Client: La Belle Helene — an upscale French Victorian brasserie with a menu by Top Chef alum Jamie Lynch.
Role: Creative Director / Brand Designer / Web Designer & Developer
Disciplines: Branding, Custom Icon Design, Web Design & Development, Motion & Video Effects, CMS Architecture, UI/UX
The Problem
La Belle Helene’s identity is rooted in French Victorian elegance, a very specific aesthetic that demands precision to execute without tipping into theme-restaurant territory. The client needed a full brand and website that could translate the warmth and ornate character of the physical space into a digital experience, on a tight timeline. Practically speaking, they also had a real operational problem: their menu was being managed by uploading JPEGs, an unsustainable process for a restaurant that changes ingredients regularly and can’t call a developer every time a dish evolves.
The Process
I handled the full scope: branding, a custom branded icon library, and complete website design and development. The visual direction was anchored in the Victorian reference without becoming decorative noise. Typography and motion did the heavy lifting, with video effects and animations layered in to give the site atmosphere and movement that matched the restaurant’s character. For the menu, I built a management system using Advanced Custom Fields, giving the team the ability to log in and update dishes, ingredients, and pricing directly with no code, no workarounds, and no more JPEGs. This was the third website I delivered for the 5th Street Group within a month and a half, and it required moving fast without sacrificing the care the brand demanded.
The Results
The client was pleased with the final product, and the typography and video work are among the details I’m most proud of on this project. They’re what give the site its character rather than just its structure. The menu management system solved a genuine daily friction point for the restaurant team, replacing a clunky workaround with a clean, intuitive backend they could actually use. La Belle Helene became the third completed chapter in a fast-moving creative partnership with one of the most ambitious restaurant groups in the Southeast.