Concept of Atmospherics - Case Study Example

Introduction: This is a brief study undertaken to substantiate and explore the concept of 'Atmospherics' Chapter 10 of our text book quotes Solomon (2009) saying "the effort to design buying environments to produce specific emotional effects in the buyer that enhance his probability of purchase." The definition infers: If the elements of environment in a retail outlet are skillfully manipulated they can lead to favorable consumer behavior for the retailer. To understand, the paper will detail and compare the environment of two restaurants situated in 57th street, East Upper side of New York, the Le Colonial restaurant and the Le' Atelier de Joel Robuchon situated in the Four Season Hotel. Both Hotels serve French and Asian cuisine with a slight difference but with a dynamic shift in the interiors and atmospherics. The restaurants though situated very close to each other continue to attract customers in steady numbers regularly. The restaurant business is one which has a shrewd combination of excellent food, environment and service. Today's restaurants are mostly theme based and cuisine based with a rare combination of a country's culture and cuisine, especially periodical cuisines that are haute. Although the two restaurants offer similar cuisines they have tried to blend the French tradition into the Asian culture in a unique way matching their interiors accordingly. The restaurants understand the importance of atmosphere dynamics and nevertheless have hired eminent interior designers to do their environment. A famous Interior Designer Katelijn Quartier has mentioned the importance of interior design in an article of hers by stating "The introduction of atmosphere as an important holistic notion is relatively new in the study of retail design. Commercial spaces used to concentrate on products, services and salesmen. Nowadays, the environment comes to play an important role. It is intended to develop a methodology to measure the influence of the retail environment on consumers via the analyses of several retail atmospherics, though the 'research by design' method." (Quartier 2002) Let us look at the atmosphere and design of the two restaurants: Le Colonial: Situated in the backdrop of the bustling Upper East Side the restaurant takes you back in time to the French colonial period in Southeast Asia (Vietnam). The interiors of the restaurant also focus on the capturing the romance and beauty of that period only. This is a two story town house and the style of this building dates back to the colonial period of the French in Vietnam in the 1920's. The main floor dining room and the second story lounge and bar serve authentic French Vietnamese cuisine. The interiors of the restaurant are designed by Greg Jordon of Greg Jordon Inc., Commenting on the interiors designed he says "I chose to design with unique tiled floors, crudely painted walls and antique mercury panels to keep the interior as simple, yet as elegant as possible." The restaurant owners have taken care to reflect the architecture, texture and design of the 1920's with a modern touch. The dining room has tightly woven rattan chairs and amply spaced tables with palm and banana leaf potted plants all around. Photographs of Saigon in the 1920's cover the walls to lead customers to that era. The dining room has a seating capacity of 95 guests at a time. The bar with a mahogany table in the second floor can seat 25 guests at a time. The lounge capable of seating 50 guests is covered with oriental rugs and low tables with antique furnishings. The rest rooms in the restaurant are also done in the same antique French way with modern amenities. Le Atelier de Joel Robuchon: This restaurant in four seasons Hotel also served French cuisine with strong Asian flavors. The restaurant is known for its chef Joel Robuchon. The chef has renowned hotels in Tokyo, Paris and Las Vegas. The interiors of the hotel are elegant and glisten with light wood with black and red lacquer. It is blend of the French designer Pierre Yves -Rochon and the iconic architecture of I.M Pei.The restaurant is more of an artistic workshop keeping in mind the word Atelier. The most important aspect of this restaurant is that it has an open Kitchen to allow its guests see what the culinary chef cooks. The seats with the kitchen view- the pear wood counter has just 20 seats and only 26 more at individual tables. One has to take into account that the interiors of the restaurant do not fully associate itself with the French or the Asian it taken the structure and texture of renowned designers and architects keeping in mind color, lighting, richness and elegance and a design that will highlight the chef's prominent cooking. The restaurants in their own way try to portray their uniqueness although they serve similar cuisines. The Le colonial ensures an overall experience in terms of the theme the interiors, the cuisine and the architecture, while the Le Atelier De Joel Robuchon savors a richer outlook laying emphasis on the food served. The Le colonial is a perfectly thematic experience and the Le Atelier De Joel Robuchon a Chef's delight in designing his restaurant with elegance and signature style to suit his cuisine. Conclusion: There are quite a few restaurants in the East Upper side that offer authentic French cuisines with an Asian touch but each one in their own unique way match its atmospherics with the cuisine. Atmospherics at the LE colonial have been consciously created and play a vital role in attracting customers to the restaurant, given the size of the restaurant in comparison to the Le Atelier De Joel Robuchon. When consumers hear the name Le Colonial or about the cuisine served in the restaurant they automatically try to trace themselves to that period in that place in this case the 1920's in Saigon. In that manner the restaurant does not disappoint its guests. It takes them along with the food to the period it conveys. In contrast the Le Atelier De Joel Robuchon may not seem to give guests the ultimate experience as the cuisine served and the atmospherics do not match the owner of the restaurant has given the best in food and among the best in design but they are individually excellent as two separate entities not together. However, atmospherics in both the restaurants prove to be effective as guests still talk about the mood that is created in the Le colonial and hype about the signature design interiors of the Le Atelier De Joel Robuchon. There are a few changes that can be effected in the lighting set up of the Le Colonial as the lighting in not entirely authentic or modern. Lamps and shades of the 1920's in Saigon can be re created with the help of a designer to further elevate the mood and context of the scenario. Lighting in the Le Atelier De Joel Robuchon is perfect however the aspect of antiquity or authentic French or Asian dcor is completely missing in the scenario. Wall hangers, photographs or other accessories can be carefully thought and designed by the designers to suit the interiors that can give that antique and authentic touch. When one compares the two restaurants in terms of mood creation, scenario and atmospherics the Le colonial is certainly better that the Le Atelier De Joel Robuchon as the former is articulated to give one well defined and elevated experience in terms of time place and cuisine that the restaurant boasts of. From the above it is evident that restaurants today place utmost importance on its interiors the message it conveys and the mood it sets in the guest are favorable to the restaurant and its purpose. Nevertheless atmospherics play an important role in selling the retail outlet to the consumer. It is regarded that first time visitors to any restaurant look for reasons to visit the place and what the restaurant can guarantee as an experience this includes the ambience, aroma, the interiors and the food. References: Le Colonial NYC. 2007. Le Colonial Incorporation. 03 April 2009. http://www.lecolonialnyc.com The New York City Experts. March 11 2009. The New York City Experts Inc. 03 April 2009. http://www.nyc.com/link.aspxsite=http%3a%2f%2fwww.fourseasons.com%2fnewyorkfs%2fdining.html Quarteir Katelijn. 'Atmospheric tools in commercial spaces creating experiences which influence consumers' mood and behaviour' Cresson Architecture. 2002. 03 April 2009. http://www.cresson.archi.fr/elements/FAIREamb8/AMB8-POSTERquartier.pdf Read More