La Moule is a Belgian-style brasserie from the team behind some of Portland's finest restaurants -- a moody, innuendo-infused room that became an instant fixture in the city's dining scene. I was invited in to translate that atmosphere from physical to digital.

The Work

In collaboration with artist Damien Gilley, whose work defined the brand identity's visual character, I built the digital experience to carry that same energy online. I also developed a lightweight custom menu management system that lets the La Moule staff update their fresh seasonal menu on the fly from any device -- a practical solution that removes the perennial restaurant headache of keeping menus current. Like the St. Jack project, part of the compensation was negotiated in trade. Also worth it.

Takeaway

Some of the projects I'm most proud of had a fraction of the budget of larger engagements. This was one of them. A well-scoped, well-executed small project with the right collaborators can make more of an impact, and lead to more interesting work down the line, than a sprawling one with ten times the resources. It's a good reminder that budget and quality of outcome aren't as correlated as we assume.