Feng Shui for Restaurants

I know the title probably caused a few raised eyebrows. I mean, we all know that Feng Shui is used in homes and apartments to improve positive energy and create a more comfortable atmosphere in the living space, but what does that have to do with a restaurant?

Feng Shui is an ancient Chinese art that focuses on using aesthetics to improve the positive energy, or chi, in a space. It tries to bring harmony and balance to an area by using colors, décor, wholesome forms, locations, visuals, and furniture placing.

Despite the fact that we mostly connect Feng Shui with private homes, any place where people spent time can benefit from the calming effects of this ancient Chinese art. Restaurants in particular, with their large traffic of clients, can benefit from implementing a few Feng Shui ideas while decorating and designing the interior.

The following tips are a list of things to keep in mind when trying to implement Feng Shui ideas in your restaurant. In the next posts we will try to go in to deeper details about a few of the ideas.

Colors:

The different colors of the rainbow all have different meanings and we all react to them in different ways. Certain colors will evoke specific emotions or thoughts when seen. Red is a color that excites passion and love and increases appetites. It creates feelings of romance and sometimes lust. Pink is a calm, soothing color that is also associated with love. Yellow is a cheery color that promotes warmth and happiness. However, prolonged exposure to yellow can cause anxiety. (This is why fast food restaurants use red and yellow in their decoration and logos. This causes people to eat more but to leave faster thus promoting to a larger turnover.) Orange strengthens concentration and gives people a creative boost. Blue is a calming color that reflects peace, healing, trust, intellect, and wisdom. Black is not a color associated with depression—it promotes feelings of power, sophistication, modernism, and elegance. Purple evokes feelings of nobility and healing. White represents purity, cleanliness, poise, and confidence. Brown is a color associated with the earth. It represents comfort and health and wellness. Grey is a color that represents precision, clarity, and sharpness.

Now that you have a better understanding of the Feng Shui color meanings, you can explore how you can use décor to increase the positive energy in your restaurant. The décor should match the type of cuisine and the type of restaurant you want to portray. The dining experience should be represented by the colors as well as the décor.

In addition, try to use wholesome forms like rectangles, squares, and circles. These shapes have a complete feeling as opposed to choppy or triangular structures or décor.

Restaurant Seating Layout:

When trying to re-arrange your restaurant seating, keep in mind the movements your customers and staff are going to make. They’ll need clear paths to the entrance, restrooms, kitchen, and cashier. If chairs and tables block any of these routes, the flow of positive energy will be impeded. You should also keep in mind the spacing between chairs and tables to allow customers enough room to get in and out and walk past without bumping into another person or a nearby table.

Space:

When thinking about spacing, you also want to consider how the restaurant will be divided. Having too many partitions will stagnate the energy flow, but a too open space, like windows with an expansive view, doesn’t retain energy. When reconfiguring your restaurant, keep these things in mind to help create a positive energy and dining experience.

Noise Levels:

Another aspect to consider is how you’re going to keep noise levels down. You can’t ask the customers to be quiet, but you can pad the restaurant to absorb reverberations. Carpet on the floors, acoustic paneling on the walls and ceilings, and fabric upholstered restaaurant furniture will help absorb the excess noise and keep the atmosphere warm and inviting instead of irritating.

When focusing on the entrance, or the mouth of chi, you should keep in mind that you want it visible and inviting from the outside, and you want to keep any negative visuals away from the entrance. Toilets or restrooms should not be visible from the entrance. This visual brings negative energy to your customers before they’ve even sat down.

Feng Shui is an ancient art that has been used for centuries. This science-based art focuses on creating a positive energy and making the best possible atmosphere in a space. The space is meant to be enjoyed, therefore, make your restaurant enjoyable by using these Feng Shui tips.