How can a space in a restaurant be optimized by light? Should it be natural or artificial?
Sometimes natural light can be bothersome as it changes shadows, or shines on a line directly into a customer’s eyes. But it can also create a lighter more open atmosphere where some artificial lighting can make a person feel like they are in a dark dank cave.
Chili’s chose to light their interior by mostly artificial light. The only windows were north facing with shutters. A lot of patrons frequent at night after natural lighting is not available anyway. Training Table had large windows surrounding the dining area on the south, west, and east sides. These windows allowed ample natural light into the space, and there was really no need for a lot of artificial light during the daytime. There was a large central lighting unit above the dining area, that was covered by a long drape to diffuse the light. This type of lighting, although a bit tacky looking, seemed to do quite an effective job lighting the restaurant in a comfortable way. Paradise had full length windows lining the front of the store (north facing so it didn’t shine directly in but diffused the light well) that during the day amply lit most of the main area. Later times of the day, those areas in the very far side of the room and the back areas for preparations did require artificial lighting that was a little subdued and fit well to match the areas and times in theory, but might have worked better for patrons had they been slightly brighter.
Therefore:
North facing windows seem to be the softest, most welcome light and the artificial lighting used besides should be fittingly well lit but also have some way to soften them be it drapes, shades or hidden lights.
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