For this project, I was assigned the task of creating a bistro in the town of St. Louis, Missouri. Additionally, I was assigned to show the interior and exterior of the bistro in any way I saw fit. One of the major goals of this project was to really investigate and research the St. Louis area and locals in order for that to serve as my basis for the bistro.
After much research, two items of interest drew my attention. One of the major things that stuck out was the fact that St. Louis’ population is a mix of many races and cultures; French, African American, and more. The other major thing was how a great loss of culture occurred in the 1940s after many historical buildings were destroyed.
With this in mind, I knew I wanted to find a way in my bistro to make it very cultural. When researching cultures, I came across Creole culture. Creole culture originated in the state of Louisiana and is a blend of French, African American, and other cultures into one. After realizing this, I made Creole culture the basis for my bistro in St. Louis, Missouri.
In my exploration, I learned of Mrs. Leah Chase, an iconic figure in the black community and Creole community alike. She was known by many as the “Queen of Creole,” as she cheffed up her tasty Cajun creations in Louisiana. I decided to base my bistro on Leah, naming it “The Creole Queen Bistro” after her beloved nickname.
I chose a historical building, The Hill Building, for the hypothetical bistro to go in along with its address and then moved on to branding. I chose the colors sage green, rich orange, and tan to reflect colors that are used in Creole culture. I created many touchpoints, such as signage, take-out boxes and bags, aprons, social media pages, and more. Lastly, I teamed up with Interior Designer Caroline Barnes to create the interior and exterior of The Creole Queen Bistro. Using my color palette, branding, and our own interior design experience, Caroline and I crafted a cozy and vibrant look into what The Creole Queen Bistro could potentially look like if executed. We were heavily inspired by Creole culture throughout this entire project from the interior design to the branding.
