Alex Yates
Creative Director
Linh Nguyen
Designer
Background
Chopsteaks is a modern steak restaurant designed for sophisticated Vietnamese tastes. Launched in Hanoi’s Old Quarter just after the height of the COVID-19 outbreak, Chopsteaks always had ambition in its DNA. The restaurant uses high quality imported beef, has an irresistible signature cocktail menu, and boasts a beautifully designed interior with many commissioned pieces of artwork. It’s location, in the heart of the Old Quarter on Chợ Gạo street, is particularly unique: it has a rare wide frontage on the ground floor that both invites passerby inside while letting music from the weekend jazz band flow out.
Problem
Launching a restaurant during COVID-19 presents a variety of challenges, even in a country like Vietnam where the pandemic had been mostly conquered by midsummer. Complicating matters were the numerous other steak restaurants beginning to make a name for themselves in Hanoi. Chopsteaks wanted to distinguish itself from competitors and present the restaurant in a more hip, sophisticated light that boldly announced itself as part of the culinary elite.
Approach
A key brand detail set the restaurant apart: a small, razor sharp cleaver, which would serve not only as the brand logo, but would be a physical piece of flatware served with each steak. Fourdozen was inspired by this detail, and by the gold, black and white color palette of the serving plates and tabletops. These informed our entire visual approach, from menu design to the graphics used for social media.
The social media strategy itself blended a mix of food-forward photography with the unique accents and details of the restaurant, as well as the many famous and connected people who came to visit during the early days of the restaurant prior to the grand opening. This approach diversified the content in a way that prevented the restaurant’s timeline from being overwhelmed by large hunks of meat.