THE RESPONSE

We approached UMAMI as an integrated brand and hospitality project, working alongside the ownership, culinary, interior design, construction, and operations teams through an accelerated three-month path to opening.

We began by defining the restaurant’s market position, audience, customer journey, and brand strategy. That foundation gave the broader project team a clear framework for decision-making: UMAMI would be elevated but accessible, culturally grounded without becoming literal, and designed to serve both the Six Nations community and guests travelling from surrounding regions.

From there, our role expanded well beyond the visual identity. We served as a creative and brand consultant across the developing restaurant, advising on decisions spanning culinary presentation, construction, material and finish selections, sourcing, purchasing, signage, service touchpoints, and the overall guest experience. We worked closely with the culinary team on dinnerware and presentation, developed a comprehensive accessories schedule, and helped translate the brand into hundreds of physical decisions required to bring the space together.

In parallel, we developed the complete visual system and its applications across menus, packaging, uniforms, environmental graphics, signage, digital collateral, social launch materials, and web. Rather than treating these as separate design exercises, each touchpoint was developed against the same strategic and spatial framework so the restaurant would read as one cohesive experience.

Throughout implementation, we helped coordinate brand-related decisions within the larger multi-six-figure project budget, balancing design intent against cost, lead times, availability, construction realities, and an immovable opening schedule. The result was a highly resolved brand environment developed and implemented promptly.