Inspired: Bidwell

Union Market, located in Northeast DC, is an awesome place to be. The large warehouse space is home to dozens of pop-up food retailers that would suit any taste, as well as a few boutique retail stores. The only full-service restaurant in Union Market is Bidwell, and they were kind enough to let me bug them for a morning with tons of questions about their well-designed space and brand.

The first thing that I noticed about Bidwell was the implementation of their logo as signage (on subway tile, to boot). I chatted with the manager about how the logo came about, which led to a pretty interesting story. The designer noticed that a bidwell melon (I didn't know that bidwell melons were a thing until this story!), cut in half, revealed an interesting shape, that ended up being used as the form of the logo. As a designer, I love getting into these spaces and hearing cool stories about how certain design elements come about. Super inspiring.

The bread and butter (not literally) of Bidwell come from their rooftop garden, where they grow all of their own vegetables for their dishes. Unfortunately, I visited during off-season, so my photos of the rooftop don't tell an accurate story of how lush the vegetation can get during the spring and summer.