Introduction to Branding: Culinary Experience

Written by: Emma Prushan, VCD, ’25

During their fall semester, juniors in the Visual Communication Design Program take Introduction to Branding, a course that begins with a detailed study of brand and brand identity, and culminates in the development of an integrated branding system.  A high degree of conceptual, aesthetic and technical ability is considered in three projects beginning with a rebrand of a local organization, followed by the branding of a fictitious culinary experience, and ending with creating a new brand for a business in the wellness, music, or toy industry.

The way Americans consume food has been evolving. Societal changes, technologic innovations, and environmental concerns are changing the landscape of food consumption. Climate change has made people question their dependence on meat and poultry. The pandemic has opened avenues for innovation in the way commercial kitchens craft and deliver food for patrons, while also reminding us that the experience of great service in a well-designed space can’t be topped by simply staying at home. New culinary experiences are challenging how we think about food consumption, and strong brands are leading the charge. For the Culinary Experience project, students are assigned a food service category at random, as well as a genre to give their culinary experience a point of view.

Maddy Podolnick ‘25 – Hush 

Assigned the food service type of a quick service restaurant and the genre of romance, Maddy Podolnick (Visual Communication Design ‘25) created Hush, a forbidden love themed late-night restaurant. Maddy wanted to lean into the idea of secretive guilty pleasures through both the language of her brand and her design. She used typography that mimicked handwriting throughout her brand to reference a love letter. Maddy also was inspired by the phrase “keeping your cards close to your chest” and created her playing card-inspired menus as a result. 

Annika Zitto ‘25 – Berg

Annika Zitto (Visual Communication Design ‘25) was tasked with creating a rom-com food truck. Inspired by her own experience, Annika wanted to create a food truck with specific vegan offerings and had to figure out a way to tie it’s “rom-com” essence to its menu. As a result, she created Berg. Berg is an environmentally conscious vegan burger truck. Showing a love for the planet through witty language, Berg brings a lighthearted, “rom-com” energy to the stressful topics of factory farming and climate change.