Local folks in Glen Ellyn and LaGrange know the magic of Blackberry Market - fast and healthy fare, yummy indulgences and great coffee. "Local" will soon include Oak Brook with a new location opening December 2023. We've been tapped to help design this third space - continuing on a fun collaboration that began with the first location waaay back in 2012. So, how do you take a tried and true concept and continue to update it and make it fresh for new iterations? Here are some take-aways from our process with a few sneak peeks. And let's be clear - we don't ever want the cinnamon roll recipe updated - it's perfect just the way it is:)
Blackberry Glen Ellyn
Blackberry LaGrange
Here is the new Oak Brook location's space BEFORE we get it ready to welcome customers.
Restaurant design is a bit more like set design for a production - it's meant to be an experience that takes you out of your day-to-day. That means there need to be moments of whimsy and surprise. A huge part of the fun in designing this kind of space is that you can (and should!) go for more moments of big drama than you typically might for a residential space. We start with thinking through what that “moment” might be - terrazzo tile and wallpaper were a jumping off point for us for the new space.
The jumping off points for Blackberry Market, Oak Brook.
While we want the new location to feel fresh, brand consistency is also important. To that end, our design brief also includes repetition of some elements from other locations. Brick and warm woods are an element we've used in each space to varying degrees, and we continue to keep the paint palette pretty much the same as it ties into Blackberry's logo, menus and branding elements. Repeating chair and table selections is practical as it allows flexibility to use furniture amongst all the locations as needed and simplifies the process when additional pieces are helpful.
Blackberry Market Glen Ellyn
Blackberry Market LaGrange
Design threads running across all three locations.
Embracing trends is important in restaurant design to avoid the dreaded franchise feel - where every space is a facsimile of the next. To this end, we've gone bold with wallpaper and tile in this new iteration, and introduced a few updated fabrics. While we are keeping the finish of light fixtures relatively consistent, a few selections are being updated to reflect the most current design trends.
Just like Blackberry has skillfully managed to keep their tried and true menu favorites in rotation while keeping us excited about new offerings, we hope the new location will all at once feel familiar and brand new.
Lighting Design for the new location.
Tile Concepts for the new location.
See more of Blackberry GLEN ELLYN and Blackberry LAGRANGE.