Sizzler Family Steak House is sizzling back to life with a new visual and verbal identity. In partnership with Brooklyn NY-based design agency Tavern, Sizzler has undergone a rebrand that seeks to reignite its nostalgic heritage while embracing a contemporary aesthetic. “Tapping into the brand’s history in a meaningful way, the new identity system was built from a selection of heritage assets that were revived from the brand’s archives and refreshed to suit contemporary tastes,” says Mike Perry, Founder and Creative Director of Tavern.
Tavern recognized early on that they didn’t need to tweak much regarding the logo – instead, it was about repurposing an element that already had decades of equity. Refreshing the visual identity meant reimagining how those assets could be used across the entire 360-brand experience. Using the wordmark, they turned it into an actual cattle brand. The classic sizzlin’ ZZ’s from the logo and the word “sizzle” itself were repurposed as secondary assets that could dial up the playfulness and ownability of clever copy and menu item names.
Tavern also stripped away the gradient and used a rich burnt maroon color as the hero of the identity’s palette, emphasizing that this is a family steak house and that medium rare is still the proper way to order a New York Strip. A curling heritage typeface pulled from old in-store ephemera, a contemporary cut of the oft-used Windsor throughout the 60s and 70s by Sizzler, was paired with a more contemporary Block Berthold to add variety and punch up the identity.
A forgotten cow mascot from the 1950s was brought back to life and renamed Ribby Ribeye. Ribby also has an entourage of new Taste Buddies like Rippy, the lobster tail, Toasty, the brand’s cheese toast avatar, and the Salad Bar-barian.
Behind the scenes, Tavern helped Sizzler overhaul their brand strategy, tone of voice, sonic branding, and product innovation and naming strategy. Even how servers greet customers was reconsidered and adapted for a new generation. “We wanted to create a brand that resonates with longtime fans and a new generation of diners,” added Perry. “By combining the best of Sizzler’s heritage with a modern aesthetic, we’ve revitalized a brand that isn’t just nostalgic, it’s joyful and exciting, and it casts the brand in a new, timeless light.”
