menu

Happy Hour Like Never Before

When dining out, your impression of a restaurant can be affected by multiple things: the food, the service, the prices, etc. One of the first things you experience, whether consciously or not, is the menu itself. The layout, paper, colors, the holder – all of these factors come into play.

When restaurant owner, Tony Sciola asked us to revamp the Campagnia drink menu, we knew we had to create something special to live up to this established, well-regarded location. After researching trends (current, tried-and-true and the more “out there” menu options), we presented a mood board for the client to get a feel of the direction.

From there our creative team split to tackle the menu itself and the holder.

Fabrication

For the structure of the holder to achieve the durability needed while still evoking the impressiveness of the décor and ambiance of the restaurant, we quickly realized that it would have to be custom-built. Constructing mockups to see what would and wouldn’t work, and working with local vendors, led us to the framework that would become the final piece.

The Woodshed adhered a sheet of acid-washed metal atop the black painted composite wood base, the exact same metal that can be seen throughout the interior of the restaurant. For the cover, we worked with Tandy Leather to pick the right leather that would give us the texture and flexibility we required. After LangCountry laser etched the Campagnia logo into the center, we stained the leather pieces with a color that would mimic the logo’s brand color.

Design

While fabrication was worked on, the layout and design of the menu contents were being rethought as well. A drink menu can have frequent updates whether that be seasonal wine selections or a new craft cocktail, so the design would have to be editable by the client. By utilizing style sheets, the final template file was simple enough to revise while still holding to the branding and design standards of their other menus and materials.

Due to the custom design of the menu, the printed pages require hole punching and cutting each time any section needs updating. To help make the process as easy as possible for the client we setup a jig on an adjustable hole punch and created visual cut lines on the digital file, to ensure consistent alignment. To add further quality and distinction, two colors from French Paper were chosen, to separate the happy hour section from the liquor and wine.

menu

For the finishing touch to literally tie it all together, we chose brass screws. The colors, textures, and materials of the assembled menu create a truly impressive piece that make any patron’s visit more memorable.

menu

Josh Durham, Video Editor/Designer