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An out-of-place design choice can perplex and confuse restaurant visitors. Various restaurant concepts and styles elicit different expectations. The overall restaurant style, design and aesthetics are very important parts of building your brand. We often collaborate with restaurant designers and we also have our in-house team of experts who have their finger on current restaurant trends. Our team create this guide with tips on how to choose the correct restaurant chairs for fast & casual restaurants, casual dining venues, cafes and food courts, and cafeterias.
Quick & Casual Restaurant
Quick, fast and casual restaurants have exploded over the last decade as health-conscious consumers are starting to look more for dining experiences that combine the convenience of fast food meals but with the transparency of home cooking. These venue types don’t provide table service very often and they offer instead an experience similar to a fast-food, where visitors select their meals at a counter and then pick a seat in the dining area.
While fast food corporations try to present or market themselves as cool places to eat, quick casual restaurants were designed and built from the start with trendiness in mind. With Millennials as their primary target audience and demographic, fast casuals frequently create their brands around designs and themes that appeal to a more younger population of consumers.
Creating a consistent and precise brand image when selecting restaurant seating options for a quick casual restaurant concept is crucial. The furniture of a restaurant is as much a part of its brand image as the name, logo, and even the food and menu, so make sure that each aspect complements the others. Stick to clean, modern and appealing designs, and try to prioritize durability and ease of maintenance. Fast casuals have brief and fast visits, and intense traffic. But without table service, personnel may not notice spills on time. Keep that in mind while purchasing restaurant for this venue type since you can opt-in for spill resistant commercial grade furniture.
Informal & Casual Restaurants
Informal and casual restaurants, particularly family dining venues, appeared first in the 1960s as a response to an increase in the number of dual-income families. They were seeking the experience of sitting down to a meal together without the time and effort required to cook at home. These types of venues provide the whole package. From excellent food at reasonable prices to table service, and a very pleasant ambiance.
Customers at more relaxed venues have started to increasingly anticipate a fully-rounded experience, therefore it is important to choose fitting furniture for this type of restaurant. The profit margins on alcoholic beverages and desserts are typically the highest in casual restaurants. If you offer discounts on these items that might help keep guests seated.
Upholstered restaurant chairs add a new level of comfort and style, especially when made from a sturdy fabric that matches the restaurant’s logo and other brand elements in terms of color and pattern. A casual dining establishment’s ability to accommodate a variety of customers’ seating preferences is also crucial. This includes making accommodations for wheelchairs, high chairs, and booster seats.
Coffee Shop or Cafe
It’s for good reason that the terms “café” and “coffee shops” are often used interchangeably in the minds of the general public. Light fare like pastries and sandwiches are commonplace at American cafes in addition to hot beverages, while coffee is the main attraction at coffee shops. Branding and public opinion are the deciding factors when it comes to coffee shops. If a venue is called a cafe or coffee shop, clients still expect more or less the same experience. They expect to order at a counter, pick up their drink or food and choose between going or sitting down for a few hours of relaxation or productivity.
The picture you have in mind when thinking about a coffee shop is a pleasant, peaceful, and personal setting. Clients should choose the experience that makes them feel most welcome. You can provide a wide range of seating options, such as a bar lined with stools, bistro tables, and couches or lounge chairs.
Cafeteria or Food Court
The dining space for a food court or cafeteria should be modern, appealing, and simple to maintain. Cafeterias are spaces where people can take a break, get together and enjoy a meal The main type of visitors are workers and students, so the furniture needs to help you accommodate that. Because of the high volume and brief visits, chairs and tables are continuously shifted around in the space. For larger capacity, variable seating options and chair height can help make the most of the dining area.
It is possible to design restaurant furniture that enhances rather than dilutes your brand by learning what customers want from different types of dining experiences. In addition to quality and appearance, it is important to think about how the chairs will fit into the overall concept of the restaurant.
