What to look for in a hospitality designer (and what to avoid)

How clear is the design process?

Ask the designer to walk you through their phases and what gets decided at each stage. Ask what they will need from you, too.

Listen for specific decisions, responsibilities, and moments of review. If the answer is only “we collaborate closely throughout,” ask what that looks like in practice.

What is their point of view?

Ask what they would refuse to design, and why. Then ask how that judgment would serve your concept.

A shared aesthetic is a starting point. We also want to hear the reasoning behind a choice: what belongs in the room, what does not, and what the designer is willing to question.

Do they understand how your room will work?

Listen for questions about your service model, ticket times, prep flow, and the guest’s experience. Bring the operational knowledge you already have.

Our interest is in the room you will operate every day: the path from prep to service, the handoff at the counter, the place a guest pauses. Those questions belong alongside the aesthetic references.

What happens when a project changes?

Ask: “Tell me about a difficult change during a project. What caused it, how did you respond, and what did you change afterward?”

A discontinued material or an unexpected site condition gives the conversation something concrete. Listen for what the designer did, how they involved the operator, and what they learned. Use this alongside references and the portfolio.

For us, the portfolio opens the conversation. Process and judgment are what we would keep asking about.

Interviewing designers? Take these questions into the meeting. Bring the answers back to your own operation: which designer helps you think clearly about the room you want to make?