With an industry of over 1 million operating restaurants, making your independent eatery stand out can be a challenge. However, it's a top priority for those who want to make it in the food industry.
Having amazing dishes is a huge part of this, but restaurant ambiance is just as important. People form a first impression from the second they walk through the door and sit down. Choosing the right restaurant booth options is therefore crucial to your success.
Read on for a complete guide on how to select and buy restaurant booths that keep guests comfortable.
Choose the Right Restaurant Booth Size
Before you can do anything else, it's important that you determine the size of your booth. The most important thing to consider here is its length. Most standard booths are around 48 inches, but you can customize them to be any length that you want.
To keep your booths comfortable, make sure that you give each person at least 24 inches of dining space. Consider how many people that you want to seat at a given booth and find the appropriate square footage that allows people to have this area.
You then will need to choose the height of your booths. The most common height is 43 inches, but you can go down to 36 inches if need be. Taller backs are generally more comfortable for seating since they can cradle the heads of your guests and help them sit up straight and eat.
How Many Booths Can You Have?
The answer to this question depends heavily on the size of your space. You need to measure the square footage of your restaurant, determine how much space a booth is going to take up, and figure out how many you can comfortably fit into the restaurant.
Consulting with an expert about this is a good way to ensure that you keep an appropriate amount of space between booths. It also ensures that you get the measurements and numbers right so that you don't encounter problems during installation.
Select a Booth Shape
Choosing the best restaurant booth for your space doesn't just require you to measure your square footage. You also need to think about the shapes that will best fit into your space. Look at photos that detail restaurant design possibilities and think about those that you like best.
If you plan to have corner booths that seat larger parties, you might want to make these booths L-shaped. Open hexagons are also awesome choices. Even if the rest of the booths surrounding the perimeter of your space are traditionally rectangular, large corner booths serve the purpose of aesthetic variation in addition to being practical for large groups of guests.
U-shaped booths are also a cool choice for those who are placing their booths throughout the middle of the restaurant. These are essentially three classic straight booths that are pushed and sewn together to create a three-sided U shape.
These booths are ideal for restaurant owners that want to afford customers the feeling of privacy. If you run a high-end restaurant or want to provide a fine dining experience, U-shaped booths are a must-have. On the flip side, they may look strange and out of place in fast-food or casual joints.
Decide on a Material
Once you know the size and shape of your booths, it's time to look into the materials that you can choose from. This is critical to ensuring that your space has the classy aesthetic that you want it to have. It also is important because it determines whether or not your patrons will be comfortable with the texture of their seating.
Leather
Leather is one of the most popular restaurant booth materials because it's sleek and high-end. It's extremely durable as well, which makes it susceptible to many people sitting on it (and spilling on it) each day. It's easy to clean as well since all you need to do is wipe it with a wet cloth.
The only real downside to leather is its price. However, you can avoid this issue by choosing faux leather. This is another durable seating option made from polyurethane or PVC.
While these materials are slightly less elegant than leather is, you can imitate the look of real leather fairly easily. All you need to do is select the appropriate colors and style so that the material looks just as you want it to.
Vinyl
Polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is much more than simply a leather alternative, though. It's an amazing booth material in its own right. Vinyl is comfortable and versatile, so you can add a lot of padding to your seating without worrying about it fraying or bursting.
Another huge advantage of vinyl is that it's easy to have customized. It's easy to mass-produce in a variety of colors and patterns, so you can have a consistent brand image across your restaurant.
Linen
If you're into all-natural materials and want to showcase eco-friendly brand values, linen is an awesome choice for your restaurant booths. This durable material comes directly from a plant called the 'flax plant.' The end result is something airy, comfortable, and durable.
The only downside to linen is that it's a little harder to maintain than leather and vinyl, but it still isn't that difficult. You can use a soft-bristled brush or soft cloth with lukewarm water to wipe it down every couple of months. Stains can also be removed with glycerin or alcohol.
Still, people's legs won't stick to linen in the same way that they will to vinyl and leather when they wear shorts. That alone makes it worth the maintenance to some restaurant owners.
Create Custom-Colored Seating
Once you decide on the basics of your booth, it's time to choose the most appealing colors and patterns. To do this, the first thing that you'll need to do is consider color psychology. This is the scientific phenomenon of color affecting mood, and it will set the tone for how people feel when they dine in your establishment.
Some of the most popular colors and their meanings are:
- Blue (calming and relaxing), which makes your restaurant a good place to unwind and rest
- Yellow (happy and exciting), which makes your restaurant feel shining and upbeat for an overall mood lift
- Orange (energy and social moods), which makes your location an awesome place for people to go and hang out with friends and family
- Purple (inspiring and spiritually moving), which makes your space feel bold, exotic, and eclectic
- Red (dramatic and romantic), which makes your location ideal for couples
All of these are great choices, but your selection should depend on the overall feel that you want your restaurant to have.
Colored Booths and Your Brand
Color is also important to branding your business since it improves brand recognition by around 80%.
As a starting restaurant or one that's rebranding, you should choose a color that matches your brand image. Change your signs to primarily feature this hue. Print branded materials with the shade that you select.
This will create a cohesive branding image that makes you as memorable as possible to guests. You'll inspire brand loyalty this way and generate repeat and regular customers.
Invest in Professional Installation
Finally, after you commission your custom booths and have them made, you'll need to invest in professional installation. If you try to DIY it, your booths may be unsafe to sit in. They also may not meet government safety protocol and land you with a hefty fine.
It also will simply be challenging to haul booths into your space on your own. They're heavy and aren't meant to be carried by individuals who don't know how to handle them.
Booth installation professionals know how to secure the seating and tables to make them comfortable and safe. They also can help you to arrange your restaurant in a professional and aesthetically appealing way. Don't underestimate the value of expert help when setting up a restaurant.
Get Started
Now that you know how to choose the perfect restaurant booth for your space, it's time to get started. Contact us with any remaining questions that you have about high-quality upholstered restaurant furniture.
We usually respond within only a few hours and are happy to help you create and customize a booth the bolsters your brand image. We're also happy to talk about how to ensure that you make the most out of comfortable materials and ensure customer satisfaction.
Since we're committed to ensuring that people love your restaurant ambiance, we look forward to hearing from you soon.