Restaurant Redesign Final Thoughts
As I stated in my previous post about this project, I really enjoyed the task of redesigning a restaurant. Testing the usability of a brick and mortar structure was a great experience in learning how important clarity and usability really are. All three of our group members have experience in testing the usability of a web site, and proposing recommendations for improvements. But this was the first time I have been able to test something more tangible, and something that really interested me.
We all visited the restaurant for this project, but for me it was my first time at Fushi Yami. I have been to many other sushi restaurants in the past so I did have some expectations. They all seem to follow the same general setup and service practice. But Fushi Yami was a bit different. It felt like a fast casual dining experience. Like a middle ground between a fast food restaurant and a finer dine-in eating establishment. Think of it as Chipotle as a middle ground between Taco Bell and a more authentic Mexican restaurant.
I thought their business model was unique to the sushi restaurant genre of eateries. I was happy to try a new restaurant, and I am a big fan of sushi so this was an enjoyable experience. I like the casual atmosphere and the large menu. The prices were astoundingly low for the type of food they offered. This prompted me to order a lot of food and allowed me to try quite a few different offerings. However the restaurant did have its drawbacks.
The ordering/seating system was confusing. From a usability standpoint this a huge negative. Usability and user experience are intended to be free of confusion and should allow users to move through the process easily and without much, if any, waiting. I think our redesign and recommendations really tackled this problem. We all saw the same problem and we came up with a manageable solution.
From a technical writing standpoint I thought this good practice as well. Being clear and concise in your instructions and usability for a variety of users is important. We were able to look at a real restaurant and test real situations. We were forced to look at all aspects of our experiences at Fushi Yami through the eyes of technical writers. I don't normally pick apart a restaurant in such detail, but with this project I found it easy to pin point flaws in design and usability.
It was great to work with Laura again, as her and I worked on the previous usability project, and I was happy to be able to work with Yasmin for the first time who has a fantastic eye for design. This was a great team and a really interesting project.
We all visited the restaurant for this project, but for me it was my first time at Fushi Yami. I have been to many other sushi restaurants in the past so I did have some expectations. They all seem to follow the same general setup and service practice. But Fushi Yami was a bit different. It felt like a fast casual dining experience. Like a middle ground between a fast food restaurant and a finer dine-in eating establishment. Think of it as Chipotle as a middle ground between Taco Bell and a more authentic Mexican restaurant.
I thought their business model was unique to the sushi restaurant genre of eateries. I was happy to try a new restaurant, and I am a big fan of sushi so this was an enjoyable experience. I like the casual atmosphere and the large menu. The prices were astoundingly low for the type of food they offered. This prompted me to order a lot of food and allowed me to try quite a few different offerings. However the restaurant did have its drawbacks.
The ordering/seating system was confusing. From a usability standpoint this a huge negative. Usability and user experience are intended to be free of confusion and should allow users to move through the process easily and without much, if any, waiting. I think our redesign and recommendations really tackled this problem. We all saw the same problem and we came up with a manageable solution.
From a technical writing standpoint I thought this good practice as well. Being clear and concise in your instructions and usability for a variety of users is important. We were able to look at a real restaurant and test real situations. We were forced to look at all aspects of our experiences at Fushi Yami through the eyes of technical writers. I don't normally pick apart a restaurant in such detail, but with this project I found it easy to pin point flaws in design and usability.
It was great to work with Laura again, as her and I worked on the previous usability project, and I was happy to be able to work with Yasmin for the first time who has a fantastic eye for design. This was a great team and a really interesting project.
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