Authenticity isn’t just a claim; it’s a way of life. It demands action, dedication, and genuine effort. For the husband-and-wife team behind Vietvana, this meant returning to Sai Gon to master the craft of making pho–from broth to noodles–and source the right equipment to bring fresh pho noodles to Georgia. From these roots, we built a brand that’s deeply rooted and indelibly marked by true Vietnamese spirit.
Restaurant Brand Insight
Despite striving to bring authentic Vietnamese flavors to the Georgia market, the term “authenticity” was something to steer away from completely. It’s too fragile to own with too many opportunities to lose trust.
Instead, we zeroed in on the craft of making the food while layering in a new sense of what Vietnamese food should taste and feel like. We had to simultaneously attract Vietnamese people and the general public to a new concept with flavors that may very well taste inauthentic.
Why inauthentic taste? Because the public has become used to flavors influenced by preservatives making broth and noodles taste different compared to what’s found in Sai Gon.
We absorbed the nuances and complexities of Vietnamese culture including influences from other countries in the form of colonialism and war.
What we found was a melting pot of culinary culture was about the only thing left of the true Vietnamese lifestyle. And showing love and affection was usually done through cooking and sharing food with one another.
This action made food more than sustenance. It transcended the moment into something altogether wonderful. It made it paradisiacal.
Insight
Sharing food with one another is a core way of sharing love in Vietnamese culture. The art of food truly transcends sustenance.
Restaurant Brand Naming
Transcendence is woven into the fabric of Vietnamese culture, heavily influenced by Buddhism through Chinese heritage and history. It’s a central theme, representing the journey towards a higher state of being—a journey that spans lifetimes and culminates in nirvana, or paradise.
While nirvana is rooted in Indian Buddhism, its concept resonates deeply within Vietnamese culture. However, to truly capture the essence of Sai Gon, we needed a name that felt authentic.
By blending the cultural prefix “Viet” with the transformative idea of “nirvana,” we crafted a name that carries rich perceptual and emotional significance. Vietvana not only honors its roots but also elevates the brand in the minds of the patrons.
Insight
Vietvana is a blend of two words: Vietnam and Nirvana. The result pulls in a transcendent feel that ties to the culture and desired effect of the food.
Restaurant Brand identity
Finding fresh inspiration that avoids visual clichés is always a challenge, especially when immersing in a rich culture like Sai Gon’s. For Vietvana, we needed to pull from the vibrant street food vendor scene and the unique cultural essence of Sai Gon.
With such a rich geography and urban landscape, Vietnam offered no shortage of inspirational imagery. We drew from the typography of Vietnamese signs and vintage posters from the French colonial period.
The result? A visually compelling brand centered around Pho, the staple food item. But we didn’t stop there.
Custom typography elevated the logo, capturing the essence of Sai Gon’s streets. We carefully selected typefaces that felt like street signage, complete with the diacritical marks necessary for authentic Vietnamese words.
Our color palette of strong golds and reds laid the foundation, while stamplike seals and icons disrupted the grid, adding the street-like edge that completed Vietvana’s visual language.
Insight
Sai Gon street signage and French-influenced poster artwork served as the basis for inspiration for Vietvana’s restaurant brand identity design and visual language.
Restaurant Menu & Marketing
Vietnamese street food culture came to life in the Vietvana menu suite. Whether it was the handheld, in store menu, the takeout menu, or the menu boards, the brand’s language created an orderly, but unique experience. But it wasn’t solely aesthetically pleasing. We focused on menu user experience to guide guests to popular, profitable, and perception driving items.
The menus created a visual language that worked in locations with vast menus of menu items and remained just as powerful at smaller fast casual footprints.
A large array of marketing collateral touchpoints were also designed from small, ephemeral pieces like matchboxes and coasters to larger items like postcards. Each extended the brand’s identity and the story.
Packaging was a key component of the brand experience. From bubble teas in cold cups to bags and banh mi wraps, each piece had to feel part of the collective whole while using the unique opportunity. To realize this, we created a fresh take on the classic “Thank You” bags infusing it with the Vietnamese language. Banh mi wrapping also pushed the visuals forward and custom chopsticks design shored everything up perfectly.
Insight
Vietnamese language was infused wherever possible to create a sense of authenticity and a unique experience for the guest.
Restaurant Interior Design
Vietvana’s interiors are where the street vibe truly came to life. Collaborating with the respected architectural firm, Office of Design, we created a unique sense of place within the expansive restaurant footprint.
The walls are adorned with a blend of family photos from the owners and cultural icons like Buddha and the iconic Vietnamese bicycles. This rich imagery ties back to the heart of Vietnamese culture.
We crafted custom Art Deco-style illustrations to represent various regions and points of interest in Vietnam, highlighting the origin of ingredients.
Scenes from the Me Kong floating market and Ben Thanh market served as inspiration for postcards and posters throughout the locations. Some illustrations even transformed into Instagram filters, letting fans immerse themselves as the noodle lady or the red Buddha.
Insight
Sai Gon streets influenced the design of the restaurants’ interior design with touches of Vietnamese culture icons.
