To ask my brother to change his restaurant design 3 weeks from opening

[msmacd]

Hi there, require the input of the mumsnet jury on this one. My brother is opening a cafe/restaurant/bar. It has cost a huge amount to construct and fit-out. My mother's money (she is 70) is also riding on it's success as she is the primary investor, and has mortgaged her home. I took a sabbatical to come back to my country of origin for 4 months to help him in the critical weeks. I have also invested in it.

My brother says his intention is to target the 30-50yrs demographic in particular. He now has 700 Facebook 'likes' for his restaurant Facebook page, and tellingly the majority are woman. There is a fairly trendy man tavern/sports bar close by, so he (claims) he is trying to appeal to the women (who would then bring their partners/ families). As it is in a suburban area, he also envisages getting business from the mothers after school drop off etc, as he will be open from 7:30 and acting as a cafe with cake, coffee, breakfast etc in the mornings.

The architects created it with a bit of an industrial chic vibe, with concrete floors (which i appreciate are on trend at the moment). However, there will be some banquets and some soft/more casual seating in the cafe area at the front, as well as a more formal dining area towards the back. It also has a small garden. A large bar is in the centre of the venue, as the central/focal point.

Yesterday i saw the bar go up. I have attached a photo. That is the finished product/look. The panels are fibreglass made to look like concrete. I took the photo just after they had installed part of the front, but it spans the entire bar and curves around into the cafe area (not in photo).

I'm not a fan (to put it lightly). However, it will cause a massive uproar if I ask him to make changes. His restaurant manager (who he has been working closely with to set it up) already thinks i'm an interfering cow (ha!). It is 3 weeks from opening to the public.

Given my brother is trying to appeal primarily to women (allegedly) and attract families. i must ask... what do you think? Am i being unreasonable?

thumbs the fibreglass is textured like concrete. Not smooth.

It looks fine, and would cost ££££££ to change, YABVU

He'll soon regret a blonde wood bar top

I do think coming up with simple easy to do ideas for homely touches might be your solution. That way you're not suggesting massive changes but it'll add to the homely vibe

See how you go with the fake grass. My dh has come up with some frankly ridiculous sounding things over the years which actually worked nicely

He could use local artists works that are for sale. He saves on buying the art work himself, the artists gets their works on display. Community involvement. Win win. We frequent 2 places that do this. Or he could rent art. I would swap that fake cement bar front for bamboo if it were my place. The fenced off play area would be a deterant to me, but if it could be put away before the lunch hour begins, I suppose it would work.

Thanks supermum i agree with you re the dark wood, and like your idea of replacing the fibreglass with leather panels. Probably difficult to convince my brother, but certainly worth floating the idea. He has mentioned today that they may paint over panels with white paint, as the are a bit 'greener' than they expected, and don't exactly match the concrete floor.

Thanks LaLa i did think the faux grass could look cute. Just worried about the practicalities. So like you say, it might actually work... And since you can see the outside area from inside (large glass doors), it will help to break up all the expanse of grey concrete.

A lot of this depends on whereabouts in NZ you are. What would work in studenty Dunedin won't be as popular in retired haven Nelson, and probably not in desperately-trying-to-be-happening Wellington. If it's further south than Christchurch it'll be a winner as long as it has good insulation (and one or two fireplaces).

One of the newest cafe/bars in Nelson is upmarket hipster trend with concrete / stainless steel and doing extremely well having said that.

I like the stark uncluttered look personally, I'd go there based on food / service / atmosphere rather than interior design though. Get some good music in :)

Ugh to concrete textured fibreglass! Cleaning will be an issue then, although painting them will help smooth the surface.

With the fake grass, I suppose so long as you can hose it clean it won't be too bad...

Glad you got rid of the cushions!

I like and second the local artist display idea - definitely makes the place look more welcoming, and more interesting, especially if the paintings are actually within normal people's price ranges!

Fenced off play areas are quite a big pull in Australia where I am, so I think that would be a bonus (so long as it's outside; under cover, but outside). Lots of pubs/clubs have them around here, and some nice cafés in shopping malls do too, inside and outside. It's actually quite nice to let your children play in a visible, safely enclosed area while you get on with your chat/food.

lala has a point about soft play area. It's not cheap to put something in because you need everything to be bleach friendly. The floor tiles that are used are not cheap and you need to take them off the floor to clean them daily. When I talk of puzzles I am referring to the block ones which are disinfectant friendly. Again, all toys need to go through a wash in the evening. The activity cubes are hard plastic and are easily disinfected. I would keep it very simple so that way families will be more likely to bring their own toys. The fence bit used to contain toddlers needs to be fully disinfected daily too with zero food allowed in the area.

Hi musical yes my husband has been calling around the local art galleries & emailing local artist, and some of them are happy for us to display the art at the restaurant. Most artists liking exposure and all that. So hopefully we can get some nice art on the walls at lower cost.

Yes i was also thinking if he did a play area, it could be put away before lunch during the week. But it's interesting to see the differing views on MN that some people like the idea of a play area for kids, for others it's a deterrent. I don't have kids yet, so hard for me to judge. But this is all great feedback and very helpful.

Oh, I see you're in New Zealand. I wouldn't worry too much, this sort of restaurant/cafe is very popular there! Your photo reminds me of prefab or <a class="break-all" href="https://www.google.co.nz/maps/uv?hl=en&pb=!1s0x6d38afd7c5681819:0x9772702238a65552!2m5!2m2!1i80!2i80!3m1!2i100!3m1!7e1!4splus.google.com/105807992796004109975/photos?hl%3Den%26socfid%3Dweb:lu:kp:placepageimage%26socpid%3D1!5sflight+coffee+wellington+-+Google+Search&sa=X&ei=DZqgVePXGMuZ0gSGpI3ACQ&ved=0CIMBEKIqMAo" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">The Flight Coffee Hangar in Wellington both of which are doing very well. Industrial chic is very in- even for family dining. I would encourage him to serve fluffies cheaply (or free) to attract family dining!

Is asking you what city this restaurant is in too personal?

I like what I can see of the Flight Coffee hangar - I suspect it might be in the lighting, obviously your brother's place hasn't got around to mood lighting yet, and that might make all the difference to the ambience.

That look is quite dated for the UK, so would probably be perfect for NZ. But does the look really matter? It is not cutting edge, but surely it is more about what is being offered?

The food + staff attitude is 10x more important that the decor! Just remember that too.

Yes but food and staff attitude aren't what draw you into a new place initially, or they don't me, anyway. The look of the place is what draws you in - the food and staff attitude is what brings you back again.

I don't agree. The food initially draws me in, but maybe I am just greedy

It doesn't look like a comfortable place to spend a chatty morning. It is not my taste at all. The food would have to be very good to tempt me in.

I changed my mind upon refection. I was looking at it from the point of view as an adult going to lunch in a nice place. For a coffee in the am, where a child could play would be a nice change from a hot park or beach.

I

Sorry, posted too soon....
I think a play area would totally change the feel of the place. You would struggle to sell it as a bar/restaurant even if it was cleared away before lunch.
High chairs and space for pushchairs much more important imo.

As soon a someone said fenced off bit for kids you lost me I'm afraid. Mothers with kids put people off and they don't spend much either, sorry.

It looks fine for adults. I'd have a coffee and cake there.

Wouldn't use it if it was intended to appeal to mothers and children.

I also don't think you should have a play area. It's not McDonald's and it will put potententially higher paying customers off as nobody really wants to sit next to a crèche whilst having an evening meal.

You also don't want to attract the type of loitering parents who'll use the place as a crèche for 2 hours whilst they buy 1 coffee each.

I think it looks great actually. In NZ there are lots of people who'd like a funkier look like this one. agree that the main thing for babies /kids will be food, prices, space to play and nice touches like good high chairs and toys.