Preppy Seafood

East Coast Nantucket Fishcamp + West Coast Surf Club = Preppy Seafood. Perla’s, our latest brand and identity for people who like to eat things that swim.

Larry McGuire and Thomas Moorman are behind Perla’s Seafood & Oyster Bar, you should know their fancy barbecue.

Working with the same client for various concepts & endeavors means getting challenged to demonstrate versatility. Preppy seafood doesn’t demand a highly intellectual approach like the historic motifs and regional vernacular informing the Lamberts brand; preppy seafood demands a feel.

It’s a delight to execute a brand like Perla’s without being asked to use the clichés of the seafood lexicon. We kept it fresh, clean, and simple, making our subtle sea allusions in the ancillary pieces of the identity system.

We recommend the barbecue shrimp or the crispy snapper. Enjoy.

The handmade Perla’s script (a first for föda) is paired with Odile, made right here in Texas by Sibylle Hagmann.

The South Congress patio at Perla’s at night. Image by Casey Dunn.

Menus, koozies, hotsauce, and a cameo appearance by a shy Modelo.

Open channel lettering blows up the quirky “P” in Perla’s script logo.

Matchbooks and cards at entry.

We only made three overt sea allusions in this identity, and even then they are subtle. Here, the oyster shell texture becomes a line art motif in the matchbooks, and is then embossed into the pearlescent business cards. Something had to be pearlescent.

Logo set in hexagonal tile.

Oversize menus for shy diners, with a focus on large, legible, and easy to read typography.

Following creating the script for the logo, we looked for other places to use the script where it wouldn’t be cumbersome to the overall identity system. The hot sauce bottle (with anchor in the “t") felt like just the spot.

Barbecue shrimp, photo by Ryann Ford.

Matchbook as oyster, illustration.

Client: Perla’s Seafood & Oyster Bar
Creative Director: Jett Butler
Design Team: Melissa Martin, Sissy Emmons, and Jett Butler
Perla’s Script: FÖDA Studio
Menus & Typography: Melissa Martin with Jett Butler
Oyster Motif: Sissy Emmons