Designers tap indigenous motifs, materials to infuse chain branches with local flavor

National dinner-house chains are using varied design elements to give their outlets local flavor. California Cafe Bar & Grill, for example, fuses local materials and motifs with California design elements. The Denver, CO, California Cafe features a large rock-bordered fireplace that imparts a ski-lodge atmosphere. Hard Rock Cafe's Key West, FL, unit, in keeping with the local architectural tradition, occupies a quaint Victorian house.
Whether they're flying fish hanging from the ceiling of a Florida restaurant or Rocky Mountain stones studding the fireplace of a Denver eatery, homegrown design elements are bringing a local [...]