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Fall 2022
Art Director: Bryan Satilino
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Congress is an erotic-inspired French restaurant and bar dedicated to indulgence and sensuality. The goal of this project was to invent a restaurant and concept and design several brand deliverables that could be used in and to promote said restaurant. I wanted to make a dining experience that combined the prestige of French cuisine with the exciting, campy atmosphere of lounge or club located in the Nation's capital, Washington D.C.
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I envisioned Congress as a restaurant that would also double as a bar and a venue for musicians, drag shows, burlesque performances etc. The type of place you might go not only for a nice dinner, but also for a night out. The menu would be French inspired, indulgent, aphrodisiacal, and littered with sexual innuendos.
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To begin creating brand materials I first had to visualize what it would be like to dine at Congress.
I asked myself questions such as:
“What would be the target customer demographic?”
“What kind of occasion would bring customers to Congress?”
“What kinds of performances/events would be held at Congress?”
“What kind of music would be played at Congress?”
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I watched movies, researched French dishes, visited bars and restaurants in Philly and even made a playlist of songs that would be played on the dance floor.
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The biggest part of this assignment was creating a menu. I wanted to really experiment with unconventional menus that fit the theme of my restaurant. I settled on a foldable fan shaped menu. The fan shape is a nod to ballroom culture and creates a unique and playful experience for diners. Each panel has a different course on it, each dish more decadent than the next.
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Given the nature of this concept I knew that social media would play a large part in promoting the restaurant and bringing in customers. I made a real Instagram page for congress (that you can follow if you want) @congressresturaunt
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I designed promotional posters using photoshop to place these vintage pinup girls into cocktails and deserts. These would be used as billboard and posters.
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Lastly, I designed a series of condoms with cheeky little sayings printed on the back of them, promoting both safe sex and my restaurant at the same time!