When painting a restaurant or a coffee shop, there are so many factors to keep in mind. It's more than a question of what will look good. It's about creating an experience, crafting an atmosphere, projecting a brand. Something that is equally important as your color choices is your choice of painting contractor, as we'll describe below.
First, let's talk about paint color, and how that creates the right atmosphere for your restaurant or café.
Color Psychology and Painting Restaurants
Many color experts believe that color choices have a powerful subconscious effect on all of us. For restaurants, they say that it is important to choose colors that are associated with food. Here are some of the popular paint colors that restaurants tend to choose for that reason:
Red – think of rich tomato sauces, rare steaks, sweet and sour sauce, chile peppers, ripe fruit… red has powerful food associations. Red is also an energetic color, creating a warm, lively atmosphere.
Green – evoking salads, granny smith apples, herbs and olives, green is a great color for restaurants. It puts clients in mind of healthy, crisp, fresh produce that they can enjoy guilt-free. Being a cool color, green sets a calmer, more relaxed tone than other common restaurant colors.
Yellow/tan – many of our favorite restaurant items are yellow or tan, from steaming fresh breads to mouth-watering pasta to creamy butter. With hundreds of shades to choose from, yellow can be calm and subtle, or blazing and high-energy.
Other food-related colors can also work well in careful combinations, including orange (carrots), purple (eggplant), brown (steak & potatoes), and more. Also, any tasteful color can be used for accents or trim, helping to set off the main wall colors you choose.
One color you rarely see in restaurants is blue. While it is abundant in nature, and a lovely color, it carries very few food associations, and thus is not thought to be conducive in restaurants.
Color Choices for Painting Coffee Shops
Here in the Portland area, coffee shops are everywhere, so clients are nearly unlimited in their choices. That makes it important that your coffee shop have a unique atmosphere that sets it apart from the others. There are no rules here – just decide what kind of look you're going for, and run with it!
Some coffee shops prefer to paint with dark colors – browns and blacks – to create a moody, intimate atmosphere. Others seek to produce an offbeat vibe with bright colors in striking combinations. Still more seek to cater to a professional, on-the-go crowd with clean neutrals and a clear brand color.
Of course, brown is a natural choice for coffee establishments, and it mixes well with some of the other earthy textures they often use, such as brick, wood, and coffee sacks.
Does the Choice of Painting Contractor Matter?
When you are painting a restaurant or coffee shop, it's important to choose the right commercial painting company. Of course, we believe that you'll be happiest with Sundeleaf Painting (yes, we're biased!). Here's why:
We can schedule our work any time of the day or night, even working round-the-clock, to get your painting completed and your business moving again with the least possible disruption.
Additionally, we have a longstanding reputation for quality painting here in the Portland area. We stand behind our work, and we're not going to disappear if you need to call us back for any reason.
Finally, we are committed to your complete satisfaction. Every office employee, every project manager, and every painter is dedicated to making the painting process smooth and pleasant for you, your staff, and your clients.
Sundeleaf Painting offers commercial painting services for Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington. Besides restaurants and coffee shops, we also paint hotels, hospitals, schools, libraries, churches, and much more. Contact us today if you have any painting needs or questions!