So You Want to Brand Your Restaurant: Essentials and Pitfalls

Dec 4

When opening or rebranding your restaurant, creating a standout identity is crucial. A strong restaurant brand doesn’t just look good—it attracts diners, builds loyalty, and turns first-time guests into lifelong regulars. Let’s explore the branding essentials every restaurant needs and the common pitfalls to avoid.

Branding Essentials for Restaurants

A Unique Logo:
Your logo is the face of your restaurant. It needs to communicate your concept, style, and values. Avoid generic designs or trends that will fade.
A Clear Value Proposition:
Why should someone choose your restaurant over others? Your value proposition should be apparent in your name, tagline, and overall brand.
Cohesive Visual Identity:
From menus and signage to social media graphics, your visual elements need to be consistent. This includes colors, typography, and imagery that align with your restaurant’s vibe.
High-Quality Photography and Videography:
Your food should look as good online as it does on the plate. Professional photos and videos of your dishes, interiors, and staff create an emotional connection with potential customers.
A Memorable Customer Experience:
Branding isn’t just visual. The way your staff interacts with guests, the ambiance, and even the background music play a role in solidifying your brand in diners’ minds.

Common Pitfalls to Avoid

Copycat Designs:
Mimicking another restaurant’s branding confuses your audience and damages your credibility. Originality is key.
Inconsistent Branding:
Using different logos or colors across your platforms makes your brand feel unprofessional. Consistency builds trust.
Overcomplicating Your Brand:
Simplicity is powerful. Avoid cluttered logos or messaging that makes it hard for people to understand what your restaurant stands for.
Skipping the Strategy:
A logo without a strategy is like a dish without seasoning—it won’t deliver the full experience. Work with branding experts who take the time to understand your goals.

Your Restaurant’s Future Starts Here

Branding your restaurant isn’t just about looking good—it’s about creating a lasting impression. Partnering with professionals ensures your brand captures attention, converts diners, and builds loyalty.

Jaci Lund

Jaci Lund partner, creative director, designer Jaci’s quick wit and native intelligence comes across as soon as you meet her—and carries over to her design, where she fuses fun and sophistication in just the right doses. With a dual focus on creating original branding for new concepts and revitalizing the look and feel of even the most-established brands, Jaci approaches each project with a fresh and thoughtful perspective. While she recognizes the relevance of current trends, she’s hyper-conscious of the fine line that separates “trend” from “fad,” and tends toward more timeless and classic looks for her clients. Before founding Treebird, Jaci was instrumental in growing the design department at Atlanta’s The Reynolds Group, Inc. Through a five-year tenure that saw her quickly ascend to senior designer and then become the company’s first creative director, Jaci worked on design and branding projects with visionaries, entrepreneurs, and business leaders whom she admires greatly and whose own passion elevates her sense of what’s possible through new design, branding, and communication. Jaci has won nine ADDY Awards (and counting) for her design and branding work and has twice been featured in the national design blog “Art of the Menu.” She holds a B.A. in communications from Michigan State University and completed the graphic design program at The Creative Circus, where she also teaches a quarterly course called “Introduction to Creative Thinking.” To see Jaci's previous work please visit jacilund.com.

treebirdbranding.com