Lana

A La Carta, eCommerce, Healthy, Restaurant Sites

Status:
Online
Client:
PopMenu
Established:
2025
URL:
lanasb.com
Location:
CA, USA
Project Scope:
Microsite Dev & Design, Brand Strategy, Recruitment Funnel, Pre-Launch SEO

Project Overview

Vintage Coastal Luxury by the Beach

Lana is set to debut in Summer 2025 as an elevated yet approachable American dining experience in Solana Beach. With the interior still under construction, the brand faced the challenge of invisibility. They needed to establish a digital footprint that conveyed their "vintage coastal luxury" concept immediately, ensuring that when the doors finally opened, there was already a line of eager guests and a full roster of staff waiting.

The mission was to build a single-page digital anchor. We needed to create a high-impact microsite that balanced aesthetic warmth with aggressive lead generation, capturing both dinner inquiries and job applications while setting the tone for the neighborhood's newest hotspot.

Challenges & Goals

The Challenges

Pre-Launch Visibility: With zero dine-in traffic, the site had to generate its own momentum, turning passive visitors into active leads without a menu or interior photos to rely on.

Dual-Purpose Design: The layout needed to gracefully handle two distinct intake streams—guest inquiries and job applications—without cluttering the single-page experience.

Brand Expression: Conveying a specific "Vintage Coastal" vibe using limited assets required advanced CSS styling to create depth and atmosphere.

The Goals

Lead Capture: Implement split-panel forms to aggressively collect emails for the marketing list and resumes for the hiring manager simultaneously.

Visual Atmosphere: Develop a rich palette using Teal (#288991), Gold (#eeba0f), and Burgundy to evoke the warmth of a sunset on the coast.

Search Priming: Inject local Schema markup and Solana Beach keywords to ensure Google indexed the business well before opening day.

Strategy & Approach

Phase 1: Visual Engineering

We utilized Custom SCSS to create a layered "Vintage" look. I applied complex text-shadow styling to the large, elegant headings, allowing them to scale responsively across devices. The hero section features a softly filtered coastal image overlaid with the signature #a06930 logo, instantly establishing the brand's mood.

Phase 2: The Dual-Form Architecture

To manage the influx of interest, I designed two distinct, branded form panels side-by-side on desktop (stacking on mobile). One feeds the marketing email list, while the other integrates with Popmenu’s hiring tools for resume uploads. This separation ensures the right data goes to the right internal team member.

Phase 3: Responsive & Accessible

We adopted a mobile-first architecture, implementing media queries at 576px and 992px to adjust form layouts and typography size. I ensured all custom buttons and links met WCAG color-contrast standards, making the luxury aesthetic accessible to all potential guests.

Solutions Delivered

Area	Highlight
Visual Design	Crafted a "Vintage Coastal" theme with layered text-shadows and a Teal/Gold/Burgundy palette to match the interior design.
Lead Generation	Built a dual-panel form system to capture guest emails and staff applications simultaneously within a single view.
Mobile UX	Engineered a mobile-first SCSS architecture that stacks complex layouts gracefully for phone users.
Local SEO	Structured site content with "Solana Beach" keywords and `Restaurant` Schema to prime local search results pre-launch.
Future Proofing	Designed a scalable framework that allows for the easy addition of Menu and Reservation modules once the restaurant opens.