People & Purpose
Headquartered in Houston, the Pappas family of restaurants is one of the largest family-owned-and-operated hospitality groups in the U.S., with colorful culinary offerings that encompass seafood and steakhouses, burger and barbecue joints, coffee shops and cantinas. As several of their key concepts approach fourth and fifth decades of operation, the Pappas team (still led by the Pappas family) engaged us to help buff and brighten their brands—appealing to new generations without dimming the personality that makes them such beloved destinations for their diners.
Services
- Verbal Identity
- Logo Refresh & Visual Identity
- Website Design
- Print System
- Signage
- Art Direction
- Writing
Partners
- Hennie Haworth
- Flywheel
- Bethan Richards
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Inspired by the vibrancy of New Orleans’ French Quarter, Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen is the largest of Pappas’ popular concepts (and a favorite of Beyoncé’s when she’s home in Houston). We began our brand study with an in-depth tour of their restaurants, corporate offices, and diverse facilities, immersing ourselves in their culture and learning how they make possible their forty-plus seafood locations around the country.
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We were floored. (And stuffed.)
Not only by the intelligence and scale of their operations—a finely-tuned machine from the dock to the dining room—but also by the sincerity and skill of their people, many of whom have been with Pappas for 20–30 years.
It can be easy to sneer at words like “fresh” and “care” in the chain environment, but Pappas proves the skeptics wrong. Their team’s devotion to excellence is truly remarkable, and we were able to trace the nuts and bolts of how they work (and play!) back to their core values. We crafted their verbal and visual identity from this foundation, and refined their brand system from there.
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The Pappadeaux environments do, indeed, let the good times roll. Their new system channels the buzzy charm, soul, and spirit of NOLA’s French Quarter, anchored around a line that embraces the playfully eclectic energy that emanates from their restaurants: that Pappadeaux glow.
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The goal was to revive versus reinvent their visual identity, and so we kept three guiding principles top-of-mind while we designed: evolution, integration, and scale.
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We studied New Orleans and Gulf coast relics, dug into painted murals and signage, and sampled a rich buffet of color and texture. From this we composed a fresh-yet-familiar system of elements that pays homage to the authentic history and established visual vernacular of both Pappadeaux and the French Quarter.
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This allowed us to introduce technical refinements and overhaul dated elements that feel like welcome refreshes instead of radical departures. We needed to ensure the system could integrate seamlessly into Pappadeaux’s current ecosystem, from their well-known environments to their in-house design talent, who would continue to steward the new brand after handoff.
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Illustration by Hennie Haworth.
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Illustration by Hennie Haworth.
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Throughout the system we considered the hierarchy and presentation of information across multiple touchpoints and locations. We defined how elements like space, color, typography, imagery, materiality, and other details can iterate and interact to allow for both flexibility and cohesion. We trimmed the fat but kept the flavor, ensuring that the lively new ecosystem is as inviting and eye-catching as Pappadeaux itself.
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Illustration by Bethan Richards.
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