Nussbaumer, Chapter 12

Nussbaumer's chapter 12 would have to be my favorite chapter. I love hospitality and wish to make that market my main speciality design market. Hotel and restaurant design really appeals to me and reading about it makes me excited for the future.

Hospitality design is within the commercial design realm, and it spans all lodging; food and beverage design. All resort hotels, high-rise hotels, boutique hotels, and bed and breakfasts fall into the lodging category. Coffee houses, diners, cafes, bar and grill restaurants, and cafeterias fall into the food and beverage design.

Fig.1-This hotel lobby has comfort written
all over it. Hotels are trying more and more to
bring the feel of home to them.

Both hotels and eateries include the setup of a space with a front and back of the house. The front of the house is the area that caters to the customer or guest, while the back of the house is where employees are able to get work done.

Once again both lodges and restaurants must be designed with human factors in mind. They must be ADA compliant, using proxemics, anthropometrics and ergonomics, and diverse.

Hotels are built with the idea of comfort in mind (Fig. 1). They must promote restfulness and sleep. And because of this, hotels must be extra considerate of their acoustics. Entrances to rooms are even recessed to provide unnecessary hallway noise. Hotels are temporary homes for people, so there must be aspects for temporary territoriality such as, controls for heating and air conditioning.

Fig. 2-A hotel lobby should always include
different types of seating for different kinds
of people.

Because of the diversity of people being housed in hotels, lobbies must be ADA compliant for a wheelchair and rooms have multiple layouts to help with navigation for a person with disabilities. Lobbies must also include sitting areas for individuals and groups of people due to people with ranging personal zones (Fig. 2). Lobbies may even have a water feature to add a relaxation feel to the atmosphere.

Fig. 3- This restaurant creates a fun
yet relaxing atmosphere to try some
new food. 

Fig. 4- Coffeehouses especially need to
include different types of seating.
Individuals tend to work in coffeehouses
and want a space of their own. 

Restaurants are designed to create a fun and invigorating space to eat a meal, while enjoying quality time with friends and family (Fig. 3). Space must be easy to maneuver for people with disabilities, employees, etc. A variety of seating should be offered in a restaurant because, once again, every person utilizing the space is different (Fig. 4). Booths can provide a more isolated area; the bar area would be better for mingling. Kitchen space needs to be taken in account; rule of thumb is one-third of the size of the dining space for the kitchen. The restaurant environment really sets the tone. Music must be played but at a level that is not distracting and the indoor air quality must be noticeably pleasant.

In the hospitality market, way finding, safety and security is of the utmost importance. These areas appeal to having a relaxed, comfortable feel, which cannot be achieved with a lost, nervous and anxious customer.

Many aesthetic elements can be highlighted in this market, which is very fascinating to experience. I hope that someday I can create spaces that look good and allow for people to feel good.