Themed Restaurant: Winging It!
In Entertainment Design II, I was challenged to imagine and fully develop a themed restaurant experience from the ground up. This process extended far beyond aesthetics, inviting thoughtful world-building through spatial planning, concept development, and narrative design. From floor plans and character treatments to story arcs, specialty menu items, and branded merchandise, every element was crafted with intention, ensuring the final concept felt immersive, cohesive, and alive.
Inspirations & Story
In 1977, somewhere over open ocean, MayFly Airlines’ fate was sealed the moment Co-Pilot Samantha McGraw stepped away to use the restroom and left the controls in the hands of the captain, who promptly proved he was more confident than competent and crash-landed their jumbo jet onto an uncharted tropical island. Miraculously, everyone survived. After a brief and very democratic group discussion, the passengers collectively agreed to relieve the pilot of his duties… permanently, and send him off into the jungle to “reflect,” where Chef Raúl Mendoza has since erected a small, lovingly sarcastic ofrenda in his honor (he’s not dead, just… out there). With rescue nowhere in sight and morale wobbling, Raúl seizes the moment to fulfill his lifelong dream of owning a Tex-Mex restaurant, declaring the intact fuselage prime real estate. Meanwhile, engineer Denise Brooks, originally en route to an all-women’s engineering conference, discovers the thrilling freedom of building without regulations, joyfully salvaging and rewiring the aircraft into a fully functioning dining establishment. Under Sam’s steady command (because she was clearly the one flying the whole time), the stranded survivors transform disaster into hospitality, turning a failed flight into the most committed layover in history.
Concept Statement
“Winging It” is a 1970s-set immersive Tex-Mex restaurant housed inside a crash-landed jumbo jet loosely modeled after a Boeing 747-200 Combi, where every passenger survived and collectively decided that starting a restaurant was far more productive than waiting for rescue. The fuselage remains entirely intact, preserving the original cabin structure as the main dining room, while the cargo bay… well, let’s just say it may be fossilized at this point. Guests can pose for photos inside one of the jet engines before “checking in” at a lobby desk constructed from stacked passenger luggage, and browse merchandise made from repurposed “lost belongings” before heading to our outdoor cockpit bar, where blinking instruments share space with tequila taps. The tone channels the straight-faced absurdity of disaster spoofs like Airplane! and the playful guest interaction style of Dick's Last Resort, brought to life through over PA announcements, mock airline protocol, and a recurring “Rescue Attempt” event staged roughly every one to two hours, in which diners are prompted to make as much noise as possible to attract would-be rescuers, who inevitably fly right past. “Winging It” is a warm, self-aware survival fantasy where the crash is old news, the margaritas are strong, and the crew is fully committed to making this layover permanent.
Character Treatments
Characters are the heartbeat of any immersive experience. They ground the environment in human perspective, shaping not only the narrative but the emotional connection guests carry with them. In this project, each character was developed with intention, considering their backstory, motivations, relationships, and visual identity, to ensure the restaurant’s world felt lived-in rather than imagined. Through character treatment, the story becomes tangible, transforming a themed space into a place with memory, humor, and purpose.
Samantha “Sam” McGraw
Sam is a sharp, composed Texan who was, frankly, doing most of the flying long before the crash. The moment she stepped away and left the captain alone in the cockpit, he proved exactly why she usually handled things. After the crash, once it’s clear everyone survived, she regains control the only way she knows how: procedure. She organizes headcounts, establishes seating charts, and unofficially takes command of the island. When the passengers vote to exile the pilot into the jungle, she doesn’t hesitate. Calmly, politely, firmly, “You are relieved of duty.” Now she runs the restaurant like an airline that refuses to admit it’s grounded. She delivers steady, deadpan announcements over the PA. She treats every table like a cabin section under her supervision. Beneath the comedy, she genuinely believes morale is part of leadership. If they’re stuck here, they will be stuck here with order, structure, and clear instructions.
Raúl “El Capitán” Mendoza
A former short-order cook from El Paso with big dreams and even bigger opinions about cumin, he boarded with a notebook full of menu ideas and a quiet hope that someday he’d open a place of his own. When the crash happens and panic briefly flares, Raúl is the first to declare, “If we’re going to be stranded, we are not eating sad.” While others argue about rescue, he’s inventorying snacks and assessing galley equipment. The intact fuselage becomes his dining room, the jungle becomes his pantry, and the destroyed cargo bay becomes “none of our business.” He adopts the ironic title “El Capitán,” and runs the restaurant with theatrical intensity. To Raúl, this isn’t survival; it’s a soft opening. The crash wasn’t a tragedy. It was destiny with better lighting
Denise “Denny” Brooks
Denny was on her way to an all-women’s engineering summit, prepared to sit in conference rooms and politely argue about structural theory. Instead, she lands on an island with a disabled jumbo jet and no regulatory oversight. For Denny, this is less disaster and more sandbox. She immediately begins salvaging wiring, rerouting power, reinforcing the fuselage, and repurposing cockpit panels for the outdoor bar. Without corporate protocols or safety committees slowing her down, she builds exactly what she wants: creative, unconventional, occasionally “mostly safe.” She’s the quiet backbone of the operation, sliding under tables to stabilize a wobble mid-service or climbing into maintenance panels while delivering bone-dry commentary about “minor explosions.” Unlike Raúl, she doesn’t romanticize the crash. Unlike Sam, she doesn’t dramatize command. She simply sees possibility in wreckage,and that makes her the most grounded person on the island
Concept Sketches
Special Menu
Storytelling extends beyond the built environment and into every detail of the guest experience, including the menu. Through thoughtfully named signature items like the Mayday Margarita and Flight Check Fajitas, the narrative continues at the table. Each dish was designed not only to reflect the restaurant’s playful origin story but to deepen immersion, proving that flavor, humor, and concept can work together to create a memorable and cohesive experience.
Floor plan
The floor plan began as a series of bubble and block studies, mapping relationships between space, movement, and guest experience. What started as abstract adjacency evolved into a fully realized environment, complete with restrooms, a welcoming lobby, an outdoor bar, kitchen facilities, and dedicated storage. Each area was designed with intention, ensuring that function supported narrative and that circulation felt intuitive. The result is a space that operates efficiently while remaining immersive, allowing story and hospitality to exist seamlessly side by side.
3D Render
3D renders transform concept into a tangible experience, translating narrative and spatial design into a fully realized visual world. Using SketchUp, Procreate, and Photoshop, the environment was carefully modeled, textured, and refined to capture atmosphere, materiality, and mood. This process bridges imagination and reality, allowing the story to be experienced not just as an idea, but as a place.
Special Event
Special events extend the narrative beyond daily operations, creating moments that feel exclusive, celebratory, and deeply immersive. Designed with the same intentional storytelling as the core concept, Rescue Attempt! invites guests into a humorous, interactive encounter with Co-Pilot Sam. Through experiences like this, the story continues to evolve, encouraging the community to return not just for a meal but to take part in the adventure.
Rescue Attempt!
Once every 90 minutes, static crackles over the speakers. A faint voice says they’ve located Flight 1977. The dining room lights flicker dramatically. Sam rushes to the mic:
“Attention passengers! If you’d like to be rescued, please scream now.”
The entire restaurant screams. Staff bang pots. The bar flashes lights.
Then silence.
Sam returns: “Well, folks, they’ve flown directly over us. Again. That’s okay. Great practice. Next time, scream in harmony.”
Or: “Good news! They saw the smoke. Bad news, they thought it was a themed luau.”
Every night, the line changes. Sometimes she thanks guests for “choosing to remain stranded with us.”
Merchandise
Merchandise serves as a tangible extension of the story, allowing guests to carry a piece of the experience beyond the dining room. With a collection inspired by the “misplaced” belongings of our stranded passengers, each item blends humor with world-building. Thoughtfully designed and narratively rooted, the merchandise transforms keepsakes into storytelling artifacts, proof that even in unexpected circumstances, creativity finds a way to travel home.
Lost, and Definitely Found, Now $15!
Step right up to our carefully “recovered” collection of passenger belongings, once tragically misplaced, now very confidently found again. Each item has a story, a past life, and absolutely no lingering questions attached.
Browse through a rotating assortment of curiosities, souvenirs, and mysteriously unclaimed treasures. And of course, don’t miss the crown jewels of the counter: the Chef’s leftover Hawaiian shirts. Loud, proud, and possibly infused with the spirit of a thousand tropical dinners, they’re bold enough to start conversations and comfortable enough to keep them going.
Lost once, found forever.