This logo was a project for my illustrations course, with the instruction: "Create a logo for a business, either real or fake". Thats it. I took this as an opportunity to give the restaurant I was working at, Cento, a mascot that we otherwise did not have. Our branding was very straightforward and showed no character.
To start, I analyzed what kind of restaurant we are. Fine dining, yes; but midwestern nice and a front-of-house staff that is composed of 80% college kids. With this, you get a much more relaxed dining experience, with fine dining courses. This puts us in a really unique juxtaposition that might not be obvious from our website or current branding. The amount of phone calls I would receive inquiring about the dress code, only to be shocked that there wasn't one, simply shows that there was an expectation for an elegant experience when in reality we are all people and we just want our guests to have a good time.
This is where I got the core of my idea from. Classy--yet fun. I also knew that whatever I did had to be stamp-able so that we could keep consistent branding throughout our togo boxes as well. My initial inspiration came from these silly drawings I found of animals in top hats. I thought it was adorable and I wanted to put my own twist on it.
In my preliminary sketches, you can also see the integration of other elements, such as the olive branch and a pasta noodle. As an Italian restaurant, I wanted that to be subliminally noted as well within the mascot. I was aiming for a vintage-Italian look, with a lot of personality.
Here is what I landed on! The left would be more practical in a stamp setting, whereas for printing the right would be best. We have our duck, a 'silly' animal, dressed up in a tux and top hat. For his bowtie, we have a bowtie pasta noodle hidden, as well as the olive branches framing him in the ring. His mischievous grin is what ties it all together, and I am so happy with how he turned out.
My staff members and management team were also big fans of the duck and believed he was a perfect representation of Cento.
My staff members and management team were also big fans of the duck and believed he was a perfect representation of Cento.
Here is the mascot on one of our menus. It adds just a touch of flavor and personality to an otherwise plain and monotonous menu.
