You’re at the beach with your fries. A gull steals one. I wanted someone to see Screamin’ Gull and recognize that feeling, then laugh and want to eat there.
On a noisy boardwalk, that character needs to be recognizable before someone stops to read a menu. I carried the joke from the storefront warning through to the receipt, keeping the mark clear enough to work at both sizes.
THE MENACE BECAME THE MASCOT.
PROPOSED FIRST EDITION
Open one gull window first.
The nine venue studies show how the brand could travel. I would begin with one seasonal Coney Island counter. That puts the gull where the joke already happens, with a real queue and a short walk back to the sand.
THE FIRST OFFER
An existing food operator would host the first counter. Lead with the cod basket and fries, using the full menu design as the basis for a smaller opening menu. The rest of the dishes remain in the designed range.
HOW YOU TAKE PART
The awning gets the first look. The menu makes the meal and price easy to find. A basket liner carries the warning to the beach, while a receipt points to the next opening day.
WHAT I WOULD DELIVER
The counter sign and opening menu, with packaging artwork and the first local invitation. Use the existing gull marks at the sizes each object needs. Apparel can follow once the window has a working service rhythm.
BEFORE IT GROWS
Check the menu from queue distance and observe order-to-handover time. Ask the operator which packaging actually survives the walk. A second location depends on that service evidence and the cost of running the first.
Where it could go next
All nine storefront designs remain in the location studies. Rockaway and Riis Park are possible next stops. The other beaches show adaptations for later operators, with local menus and service formats developed separately.
PRODUCT WORLD / BOARDWALK SERVICEFresh, hot, fast, and designed to survive the walk back to the sand.
THE ORGANIZING IDEA
Turn food theft into product desire.
The gull makes a simple claim: this food is worth fighting for. That idea shapes the service language and the rest of the brand.
01
THE THREAT IS THE PROOF
The gull wants your fries. That familiar beach encounter gives the restaurant its character.
02
CHAOS NEEDS A GRID
The mascot can be frantic because the typography, spacing, pricing, and information hierarchy stay disciplined.
03
EVERY OBJECT CONTINUES THE JOKE
The experience builds from storefront warning to packaging reveal, receipt footer, uniform, and final fry.
THE SERVICE PROMISE / 01
FRESH CATCH. HOT FRIES. ZERO PRETENSE.
STEALING THE BEST CATCH SINCE DAY ONE.
CAUTION / 12 FT
RESPONSIVE IDENTITY
One scream. Three volumes.
Keep the open beak readable on the building sign. On a receipt or embroidered uniform, simplify around that same silhouette.
01 / PRIMARY COMBINATIONCHARACTER + NAME / ONE SILHOUETTE02 / STANDALONE WORDMARKMENUS / AWNINGS / EMBROIDERY03 / PICTORIAL MARKMERCH / STICKERS / SOCIAL
BOARDWALK BROADCAST / 02HAVING A SCREAMIN’ GOOD TIME.
SQUAWK LOUD. EAT FAST.
THE CONTROL SYSTEM
The character screams. The grid stays calm.
Fredoka gives the large headlines their rounded shape. Instrument Sans handles the menu descriptions, with Martian Mono for prices and order numbers. The warning copy fits into those smaller fields.
FREDOKA / DISPLAYSQUAWK LOUD.
HEADLINES / LOGO / SIGNAGE
INSTRUMENT SANS / EDITORIALFresh seafood without the ceremony.
DEEP INK NAVY#111E2ESCREAM RED#E34A32BEAK & FRY GOLD#FFB81CFEATHER GREY#D3CBC2SEA SALT CREAM#F4EFEA
MOTION LANGUAGE
Every message begins inside the scream.
The open beak sets the motion. Headlines burst outward in waves, with utility copy trailing like an echo. The pictorial mark connects those movements as a repeatable transition.
SQUAWK LOUD.EAT FAST.PROTECT YOUR FRY · WATCH THE SKIES · ORDER 024 READY
MOTION STUDY / FLOCK RESPONSEONE GULL SCREAMS. THE WHOLE BOARDWALK ANSWERS.
[AUDIO MUTED / LOOP 06 SEC]
WARNING / 12 FTWATCH THE SKIES.↗ ↗ ↗
FRY DEFENSEMODE 01
PROTECT YOUR FRY⌁ 𓅰 ⌁ 𓅰NO UNATTENDED BASKETS
THE GULL DEFENSE PATTERN
The open beak and warning rays trace the path of a stolen fry.
The pattern can take over the basket liner where a full logo would repeat too often. Smaller crops work on a bandana or social post, with the same beak forms visible.
PATTERN FAMILY / IN SERVICEMIXED SCALE · WARNING COPY · PICTORIAL CROPS · FRY TRAILS
MENU DESIGN
A full menu built for a moving line.
Short names, disciplined descriptions, hard-working price alignment, and clear groups make the menu readable from the queue. The voice stays present, but never gets between a hungry customer and an order.
BEACHSIDE FAST SEAFOOD · EST. ON THE BOARDWALKSCREAMIN’ GULL[BOARDWALK ALERT: DEFEND YOUR CONTAINER AT ALL TIMES]
01THE MAIN CATCH
All combos served with double-dusted sea salt fries and a side of house tartar.
01
THE SCREAMIN’ BUCKET
Crispy beer-battered Atlantic cod, double-dusted fries, grilled lemon, house tartar. High target risk.
$16.5002
THE SQUAWKBOX SPECIAL
Fried cod filet, melted American cheese, shredded lettuce, and pickles on a toasted potato bun + fountain drink.
$15.0003
BEACH BANDIT TACOS (3X)
Local fried catch, citrus-cabbage slaw, spicy beak sauce, fresh cilantro on warm corn tortillas.
$14.5004
BOARDWALK CLAM STRIP BASKET
Golden-fried clam strips, sea salt fries, house cocktail sauce, extra lemon.
$13.5005
CRISPY SOFT-SHELL ROLL
Whole cornmeal-crusted soft-shell crab, lemon-herb mayo, pickled red onion on a split-top brioche.
$17.00
02SIDE THEFTS
01
STOLEN FRY BASKET
Heavily salted, double-fried skin-on potatoes. Highly targeted by local birds.
$5.5002
POPCORN CLAM BITES
Bite-sized fried clam nuggets. Easy to pop, easier to lose in a dive-bomb.
$7.5003
OLD BAY HUSHPUPPIES (6X)
Sweet cornmeal fritters dusted in Old Bay, served with hot honey butter.
$6.0004
SMOKED FISH DIP & CHIPS
House-smoked local fish dip served with thick-cut kettle chips and pickled jalapeños.
MENU / COUNTER EXPERIENCEDESIGNED TO READ FROM THE BACK OF THE LINE.
A VOICE THAT WORKS THE SHIFT
Copy that earns its place on the actual experience.
WINDOW · NAPKIN · CLAMSHELL · RECEIPTTHE JOKE CHANGES WITH THE MOMENT.
THE BRAND IN USE
Made to be worn, handled, and weathered.
Let the material show. Kraft and greaseproof paper belong around the food. Screen print suits the apparel, while enamel and metal carry the mark onto longer-lasting objects.
APPAREL / STAFF CULTURETHE CREW WEARS THE WARNING.PACKAGING / SERVICEEVERY SURFACE GETS ITS OWN PART OF THE STORY.
EAST COAST ROLLOUT
One first window. Nine future settings.
These are future location studies, following the first Coney Island counter. Architecture and service format respond to each boardwalk. Local wording can change the practical signs while the core identity stays fixed.
01 / PERMANENT FLAGSHIP
CONEY ISLAND
SURF AVE / BOARDWALK FULL MENU + MERCH WINDOW
02 / NEIGHBORHOOD OUTPOST
ROCKAWAY BEACH
BEACH 97TH STREET COUNTER + EVENING WINDOW
03 / SEASONAL PAVILION
RIIS PARK
THE PEOPLE’S BEACH WEEKEND MENU + BEACH KIT
04 / RETRO BOARDWALK OUTPOST
WILDWOOD
WILDWOOD BOARDWALK HIGH-VOLUME WALK-UP
05 / PROMENADE OUTPOST
LONG BRANCH
PIER VILLAGE / OCEAN AVE YEAR-ROUND COUNTER
06 / FAMILY BOARDWALK KIOSK
OCEAN CITY
OCEAN CITY BOARDWALK FAMILY MENU + BIKE WINDOW
07 / SOUTHERN SURF SHACK
ST. AUGUSTINE BEACH
BEACH A1A / ATLANTIC SUNSET SERVICE + BEACH KIT
08 / HIGH-VOLUME PAVILION
MYRTLE BEACH
OCEAN BOULEVARD MULTI-WINDOW SERVICE
09 / TROPICAL CITY OUTPOST
FORT LAUDERDALE
BEACHFRONT A1A ALL-DAY COUNTER + LATE NIGHT
FLAGSHIP LAUNCH
The First Fry of Summer.
The proposed first opening uses the gull window and a reduced service menu. A small local preview would test the order and handover before opening to the full queue. The beach kit and a partner-led coastal cleanup are later additions once the counter works.
FIRST COUNTER / CONEY ISLAND NEXT EDITION / BEACH KIT LATER PARTNER PROGRAM / COASTAL CLEANUP
WHY IT CAN WORK
Keep the gull at the center as the concept grows.
The gull appears in the service warnings and packaging. A new location can change its practical signs around the local boardwalk, keeping the mark and menu hierarchy fixed.
The seagull encounter gives the restaurant a joke people already recognize. I carried it through the menu and the objects around the order. The proposed rollout still has to adapt those pieces to each boardwalk.
I would test the menu at queue distance before a first opening. Can someone find a meal and its price quickly? The warning copy earns its place if people can enjoy the joke and still make an order.
