Columbia restaurants create unique atmospheres with decor

Whether you realize it or not, choosing where to eat out is a decision that's about more than just food.

A restaurant's atmosphere can have an immense impact on the overall dining experience. Here are three ways mid-Missouri restaurants have utilized their spaces to create a more unique eating environment.

Congregation

For Kim Perry, owner of Ms. Kim’s Fish and Chicken Shack, her new location in Fulton, Missouri, aims to invoke nostalgia. Using decor and appliances from her family, Perry has created a space that feels more like home than a restaurant.

“It reminds (customers) of their grandma's kitchen, or their mother's kitchen,” Perry says.

For Liz Huff, owner of Catalpa in Arrow Rock, her artistic vision led to her rebranding her restaurant. Huff, whose culinary training is in fine dining and French techniques, wanted her space to carry the aura of an upscale restaurant while still being affordable in the hopes of reaching much of the area's population.

“The idea is for people to walk in here and be like ‘Wow, this does not look like a pizza and burger place, this looks like a modern fine dining restaurant,’” Huff says.

Locals supporting locals

Just like food, art plays a vital role in establishing a community's culture. When restaurants have a vision, local artists can make it a reality.

“People that want to support local businesses flock into local businesses when there’s a certain vibe and when it’s clear that that’s the vision of a real person,” says Amanda Rainey, owner of Goldie’s Bagels.

Local woodworker Andy Werth is creating a bench and shelving for the new space inside Goldie’s. In addition, sign painters out of Chicago are creating gold leaf signs similar to the old-school design style of New York and Chicago bagel shops.

“It’s going to be like your neighborhood Jewish bakery,” Rainey says.

Casa Maria’s wanted to provide mid-Missouri with a festive Mexican dining experience, according to co-owners Crystal Umfress and Jesus Mendoza.

“The artistic appeal was something that we wanted to incorporate due (to) art bringing people of all backgrounds together,” Umfress and Mendoza say in an email.

Before they landed on a space to open their restaurant, the two both knew they wanted to work with local artist Cindy Scott. They first brought in a mood board highlighting authentic Mexican themes. They began with a base theme of Agave and then included other aspects like Dia de los Muertos. Scott also fused mid-Missouri culture into the space, including art that depicts the Big Burr Oak Tree.

A personal touch

What makes local spots stand out are the unique or quirky things that captivate patrons and keep them coming back.

At Ms. Kim’s, it’s the old fridge, stove and biscuit table, which are items she received from her grandmother. Although younger customers might not recognize the appliances, she says they invoke nostalgia for older ones. "It just brings a fuzzy feeling to people,” Perry says.

At Goldie’s, Rainey imbues her space with Jewish culture with itesm such as her Jewish cookbook collection, tchotchkes, a menorah and other personal touches such as pickle-printed wallpaper.

At Catalpa, Huff tried out her modern design ideas with karaoke, a hydroponic planter that holds edible flowers and herbs and TVs that serve as mirrors or art galleries.

Additionally, Catalpa is planning to have various seating areas with varying design styles. There will be a screened-in porch with TVs, a mid-century style loft with cushion seats, an up-cycled garage door *that's used as a dumbwaiter, and an all-gold bathroom that “is going to glow.”

“I don’t want to eat in a place with a gross bathroom,” Huff says. “Somebody said to me, ‘That’s stupid, nobody is going to care what color the toilet is’ and I said ‘I beg to differ.’”

But restaurant's are more than just their appearances; they are also about human connection.

“I've met so many people, and I feel like they're my friends and I want them to feel like I'm their friend,” Huff says. “Everybody needs that now.”

Both Goldie’s Bagels and Catalpa are in the process of opening at their new locations. You can follow Goldie's process on Instagram @goldiesbagels and Catalpa’s process on Facebook.

*CORRECTION: Catalpa’s upcycled garage door is used as a dumbwaiter. An earlier version of this article misstated that these were two different items, instead of one.