Uccello Lounge

Design on a Delicious Note

Objective
For Loretta Keller and Clay Renolds, owners of San Francisco’s SeaGlass Management, and formerly of COCO500, food and beverage is a passion and a lifestyle. Their love and expertise made them strong partners when the new Conservatory of Music was searching for a cafe/lounge element. We were thrilled to develop the brand and website design for their new unique dining experience!

Strategy
The kitchen and staff need to feed the Conservatory of Music students 2 meals a day, and transform to serve the sophisticated music lounge each night. The brand would serve the lounge side of the activities as well as any private events or Conservatory special activities. We collected inspiration from the interior design, instruments, and the jazz and classical music that would be heard nightly in the restaurant.

Design
Waxwing birds were very inspirational to Loretta and Clay, so we prioritized elements that would pay homage to birds and the energy and grace they convey. The original name for the restaurant was to be WaxWing, an actual bird whose wings are a dip of color starting yellow when young and changing to red as they age. Without being literal to a bird we also looked at design elements from instruments to craft the mark. Once the name changed to Uccello the team was already in love with the mark, so our typography took design cues from the mark.

With a distinct Brand Identity, we set to work creating the website, menus, coasters and lapel pins for staff. We were thrilled to partner with Meryl Pataky to bring the Uccello logo to life in (neon) lights. Subtle adjustments were necessary to allow the letters to connect but we love the results.

Value
The resident building at the Conservatory of Music is a collaborative, growth filled space and it was a pleasure to help Uccello bring the lounge to life. The brand system was designed to put the power in the hands of their leadership to optimize every opportunity to promote new concerts, events and food options as the seasons change. All this keeps the focus on the musicians and delicious dining experiences. Congrats on your freshest adventure Loretta and Clay!