Gowings Restaurant

Brand identity design for one of Sydney’s most beloved and historic restaurants. Reimagined with an Italian theme by chef Sean Connolly.

Housed within the old Gowings building and department store — and now QT Sydney — the Gowings Bar and Grill restaurant has had a storied past to say the least. We were tasked with creating an identity that paid homage to the rich history of the building on the one hand, and stepped into unexpected creative territory on the other.

With such a rich history to lean into, it was important to find the perfect balance between the past and the future by merging historical touch points and contemporary motifs. Bolstered by the unique cheek and charm of head chef Sean Connollys’ goldmine of ‘Seanisms’ translated into Italian, and simple yet indulgent Italian cuisine inspired by New York’s ‘Little Italy’, the new identity aims to shift the restaurant into an inclusive and welcoming space for visitors, leaving behind the nostalgia of traditional ‘bar and grill’.

Design agency credit: In this Toben project, I served as the lead designer, under the creative direction of Thorsten Kulp.