February 9, 2022

Will restaurant design be fundamentally changed by the pandemic? All signs point to yes.

Photo by Andrew Giammarco courtesy of Board & Vellum [enlarge]

Expect more restaurants with movable seating and large windows that blur the interior and exterior, like those at Armistice Coffee & Cocktail Bar.

Without a doubt, the pandemic has changed the way we think about our built environment and no more so than when it comes to publicly shared spaces like restaurants. The hospitality industry has been hit particularly hard over the past two years and in turn has witnessed pronounced shifts when it comes to design, layout, and the dining experience. Businesses have had to work with health and safety protocols and unprecedented measures to stay open. Less seats and more space in-between them, partitions in a whole host of materials, and ‘streateries' (be those in the form of shed like structures, picnic tables, or even personal igloos), have all become familiar sites in (and outside of) restaurants during the pandemic. In the main, these structures have been erected hastily with a DIY feel to them, but as the pandemic enters a new phase and mandates and restrictions begin to lift we can now begin to ask: has the pandemic forged a new attitude to restaurant design that will fundamentally alter the look and feel of ‘eating out'? And will any of the changes we've seen over the past two years be permanent?

Speaking to architects in Seattle, the answer seems to be a resounding yes. “No matter what happens to some of the physical innovations we have seen, I think the pandemic has fundamentally changed the way we look at space and design in the hospitality sector,” Yi-Chun Lin, director at Board & Vellum said, noting a new awareness of health and safety, interactions with others, and the importance of having flexible furniture solutions within a space. Jim Graham, co-founder of Graham Baba Architects also sees 2020 as altering the landscape and future of restaurant design. “What we were actually seeing before the pandemic was a move towards more communal dining with large central tables etc. This has of course totally changed now,” Graham said, “Both the practicality and perception of safety are going to continue to drive design moving forward,” he added. “I think the task for architects and designers now is how can we create spaces that provide a sense of togetherness but in a way that feels safe?” Lin said.

Photo courtesy of Kings Hardware Instagram [enlarge]

Streateries have become a familiar site in Seattle neighborhoods, like this one in Ballard.

Moving forward, diners can expect to see more varied and flexible seating options, better filtration systems and perhaps even spaces that highlight safety systems as part of the design. Another permanent change will be more access to outside dining and design innovations that blur the line between interior and exterior such as large windows that open onto the street-front. And what about the future of the streatery, perhaps the most ubiquitous feature of pandemic dining?

Both architects I spoke with had positive opinions and would welcome them becoming a more permanent feature. “With the streatery, the dining experience now begins outside the restaurant, I think this is something to be celebrated and provides an exciting opportunity for architects and designers,” Lin said. “I think with streateries there is a real opportunity to activate the street-scape for the public,” Graham added, “in my opinion they provide a means of turning a private enterprise into a public asset.” In the future, Graham imagines more thoughtfully designed and robust streateries than those that had to be put up quickly during the pandemic. “Each neighborhood or city could even have its own design language across the streateries,” he mused. Graham also hopes that in Seattle the council will decide to encourage streateries and make them easier to permit. The future of the streatery will ultimately be decided at the level of government. In Seattle, council members are actively looking to make them permanent - Dan Strauss has established the Path to Permanency program for outdoor dining - whereas in Edmonds the streatery program may end this spring.

Beyond the streatery, Graham pointed to two other pandemic induced changes that he expects to see more of: take out windows and less service. “We included a street facing take-out window for a client just before the pandemic hit and it ended up being a godsend for them,” he said. He also noted that lots of clients are now thinking about the take-out experience in the restaurant, deciding where that interaction will happen and its relationship to the inside dining space. “It's no longer a question of just having someone come to the back door to pick up take-out, we are now actively thinking of take-out as part of the dining experience,” Graham explained. Graham Baba Architects has also seen a shift towards less service, motivated by health and safety concerns and staffing issues, effecting design. “The architect's goal is how can we design spaces where this feels natural and good and not like you are missing out on something?” he concluded. It is becoming clear, we shouldn't expect to see a ‘return to normal' when it comes to restaurant design.