Colorful Restaurant Design by Mindful Design Consulting Creates a Fun Place in the Middle of an Old City

Our last completed project is Crabby, a small casual restaurant in Richmond, Virginia, that offered us a chance to play again with bright tones and sleek design elements. The owner loves Karim Rashid’s designs, his exuberance, love of color, appetite to create, unique way to bring an interior to life with wide brushes of unapologetic colors and, not lastly, his love of pink. Inspired by his work and style, we came up with a colorful restaurant design that appeals to customers’ emotions by satisfying their need for chromatic stimulation, lifting their spirits and offering them a cool, fun and memorable space to hang out. 

Colorful restaurant design by Mindful Design Consulting

To the brand’s chromatic trio of yellow, orange and pink tones, we added turquoise, which gave the space a sunny marine feel. Using blocks of colors and the occasional custom wallpaper graphics, we emphasized and tied in the different elements of design. The door-framing wall, the Corian window counters, the self-serve drink area, the iPad stations and the wall surrounding the pick-up counter are all infused with warm, happy and intense orange and yellow tones. This creates the vibrant background that instantly captures the interest of those who enter, but that also gives the eye an easy clue when trying to identify the main functional areas.

While Crabby is intended to be a very high-tech restaurant, with mainly to-go food and ordering done online or from the iPad stations along the wall, we created two small areas where customers can sit or stand while waiting for their order or eating their food. They both make optimal use of the small space and open the view of the street to those who decide to enjoy a longer stay. The large windows on two sides of the building allow for plenty of natural light and make the space look larger and more comfortable. 

When deconstructed into its main parts, the design is simple, meant to keep the interior airy and uncrowded. It is color that define the entire space and saves it from looking small or monotone. As an accent color, pink appears in the sleek reflective shape of the light fixtures, the minimal shelving and the pick-up counter, serving as another quick visual clue for the different functional areas of the restaurant. Black, white and gray are introduced to balance out the vivid colors either through the Corian counter and the low-maintenance striped epoxy flooring or simply through keeping the ceiling and a few walls free of color. 

The vertical oak wood-toned laminate wall panels break the expanse of color, give the eye a chance to rest, create the illusion of a higher ceiling, and emphasize the location of the ordering station. They are also a subtle nod to the more restrained look and architecture of the city that lies beyond the restaurant’s front door. Their calming natural tones tie in with the minimalist counter stools and provide a neutral background for the marine-themed custom wall paper that brings in a minimal but satisfying amount of pattern. 

The storefront combines the dark urban brick of this old city with exuberant colors and vivid signage. This contrast between old and new, neutral and colorful, and restrained and boisterous style, is intended to draw the attention of the passers-by and create a sense of fun even before customers step in. 

Above: Crabby Restaurant Before Photo

The intention behind this colorful restaurant design is made obvious by the fun elements and vibrant chromatic choices summed up in the material and furniture board. 

The restaurant logo design captures the same sense of fun with its lobster claws, informal fonts and sunny tones, As usual, we identified and provided the fonts and Pantone colors for easy use and reference when creating other marketing materials.

Soon you can visit the Crabby restaurant at 100 W Clay St., Richmond, VA 23220. 

All images and restaurant design by Mindful Design Consulting.

If you are thinking to open a new business or are in the process of rebranding and remodeling your existing business, contact us to get a free consultation from Mindful Design Consulting. Click HERE to price your project design.

Also, take a look at “Branding By Interior” e-book, the only book written on this subject at this time. It brings insight on how you can turn your business into a market-dominating competitor by using human cognitive responses.