The number of restaurants is increasing rapidly, and so is the number of people choosing to dine in restaurants. While food is easily the primary attraction of a restaurant, the latest trends and consumer behaviours suggest that the interior designs and looks of restaurants are crucial to attracting foodies.
Ambience over food
"When picking a restaurant to eat at, I first see whether the restaurant is attractive or not. Then I search for the food. If both are perfect, it is a win-win situation for me as I like to eat delicious food in a good environment," said Faria Rahman Rattry, a 3rd-year Pharmacy student at BRAC University. In her opinion, food and the good environment of a restaurant complement each other.
Md. Sive Saqline, a 3rd year CSE student of Ahsanullah University of Science and Technology, agrees with Rattry. "Restaurant's ambience pulls me a lot," he said to the writer.
Matching outfit with the restaurant's theme.
"There are so many restaurants now with nice decorations. So simple or non-decorated restaurants are on my least-priority list when choosing an eatery. It's not like I don't visit those restaurants, but I visit less even if some of them serve tasty food."
Sometimes people visit restaurants to have peace of mind, just to have a cup of coffee with a book in hand, to spend some quality time with friends, partners, and family or to spend time alone.
Pictures over taste
"The restaurant which has unique interior decoration attracts me the most. I like to take pictures in the decorated corners of the restaurant. The pictures come out unique and eye-catching," said Saqline.
Having good pictures in a restaurant satisfies his soul. This is the era of social media. People doll up, check out various restaurants, click good pictures and have food in fancy restaurants. Then, they share it on social media platforms.
To have good pictures, along with the appearance, the restaurant's atmosphere or decoration must be beautiful. Even the food quality matters less when the foodies are happy with some vibrant pictures.
Some people even dress up in a way that matches the restaurant's vibe. For example, if the restaurant is decorated with Bengali vibes and an aesthetic environment, females choose shari and salwar kameez. In terms of restaurants with classic patterns and a western vibe, people wear western clothes.
Colour coordination with restaurants is also seen. Whether the restaurant has a rooftop, outdoor seating or indoor seating, the lighting of the restaurant, etc., plays a great role in drawing the customers' attention.
The restaurants having rooftops are preferred the most. Regarding the picture-clicking tendency, Rattry elaborated, "I prefer the restaurant with an outdoor arrangement because the pictures come so well in daylight. Good food, a good environment and good pictures can elevate anyone's mood. "
Hangout over everything
Sometimes food is just an excuse, and clicking pictures becomes the primary objective. It is prominent among teenagers.
Maisha Tasnim, an admission candidate, shared that she and her friends always prefer restaurants with beautiful and aesthetic decorations without caring much about taste.
"Food is sometimes an excuse to sit there. We visit restaurants just to have a nice time together in a cosy environment. Sometimes we go to restaurants with poor food reviews. We click photos there and usually take beverage items for the formality and then eat somewhere else," she remarked.
"Restaurants having vibrant environments, light atmosphere, and special corners for clicking pictures are our priority. After that, we select restaurants and cafés where we can have little snacks or drinks and spend hours there," Maisha added.
Hanging out with friends and family.
Restaurants and café owners are also aware of such consumer behavioural patterns. Therefore, they try to decorate their restaurants with creative and vibrant interior designs. While new restaurants are emerging with decorations that become the talk of the town soon, older ones are also joining in the trend.
Along with the interior decoration, having a rooftop, outdoor setting, kids zone, and parking zone is advantageous for any restaurant or café.
Even though the food price is high in most of the finely decorated restaurants, people visit those restaurants anyway.
