it easier for staff to maintain its sanitation, organization, and the overall establishment's running. "With margins getting tighter in the hospitality industry, the headcount is getting lower," he adds. Being a good restaurant designer also means ensuring that anyone from restaurateurs to the last of their staff members is put in the condition to fulfil their jobs in the most efficient way while benefitting from the restaurant's setup in the same way in which guests do.

4. Set the Atmosphere

Dining out is as much about getting to test new cuisines as it is about getting away from the ordinary, even if just for a couple of hours, and this shouldn't be ignored by designers. "Restaurant design is, first and foremost, about escapism," Tony says.

"Whether for a spot of brunch or an evening with friends, diners want to feel immersed in an atmosphere." From a design perspective, he continues, "this is key — in such a challenging and competitive industry, diners expect a complete experience, not simply nice food in attractive surroundings." It is a position shared by Dan Lovatt, who thinks that "unleashing a sense of drama within a space is what keeps guests dwelling on what you have to offer", prompting them to indulge in it for a longer period of time.

5. Don't Just Show Off — Tell a Story

Part of a designer's talent lies in their ability to identify and unlock the stories already trapped in a given space, or envision just-as-fascinating new ones. Reflecting on the pivotal role played by storytelling in this kind of projects, Tony explains that "the opportunity to engage with customers on an emotional level is what can turn customers into loyal fans and advocates for the brand."

While identifying a narrative and concept strong enough to add value to your restaurant requires some effort, these factors are "what really helps to build the foundations of this engagement," he adds. "Success comes from crafting a unique experience that is relevant to the target customer."

6. Nail the Mood

Understanding how to pair the interiors of a restaurant with its menu, identity, and targeted clientele isn't easy, especially when you lack a clear brief, but learning how to amplify the vision at the heart of a food hotspot through the right choice of paint color ideas, forms, and materials is what makes it stand out from the crowd in the long run. "There's a reason why McDonald’s originally used bright yellows and reds in their restaurants — they wanted diners to get in and out of their locations as quickly as possible, and those hues pushed customers out the door," Diana Melichar explains.

But it wasn't all bad. While clearly not for everyone, "those were also festive, child-like shades appropriate for families who wanted to take their kids to a quick meal," she adds. According to the Melichar Architects' president, designers should pick hues that match the dining experience. "Refined projects might include stained wood and majestic royal colors, like purples and teals," she says, while "the interiors of a seafood restaurant might select calming ocean nuances and light, beach wood tones."

7. Please the Senses

There is more than one reason to believe every restaurant should be a feast for the senses, but overstimulation can be as detrimental to a food destination.

DESIGN FOR SIGHT, SOUND, AND SMELL, NOT AGAINST THEM

"Lighting and acoustics are a key pillar of a successful restaurant," Tony Matters says. "They combine to create the atmosphere; light and buzzy, like a brasserie, or quiet and intimate, like a fine dining restaurant. Evoking an atmospheric feel while allowing diners to read a menu and see their food is a science." Plus, adds the Faber and Company's founder and creative director, "there is nothing worse than a restaurant full of hard surfaces where it is so noisy you can barely have a conversation."

Sound control can be achieved thanks to the use of noise-absorbing, soft furnishings including "table cloths, upholstered seating, acoustic drapes, ceiling panels as well as pendants," Diana explains, who recommends covering any parallel walls in flutter-proof materials capable of soundproofing the noise bouncing in between them.

She opts for a similar approach to control odors: with smell being the most primal instinct, "it is incredibly important to guarantee that no smoke, mold, cleaning chemicals or other smells detract from the experience," Diana says. Should you wish to use carpeting in the design to manage smell, this would have to be impeccably cleaned and maintained.

8. Balance Creativity and Simplicity

Being a great interior designer also means knowing when to stop and let "quality outweigh quantity", Dan tells me. It will only take up to three seconds for a customer to make up their mind about a specific restaurant, so going for simple, yet timelessly elegant and durable finishes is often preferred over thoughtlessly maximalist alternatives. This doesn't mean you shouldn't be brave in your design choices. "A sense of being bold within the design scheme is always something I gravitate towards," the interior designer says. And that's not daring colors or clashing patterns, "but a careful arrangement of locally sourced artwork or a sense of tension and unexpectedness within the material selection."

Inventiveness sits at the core of Tony Matters' work, too. The goal for him is to conceive "an original and authentic experience: think of the couture fashion created by Alexander McQueen — startling, sometimes shocking, always original," he says.

Rather than relying on any specific story to inform a collection, he embraced a narrative as a means of "generating truly original creativity", concludes Tony — something we hope both restaurant designers and restaurant-goers will continue to aspire to in their lives.