CLIENT:
Perillas Korean Kitchen
ROLE:
Designer / Creative Direction
PHOTOGRAPHY:
Jared Steinmark
Perillas is a fast-casual Korean kitchen in Cambridge & Somerville, MA owned by James Choi. He has been paving a way to accessible, authentic Korean food, connecting Bostonians to this cuisine through convenience, DIY mindset, and affordability. Just before the opening of their second location, we connected to design a brand refresh to celebrate the new space, menu, and growing traction for the brand.
Together, we developed a set of values and attributes tied to James' core beliefs so all teammates can understand how the brand is delivered through servicing, visuals, menu, and overall experience. I designed a visual system that included design guidelines and exterior signage for the new storefront.
The visual concept was called “the simplified kitchen”, drawing inspiration from brands like Sweet Green, Dig Inn, and Okana which are visually minimalist, putting their food and seamless ordering experience at the forefront. This concept represents the simple, scalable, and efficient nature of the brand but delivers it with a lot of heart.
The system ties together a reduced, earthtone color palette, a hard-working geometric sans typeface, thin line icons, and a photographic intent that emphasizes the warmth of their staff and the freshness of their food, using food as a primary source of vibrant color.
A simple sans-serif wordmark is featured on the store’s exterior. It was installed in backlit metal letters that are utilitarian in nature—easy to notice at any time of day. Window decals were designed to familiarize passersby with the Perillas menu and 'clearcut' offering. The intent was to provide easy ways to order outside the store during a pandemic. The exteriors were intentionally straightforward to give customers a sense of place without detracting from their connection with the food and the staff.
See a version of the guidelines here.