Taj Ali Restaurant
Creating a restaurant from scratch.
Role
UX/UI Design Intern
Industry
Taj Ali Restaurant
Duration
3 months
How it started
Creating a restaurant from scratch with the owner of Taj Ali was a great experience and it allowed me to strengthen my skills in UX/UI as well as graphic design. Through the many challenges we faced, we were able to increase our sales by 70-80% by the first three months of our opening day. I worked on designs ranging from small things like social media adverts, and flyers, all the way to the menu and website itself. In this project, I am going to share with you some of the designs I created to boost this businesses revenue and eventually lead them to opening their second branch.
The Challenge
Like I mentioned before, we experienced many challenges in the beginning. This was way more than just a design job for me, as I had to look over the businesses finances, customer demographics, and figure out solutions to complex issues in a short manner. This lead me to thinking, "How can my designs change the business?" I wondered how much power professional design had on a business.
The Logo
Creating a logo for Taj Ali Middle Eastern Restaurant was an exciting and collaborative process. The goal was to capture the essence of Middle Eastern cuisine while ensuring the design was modern, vibrant, and memorable.
Initial Research and Brainstorming: Understanding the brand's identity and values, researching traditional Middle Eastern culinary symbols, and finally, exploring various design styles that could represent the restaurant's unique offerings.
Sketching and Drafting: Drawing multiple sketches to explore different visual ideas, focusing on incorporating a chef figure to signify expertise and culinary art, and including a kebab skewer to highlight the restaurant's specialty.
Digital Rendering: Translating the selected sketch into a digital format using Adobe Illustrator, experimenting with different color schemes to find the perfect palette that reflects the Middle Eastern theme—settling on rich reds and bold blacks for a striking and appetizing look.
Refinement: Fine-tuning the logo details to ensure clarity and balance, then adjusting typography to complement the visual elements, lastly seeking feedback from the restaurant owner to make necessary adjustments.
Signage Production:
Collaborating with a signage company to produce a high-quality, durable sign for the new restaurant location.
Choosing materials that would withstand weather conditions and remain vibrant over time.
Installation:
Carefully installing the sign at the new location at 1501 Pine Lake Rd, Lincoln, NE.
Ensuring the sign is well-lit and visible to attract potential customers
Brochures and Posters
The brochures were created for the new location to hand out to the local community and attract potential customers, my goal was to create a brochure that showcased the food in an appetizing way, as well as keeping our brand consistent throughout.
I utilized Adobe inDesign to create the layout and structure for this brochure and went for a thick glossy paper when printing.
How it started
Creating a restaurant from scratch with the owner of Taj Ali was a great experience and it allowed me to strengthen my skills in UX/UI as well as graphic design. Through the many challenges we faced, we were able to increase our sales by 70-80% by the first three months of our opening day. I worked on designs ranging from small things like social media adverts, and flyers, all the way to the menu and website itself. In this project, I am going to share with you some of the designs I created to boost this businesses revenue and eventually lead them to opening their second branch.
The Challenge
Like I mentioned before, we experienced many challenges in the beginning. This was way more than just a design job for me, as I had to look over the businesses finances, customer demographics, and figure out solutions to complex issues in a short manner. This lead me to thinking, "How can my designs change the business?" I wondered how much power professional design had on a business.
The Logo
Creating a logo for Taj Ali Middle Eastern Restaurant was an exciting and collaborative process. The goal was to capture the essence of Middle Eastern cuisine while ensuring the design was modern, vibrant, and memorable.
Initial Research and Brainstorming: Understanding the brand's identity and values, researching traditional Middle Eastern culinary symbols, and finally, exploring various design styles that could represent the restaurant's unique offerings.
Sketching and Drafting: Drawing multiple sketches to explore different visual ideas, focusing on incorporating a chef figure to signify expertise and culinary art, and including a kebab skewer to highlight the restaurant's specialty.
Digital Rendering: Translating the selected sketch into a digital format using Adobe Illustrator, experimenting with different color schemes to find the perfect palette that reflects the Middle Eastern theme—settling on rich reds and bold blacks for a striking and appetizing look.
Refinement: Fine-tuning the logo details to ensure clarity and balance, then adjusting typography to complement the visual elements, lastly seeking feedback from the restaurant owner to make necessary adjustments.
Signage Production:
Collaborating with a signage company to produce a high-quality, durable sign for the new restaurant location.
Choosing materials that would withstand weather conditions and remain vibrant over time.
Installation:
Carefully installing the sign at the new location at 1501 Pine Lake Rd, Lincoln, NE.
Ensuring the sign is well-lit and visible to attract potential customers
Brochures and Posters
The brochures were created for the new location to hand out to the local community and attract potential customers, my goal was to create a brochure that showcased the food in an appetizing way, as well as keeping our brand consistent throughout.
I utilized Adobe inDesign to create the layout and structure for this brochure and went for a thick glossy paper when printing.
Custom Greaseproof Paper Design
The Website & Marketing
This project was an invaluable opportunity to apply UX/UI design principles in a real-world setting, contributing to a product that promotes social connectivity and culinary exploration. It challenged me to think creatively about how to meet user needs and preferences, enhancing my skills in research, design, and collaboration. The experience underscored the importance of user feedback in the design process and the impact of thoughtful design on user engagement and satisfaction.
Facebook Adverts
Running ads for the restaurant through Facebook was very successful. We managed to increase the Facebook pages followers from 0 to 500 followers, as well as improving engagement. The goal of the adverts were to get more website visitors which then converts to orders placed, as well as foot traffic to the physical location.
Below you can see the stats, thanks to my work.
The Website & Marketing
This project was an invaluable opportunity to apply UX/UI design principles in a real-world setting, contributing to a product that promotes social connectivity and culinary exploration. It challenged me to think creatively about how to meet user needs and preferences, enhancing my skills in research, design, and collaboration. The experience underscored the importance of user feedback in the design process and the impact of thoughtful design on user engagement and satisfaction.
Facebook Adverts
Running ads for the restaurant through Facebook was very successful. We managed to increase the Facebook pages followers from 0 to 500 followers, as well as improving engagement. The goal of the adverts were to get more website visitors which then converts to orders placed, as well as foot traffic to the physical location.
Below you can see the stats, thanks to my work.
