#the ramblers

[lucyhart-viscomm]

The Ramblers - Critical Reflection

Though it was only a one week project I felt that engaging in a faux professional style brief was really useful and interesting. The process itself was pretty quick and a little daunting but deciding the aspects such as the identity and logo earlier on gave us plenty of time to experiment with ideas, colours, and outcomes.

Working in a group again was a little difficult at times mainly as there were so many deliverables stated in the brief that we all had to refer to one another for. Splitting up the responsibilities initially was a very good idea as it gave everyone a specific area to focus on without getting too overwhelmed by other sections.

Gathering research at the beginning was a little difficult as everyone was doing their own thing and collaborating together with ideas and research, but overall we came to a conclusion we were all happy with and the research we did together gave us all a good idea of what our identity was about.

The area I worked on, the menus and flyers as well as the illustrations, worked well for me. At the start I felt a little overwhelmed by the amount of deliverables, but after splitting up responsibility I felt a lot more comfortable. Being able to include my own illustrations in the menu and identity was satisfying as it allowed me to use my illustration skills effectively as they’re one of my strengths in design.

The menu was a pretty large feat which is why I helped work on it, and the overall layout and feel of it went really well. Though the menu we were given was a lot, breaking it into specials and other aspects really helped the layout as well as highlighting The Ramblers strengths with the Grill section, their ‘off the grill’ aesthetic being a highlight.

The feedback we received was very helpful, especially as it was from an external reviewer who had experience in the industry. A few minor details stood out, such as forgetting a few minor aspects on the flyers and correx, but overall it was a very positive response and I felt that we had all achieved a professional outcome and presentation.

If done again it would likely be more effective to decide on a logo and identity earlier on in the project to give us more time to experiment with layout and other aspects that were highlighted in the feedback, such as the consistency of the menu key. As the key was part of my responsibility I would definitely change some parts as it was brought up that the kids menu icon felt unrelated to the others and I agree, but choosing a symbol to represent children without being too condescending was difficult. On further reflection the smiley face icon I made would likely have worked better with the curved of the other icons than the linear pinwheel.

[lucyhart-viscomm]

The Ramblers - In sit.

Putting the posters and other branding in situation is one of the best ways to see how it would look in real life. Looking at the menu, loyalty cards, etc, together looks really good, all aspects fitting together like a set and clearly presenting the brand in a real life setting. The menu layout looks the best in my opinion, looking good from afar and bringing the organic, yet modern feel we wanted with the simple white and green colours.

[lucyhart-viscomm]

The Ramblers Social Media pages

To expand The Ramblers brand, getting it onto social media was a must. As publicity is a staple of a restaurant gaining a customer base we had to utilise all the tools at our disposal, mocking The Ramblers up on a variety of different social media sites, such as Facebook and Instagram. Being on social media would also give The Ramblers an opportunity to get personal with their customers, perhaps having events and special deals to appeal and to make them appear beyond a brand.

[lucyhart-viscomm]

Logo development

The Ramblers logo went through many iterations before we were happy with it. We wanted to go for browns and greens in our colours to give it that organic, fresh feel to balance out the meat-heavy menu. Leaf motifs and sketchy, hand-drawn styles did appear once or twice but we didn’t feel it stood out enough or felt unique to represent the brand. Lower case sometimes used also to make it feel more casual and approachable, and the almost scorched wood effect given to some of the outlines relating back to the ‘off the grill’ feel they wanted to present.

In the end we decided on an ‘eco friendly’ typeface, the ‘hollowed’ letters saving on ink when it comes to printing. The green is simple and suits the typeface well, making it feel organic and fresh, no unnecessary embellishments needed to make it look good.

[lucyhart-viscomm]

Menu Key

As the menu we received had food allergens included, and as its a mandatory aspect of any restaurant nowadays, we had to include a key to present this. The pescatarian image was simple enough, along with the vegetarian and alcohol, however the vegan and kids menu one was a little harder.

The two leaves seemed like a good idea for vegan as if its vegan it is definitely vegetarian also, plus the two symbols are easily recognisable in small form. The kids menu icon had a couple of iterations as it was difficult to try and sum it up in a single, simple form. The pinwheel seemed a good idea as it was colourful and eye catching, which would draw kids attention as well as sums up their menu options without being too condescending.

[lucyhart-viscomm]

Flyer Designs

In addition to the social media we wanted to create flyers to promote the restaurant, most likely including an eye-catching deal for the opening night. Initially we used steak in the imagery, but burgers fitted better as it was more inclusive to vegetarians, something the restaurant really wants to express, and felt more casual as well.

Keeping the address and contact details visible and clear was one of the most important aspects of the flyer. The social networking links work well also as it relates to a broad audience and allows future contact for the recipient, plus shows that its a restaurant that has broad connections and is active on many levels.

Stylistically the border works well in keeping it feel all neat and enclosed, focusing the eye on the content where we want it to be. The burger looks good and represents the restaurant’s aesthetic well, however, it was only after designing it did we discover that we could use found imagery as a placeholder for our ideas. If we had used found imagery then I feel it would have worked a little better; the real life pictures of food definitely more effective in attracting customers with a real representative of what The Ramblers has to offer. Regardless, the flyer does represent The Ramblers identity and brand, especially with the idea of using recycled paper.

As one of The Ramblers weaknesses was not enough vegetarian options we decided to go with a very environmentally friendly approach to balance out the meat-heavy options. As part of this, we wanted the flyers and menu to be made from recycled paper, hence why the flyer design is shown in white and beige, the beige to represent how it may look on the chosen paper.

[lucyhart-viscomm]

Food illustrations

Imagery for the restaurant was a little difficult initially, pictures of the actual food being ideal to present how tasty it is, but can look unprofessional and tasteless if done wrong. To avoid this we opted for illustration centred imagery, going for a sketchy lined style to get across the casual feeling the restaurant wants.

As I haven’t done illustrations for branding before I am personally very happy with the outcome, the simple lined style working well with the modern theme as well as having hand drawn illustrations in a sketchy style enhancing the casual feel of the restaurant.

[lucyhart-viscomm]

Menu Development

As the menu came in Excel, we had to translate it into a more coherent form. As the main menu would be done in Indesign anyway it made sense to translate it over, plus it would be so much easier to read in this form. The menu had a couple of typos, which is to be expected especially with a real life brief, which we sorted or labelled for later.

Some of the symbols were a little hard to decipher at first, such as the cross shape for pescatarian and the asterisk for containing alcohol, but through deduction we found out their meaning to create the key.

As the menu was pretty lengthy it was easier to split into sections, and as The Ramblers main selling point is their off the grill food we added in a Grill section for the burgers, steaks, and other grilled foods to try and shorten the Mains section to fit onto a sensibly sized menu.