zero

An imaginary Japanese restaurant that focuses on selling donburi, onigiri, packaged meals, and other rice-related food. My visual identity was guided by Monina Velarde, a visiting designer from The New York Times. The name, zero (pronounced zeh-roh and in Japanese translated as ゼロ), conveys the overall concept of the restaurant as selling nothing but rice. A single grain of rice looks like an oval and number zero. Rice is the seed of the grass species, Oryza sativa, and the “O” in its name has a similar shape as of the number zero. I used images more than text to guide the reader through the menu options. I wanted to emphasize visual information over descriptive information, making it easier for customers to choose. Then, I emphasized the product inside of the package, representing the brand while maintaining some degree of mystery to engage consumers and incite curiosity.