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A vibrant illustration-heavy design for a Japanese restaurnt on a banner flying the wind

restaurant

SATSUKI BRANDING

Satsuki needed a brand that could justify a premium dining experience from day one.

Project Scope

Brand Design / Logo DESIGN / Website Design / Menu Design Illustration / Social Media Design / environmental design

Challenge

Despite the founder's reputation as an accomplished executive chef, Satsuki entered Calgary's crowded restaurant market with no existing brand recognition

Solution

Develop a premium restaurant brand identity that combined contemporary aesthetics with traditional Japanese influences, helping Satsuki stand apart from competing sushi restaurants

Outcome

Satsuki opened with a brand that matched the quality of its offering and established a clear premium position in Calgary’s dining scene.

ABOUT THE CLIENT

Satsuki

Satsuki is a premium Japanese restaurant in Calgary, Alberta’s walkable Kensington neighbourhood. Tucked into a quaint basement suite off the main road, Satsuki brings guests together for an intimate omakase experience offering craftsmanship and tradition.

Unlike the wide array of Japanese restaurants currently saturating its local market, Satsuki provides a more intentional approach to cuisine. A small, but thoughtfully curated menu, higher price points, and limited seating means Satsuki is a deliberate, premium experience.

As a new restaurant entering Calgary's competitive food and beverage market, Satsuki needed a brand that reflected the quality of its cuisine while differentiating itself from established competitors.

A street sign design displaying happy hour information for a japanese restaurant

Various sticker designs for a Japanese restaurant with illustrations of a fish and curtain on them

Logo design

Creating a Memorable First Impression

When it comes to Japanese cuisine, the best kept secrets are often found wedged between buildings in a back alley somewhere.

The design for the Satsuki logo is inspired by the traditional Japanese lamps often seen illuminating such establishments, offering a warm and cozy beacon to curious and hungry travellers and local regulars alike.

Logo design

Creating a Memorable First Impression

When it comes to Japanese cuisine, the best kept secrets are often found wedged between buildings in a back alley somewhere.

An illustration of a flower overlayed on a splashing wave

Patterns and calligraphy overlayed on an image of Kyoto

VISUAL IDENTITY

Building a Distinctive Restaurant Brand

Every element of the identity was designed to reinforce the restaurant's premium positioning and make the brand instantly recognizable in a crowded (and predictable) market.

With an unconventional color palette, calligraphic typography, and hand-drawn illustrations that draw from traditional aspects of Japanese culture, the visual identity is a reflection of what makes the restaurant’s cuisine so special.

VISUAL IDENTITY

Building a Distinctive Restaurant Brand

Every element of the identity was designed to reinforce the restaurant's premium positioning and make the brand instantly recognizable in a crowded (and predictable) market.

VISUAL IDENTITY

Building a Distinctive Restaurant Brand

Every element of the identity was designed to reinforce the restaurant's premium positioning and make the brand instantly recognizable in a crowded (and predictable) market.

MENU DESIGN

A menu design system that’s built to scale

The restaurants’ three menus were designed as an elegantly stacked package, showcasing the highlight of the restaurant—the omakase menu—first and foremost, with typography and illustrations along the perimeter leaving a lasting impression on eager guests.

MENU DESIGN

A menu design system that’s built to scale

MENU DESIGN

A menu design system that’s built to scale

A beautiful, colorful 3 piece menu design for a Japanese restaurant, stacked on a midcentury table

Business card design for Satsuki, a Japanese restaurant

A postcard design for Satsuki, showing a hand preparing sushi

WHAT HAPPENED?

THE RESULT

A distinctive restaurant brand that helped Satsuki launch with confidence, attract early attention, and establish itself as a premium dining destination — Elevating guest’s expectations, long before sitting down at the table.

"Amazing project. Steve was very professional and creative.”

“Let me tell you how much I appreciate the hard work. I’m so happy we started this process with you.”

MAY NG, CLIENT