Northside Cafe

This one's a little different. There's no client here. Just a cafe I'd love to open one day, and a brand I built for it in the meantime.

I wanted the identity to feel like the actual experience of drinking a good cup of coffee. Not loud, not trendy, just warm and a little bit nostalgic.

The mark started with the idea of a wave. Something fluid, moving, almost like steam curling off a fresh pour. It sits alongside the wordmark as its own symbol, simple enough to work small on a cup or a badge on its own.

The typography carries that same contrast. One font is smooth and flowing, almost like the shape of a coffee bean. The other is bold and systematic, built with the same energy as a shot of espresso hitting the cup. Two different feelings, working together the same way milk and espresso do.

The palette stays warm and earthy on purpose. Toasted oranges, deep roasted browns, a soft cream, and one dark charcoal to ground it all. Nothing neon, nothing cold. Just the colors of the actual product.

I don't know if Northside Cafe will ever be a real place. But if it ever is, this is exactly what I'd want people to feel walking in.