Modern retro and bright colors are the trends for restaurant design

Brent Bueche knows a thing or two about restaurant design. He is the president and CEO of BBI Architects, a firm that has its corporate office in Baton Rouge and has designed retail spaces for restaurants across the country since 2002. Some of Bueche’s clients include big-name chains such as Chick-Fil-A, IHOP and Whataburger, as well as local eateries such as the now-closed D’Agostino’s on Third Street downtown. Currently, BBI is working with a North Carolina restaurant group to bring a chain of Dairi-Os across the East Coast.

Bueche says over the past 12 years, the biggest changes in restaurant design have to do with the use of a more modern color palette. He says the change came with the rise of Starbucks Coffee locations across the country.

“At the time, there was a lot of white, red and gray color use,” he says. “As Starbucks picked up steam, the palette changed to coffee colors—dark browns, rich greens and cocoa. Now, the colors are oranges, mossy greens, purples and candy apple green.”

Those colors are a part of a larger trend: the move toward “modern retro-style” restaurants.

He says the design naturally depends on the restaurant. He does see some restaurants that want neutral tones so that the setting is a backdrop to the food. However, many restaurants want “what their grandparents had.”

“What was ‘modern’ in the ’50s and became really prominent throughout the ’60s and ’70s is what people are trying to get back to,” he says.

That modern retro vibe which uses accent lighting and pops of bright color isn’t the only trend he’s noticed. He also has clients that are looking to open with the next innovative design.

“Everyone’s constantly searching for something,” he says. “At the end of the day, every client has to get the customer in the door. That is my primary role. We have to create the flower that bees want to come to. We can’t influence the food or the customer’s experience with the employees, but we can influence a physical environment that will attract them.”

No matter what is trending, Bueche says the biggest sell for a restaurant is that its image reflects the food.

“You can’t have a blasé front if you’re serving high-end Italian food,” he says. “That exterior has to reflect what’s going on inside. The expectations customers have from looking at your building or brand is a big part of the restaurant business.”

Bueche will be a part of the Atlanta talk radio show, “We Sell Restaurants,” talking about putting the “wow” in design Saturday at noon. The show will stream online at wesellrestaurants.com. The BBI Architects CEO will also speak at the the Louisiana Restaurant Association’s annual expo in New Orleans this August.