Everyone, White Oak is having a moment. This is not your mother’s kitchen from 1984—I promise. In fact, this classic American hardwood is being served up in a  sophisticated, subtle way across the commercial design landscape. From trendy retail stores to modern restaurants, White Oak is white hot, and we don’t see it burning out anytime soon. Here are our favorite White Oak looks and trends.

Whether you’re looking to drive traffic to your new online ordering platform, or increase brand awareness, mastering the art of social media for your restaurant is not only important, but necessary these days. 

If you live in Austin and don’t have any plans this Friday night, I think I may have the spot for you. And if you’re just a big fan of great interior or restaurant design, well, I also have the post for you.

In the series, I Spy, we highlight unique perspectives, designs, furniture, architecture, and people. When so much of the design world can feel monotonous, we search for and share moments that make you look and think twice. Think of I Spy as your one-stop-shop for everything bold, different, and beautiful.

Tucked away in the seaside town of Emerald Isle, North Carolina, you’ll find the family-owned restaurant, Rucker Johns. Inspired by the shoreline, the restaurant’s interior gleams with soothing cool colors and sophisticated textures. It’s a modern space, but Rucker Johns didn’t always look like this. In fact, until recently, Rucker Johns was an aging casual restaurant in need of an update. Curious about the design, we called up Danielle Boisse of Port City Design Group, the designer responsible for Rucker Johns’ new look, to learn more this massive makeover.

Super modern and minimal, the Sadie Collection was designed by Joey Ruiter and launched in 2014. This mixed material modern seating collection effortlessly marries Ruiter’s passion for minimalism with his pursuit of functionality. Since its launch, this chair has been used in restaurants across North America, from independent restaurants and cafes, to large chains, like Burger King and even more recently, White Castle (pics coming soon).

College cafeterias aren’t what they used to be—and I’m only five years out of university. Within the last few years, gigantic multi-purpose (and well-designed) student centers and cafeterias have become the norm. So long are the days of glum lighting, stale french fries, and bad furniture, these new cafeterias offer diverse cuisines and areas for multiple activities. Case in point: University of Kentucky Student Center.

2017 had us asking the questions “will we ever get sick of ‘millennial pink’?” and “how many neon signs is too many?”, “is the industrial trend ever going to fade?”, and while we’re predicting some major shifts in restaurant design trends for 2018, we’re also excited to celebrate the amazing spaces created throughout the past year that are vibrant, functional, and obviously showcase our products.

One of our New Year’s resolutions? Try new things. Which means stepping outside of our comfort zone and stepping into new spaces, like offices. Companies like Facebook, Google, and more recently WeWork, have redefined the world of office interior design, taking us far away from grey cubicle walls to bold rooms inspired by pop art and local icons.

Tapestry is a dual concept restaurant under one roof. Lead by a husband-and-wife duo, Megann War, and Kevin Walsh, this new restaurant located just steps away from Fenway Park, got its namesake for the symbolic way tapestries interweave stories, culture, and events, all in one space. The restaurant is direct representation of War and Walsh's culinary viewpoints, both deeply shaped by work and personal experiences. Alongside design firm, Dyer Brown, the couple infused their passion for travel into both designs (and menus).

In the world of Uber Eats and value menus, how do independent restaurants and restaurant chains convince customers to actually eat inside of their stores? The past decade has fared well for the restaurant industry, especially the fast casual concepts, but with increased competition can “good food, fast” really be enough? 

Color plays in integral role in a school’s identity. You wouldn’t have University of Michigan without maize and blue or the Tarheels without their signature Carolina blue and white. When you think about it, school colors can be found on everything from a school’s end zone, to sweatshirts, to coffee mugs, and even interior design.

The last decade of restaurant design threw us head-first into the world of heavy industrial--from edison bulbs to exposed brick to raw metals and finally reclaimed, dark woods. In more recent years, the trend has gone mainstream. What once was a reserved for the grungy warehouses turned bars of NYC, quickly found its way into polite suburban neighborhoods, echoing its own death sentence upon arrival.

There’s a strange phenomenon that occurs with restaurant layouts: when you’re eating somewhere with a great space, the furniture placement, decor, other patrons, and ambient noise of the kitchen all blend together into a comfortable environment where you can relax and enjoy a meal. But when it’s bad, you notice. With some careful attention to your restaurant furniture layout, it’s easy to avoid unpleasant situations for your customers. Here are some tips for creating a layout that works seamlessly:

The Lynhall, a multi-functional food space that is part restaurant/cafe, part incubator kitchen, and part kitchen TV studio, opened earlier this year in south Minneapolis, and is taking the Twin Cities by storm.

Our LookBook Vol. 3 is now available, and we think it's our best yet.  Dramatically different than our previous installments, this LookBook is dripping in rich color, texture, and story. In honor of our best yet, we sat down with Lindsay Jones, designer, resident cool girl, and creative genius behind LookBook Volumes 1, 2, and now 3. Learn about what places and spaces inspired the LookBook, how color informs her work, and what restaurants should never include in their design.

We’re breathing new life into our standard metal finishes with eight new colors. At a time when “freshness” or “sustainability” are anchor words for most Q.S.R. brands, this new color palette echoes the visual language of both the natural world and modern food space environments.

You may already have experienced the new style of food courts, but didn’t recognize it at the first glance. That’s because it’s masked in unique decor, delectable dishes, and visual interest like never before. Gone are the days of the stiff, white trays and servers in hair nets—a new day has dawned in the cafeteria and food court world, and it’s known as a food hall.

In our new series, I Spy, we highlight unique perspectives, designs, furniture, architecture, and people. When so much of the design world can feel monotonous, we search for and share moments that make you look and think twice. Think of I Spy as your one-stop-shop for everything bold, different, and beautiful.

With Pantone’s recent “Color of the Year” announcement, Greenery (15-0343 TCX),

Creating a cult following for your restaurant on Instagram is almost a necessity

1. Specify furniture with clean lines and modern finishes
2. Integrate power into your tables for connectivity
3. Create purposeful breakout zones
4. Be bold with color choices
5. Use furniture pieces with flexible uses 

Being from Beer City U.S.A., we have a special fondness for breweries. We’re excited to have our Sadie restaurant chairs featured in the newest brewpub to stake its claim in our hometown of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Enter The Knickerbocker Brewpub & Distillery.