Wolfgang Puck Express

Spago mean “spaghetti” in Italian, but to most of America, it means Wolfgang Puck, the chef-celebrity-entrepreneur.

Wolfgang Puck Worldwide Inc. (Beverly Hills, Calif.) has expanded from that first Spago restaurant on the Sunset Strip in 1982 to an empire that includes 12 fine-dining restaurants, 18 Wolfgang Puck Cafés, books, a TV program, a line of packaged foods and a growing chain of Wolfgang Puck Express fast-casual dining locations.

While Express has been around since the early 1990s, WPW recently hired Engstrom Design (San Rafael, Calif.) to inject some life and uniformity into the concept. “They were ready to expand,” says principal Jennifer Johanson, “and felt they wanted to put a new face on the brand.”

The old face they wanted to keep, of course, was Puck's. “That name recognition,” says Johanson, “suggests quality, a taste level and some California glamour.”

But Puck's taste tends toward the clean and modern, a need to be progressive and ahead of the curve – in design as well as with food. The primary element of the old Express had been broken mosaic tile, which Johanson notes had ceased to be innovative some years ago.

The new design features warmer, more food-related colors – tangerine, lime, lemon. The tables are cherry wood and the surfaces are fluid and curving. But specific design elements were secondary to the layout of the place. It had to represent the best of fast-casual: better quality than fast food, and quicker than a casual sit-down place.

Another layout element is the view inside the kitchen, which Puck helped introduce years ago. But Engstrom Design felt customers no longer needed to see salads being tossed. “It's enough,” Johanson says, “to see the kitchen and the pizza oven, to suggest freshness and individual preparation.”

But the signature piece is a series of visuals throughout the space that say: LIVE. LOVE. EAT. It's Puck's mantra, his sign-off line, the way he autographs his books.

Client: Wolfgang Puck Worldwide, Beverly Hills, Calif. – Rob Kautz, president and ceo; Steve Magnie, vp, construction; Steve Gratz, vp, Express operations

Design: Engstrom Design Group, San Rafael, Calif. – Eric Engstrom, president; Jennifer Johanson, principal; Patrick O'Hare, senior project manager; Shad Beazer, job captain; Teresa Purvis, interior designer

Architect: Spencer Architect, Tega Cay, S.C.

Outside Design Consultant: Electrics Lighting & Design, San Rafael, Calif.

Suppliers: Armstrong World Industries Inc., Lancaster, Pa. (ceilings); Designtex, New York, Majilite, Dracut, Mass. (fabrics); Retail Concepts Inc., Monroe, N.C. (millwork); Italics, San Rafael, Calif. (flooring); Design Within Reach, San Francisco, West Coast Industries, San Francisco, Table Topics, Elberta, Ala. (furniture); Piyanuch Thamchariyawat, Rio de Janeiro (graphics); Ilex, E. Taunton, Mass., Biproduct, New York, Foscarini, Venezia, Italy, Resolute, Seattle (lighting); Brite Lite Neon, N. Hollywood, Calif. (signage); Wolf Gordon, New York, JM Lynne, Hackensack, N.J., Innovations, New York (wallcoverings); Fast Signs, Oakland, Calif. (vinyl wall mural)