In our culture, gastronomy is an essential part and occupies most of our leisure time. It is understood as an art, using food as the central axis.
Now hospitality and restaurants face their final battle against the coronavirus by promoting a safe and high-quality culinary experience. A good restaurant is not only reduced to the dishes offered on its menus; a pleasant atmosphere is essential for diners to feel at ease while enjoying their free time accompanied by a good feast.
But how do we manage to make this unique experience?
We recommend that you start with the lighting; this influences our behavior, the food and even the permanence of a customer inside and will influence the consumer experience in a positive or negative way. To generate the desired feeling for the customer, the restaurant lighting must be projected in a meticulous way in order to generate a good experience that results in a feeling of loyalty on the part of the diner, which will not last long to repeat and recommend the establishment with its surroundings.
How to light a restaurant, Tips to do it correctly!
Exterior lighting
The lighting of the exterior is the first thing we have to focus on, it is the first impression that all potential customers who pass by our establishment will have of us. The entrance must be consistent with the food we offer, the image we want to give and the target audience we want to attract. To achieve the customers are attracted by our facade and make the decision to enter, it is important that we take care of the color temperature, taking into account the existing exterior light. A good way to delimit the entrance are recessed luminaires in the ground.
If the place dispose of terrace, its lighting must be in accordance with the façade and the interior of the restaurant. Optimal lighting of roads, paths and areas where workers and customers pass by is important to avoid possible accidents. From Luxes we recommend lightweight and economical lighting systems,outdoor lamps and specific designs for porches, such as LED strips or floor lamps.
So that the luminaire resist the effects of time, luminaires with an IP68 must be used.
Interior lighting
As outside, the areas of passage must be marked and it must be the light that allows us to guide ourselves intuitively. In this way, customers will not get stuck and agglomerate in these areas and workers will be able to carry out their tasks freely without obstacles. It is important that with the light we highlight the elements to which we want to direct the public’s attention and hide those that we do not.
Depending on the area that we want to illuminate, we have to adapt the lux and the color temperature. In general, some areas require a higher level of lighting, such as departure, reception and preparation areas, where technical and functional lighting is proposed. In the other areas the lighting will depend on the feeling we want to convey.
According to the normative:
In the kitchen we need 500 luxes and a color temperature between 4,000 and 6500 Kelvin (K) is recommended. On the other hand, other areas such as corridors, with 100 lux and 3,500K we would have adequate lighting. If we talk about the bar or restaurant area, the luxes vary from 100 to 300 depending on the specific area.
And the key question, how much light on the table?
As long as the light is sufficient so that the clients can see the dishes correctly, the regulations allow us to use the most convenient intensity according to the establishment
The warm, even light is ideal for illuminating the dining room. This type of light favors and it is for that reason that clients will feel more comfortable and safe. The focused light creates more intimate atmosphere. From Luxes we recommend decorative hanging lamps. These should be suspended approximately 75cm above the table to avoid glare. To get a romantic touch, you can use small table lights or candles if we opt for a more traditional setting.
LED light in kitchens and restaurants
The use of LEDs throughout a lighting project is already a reality today. In restaurants, all the technical and decorative lighting can be replaced by models with LED technology. One of the advantages of LED lighting is excellent energy savings, low maintenance cost, and lower environmental impact. LED luminaires provide great flexibility of color temperatures and light effects.
We hope these tips help you light your restaurant properly. Do not hesitate to contact us if you want to have the best luminaires and professionals on the market. We will be delighted to help you in your projects.