Island
Brand Identity | Environmental |

Culinary combinations

Island is a new restaurant above the bustling Mare Street Market, Kings Cross. A celebration of land and sea — a surf and turf experience by two Michelin starred chefs, Tom Brown and Brad Carter, coming together to ultimate creativity.

Island is about bringing people together over incredible ingredients, cooked simply — it’s surf and turf fuelled by what Tom and Brad have learnt cooking together across actual islands all over the world.

Photography: Alberto Zamaniego
Signage production: Kemp Signs

Tom and Brad

Good friends and both Michelin-starred, the two chefs bring their individual strengths to this surf and turf affair. Tom, renowned for his expertise with seafood, will handle the ocean’s bounty, while Brad brings his nose-to-tail approach with rare breed meats.

The logo is split and stacked to emphasise the ‘AND’ within ISLAND, transforming it into a dynamic focal point for the brand’s visual language and it becomes an anchor for a flexible messaging system that highlights the limitless combinations and pairings that define the Island experience.

The juxtaposition of land and sea continues through the brands ‘creatures’ — mashup animals that will typically appear on the menu combine to make a suite of idiosyncratic creatures

The monospaced NB Akademie Mono provides balance through the typography and messaging couplets.

Signage

Facing Coal Drops Yard, Island’s neon sign glows within floor-to-ceiling windows, flanked by a simple messaging couplet in the side panes. Inside, black-and-white signage is set in industrial frames with metal mesh, subtly evoking fishing nets and complementing Mare Street’s industrial aesthetic.

Materiality

Menus are printed on Crush — an eco-conscious paper stock that replaces up to 15% of virgin tree pulp with by-products from grapes, corn, olives, coffee, hazelnuts, and cocoa.

Wine lists appear on the rich grape-hued variant, while menus are bound with whimsical pig, lobster, and fish-shaped paper clips.

Message in a bottle

In true desert island fashion, the bill arrives rolled up inside bespoke, custom-printed Island bottles — a playful nod to messages cast adrift at sea.

Messaging couplets

Throughout the identity the messaging couplets are thoughtfully tailored to each application — whether delivering factual details, like the hops used in the beer, or adding a playful twist on items like napkins.

The Plob has become something of an icon within the Island identity, so it felt only right to immortalise him in neon — a glowing welcome and the first sight that greets diners as they arrive at the restaurant.

Apparel

We partnered with Service Works to design understated, bespoke tees and aprons for both the kitchen team and front-of-house staff.

Island is a celebration of land and sea, a surf and turf experience by Chef Tom Brown & Chef Brad Carter, open now at Mare Street Market Kings Cross, Book here