Twelve years ago Steve and Lara Atkins came to our Williston sign shop, telling me about their dream to open a restaurant. In the small town of Richmond, Vermont they were taking over a beautiful old brick house that had operated as the Chequered House Restaurant since the early 1980s. They were operating on a shoestring; in fact, they were living in a tiny apartment above the kitchen to save money. So we re-used the wood posts left from the Chequered House’s sign.

But they also knew the value of a sophisticated multi-dimensional sign. Their restaurant, Kitchen Table Bistro, was to provide a fine dining experience. To communicate that they asked us to create a high-end carved sign with 23 karat gold leaf in the letters. I suggested we make the knife and fork in their logo as complete three-dimensional sculpted pieces, just like the real thing but 4 feet long!

Now, after terrific success with many awards on the wall, they saw another opportunity in Richmond. When the beloved On The Rise Bakery closed, Steve and Lara decided to open a bakery and casual dining cafe in that space. And we are delighted that they asked us to make a sign for this new venture. Reflecting the lower prices at their new Parkside Kitchen, the sign we created has their logo in a simpler format. But we also wanted to give it some Vermont flavor, so we built a “post and beam” structure from which to hang the sign.