Set in a 19th-century train station, Modern on the Rails Mamaroneck is an exquisite dining experience that combines the allure of the old railway stop, with tasty, albeit predominately Italian food. Opened in 2015 as an extension of Modern Restaurant " Lounge of New Rochelle, the restaurant aims to provide their clients with exceptional food prepared using fresh ingredients served in a location characterised by unique ambience and decor (DeNitto, 1). Their menu boasts an extensive selection of main courses, desserts, and beverages. Modern on the Rails’ plethora of food choices include; traditionally fried Calamari, Rails Burrata, Linguini with white Clams, Polenta Calabrese, Chicken Parmigiana, Bruschetta, Veal Sorrentino, Lobster Ravioli, Shrimp and Calamari, Cavatelli Bolognese among many others. The menu designs, however, stood out to me, as they were carefully designed to create a blend with the different types of culinary experiences demanded by their clients. The Modern on the Rails restaurant has menus tailored for Dine-In, Takeout, Party, Desserts, Catering, Sunday Brunch and Valentine’s day dining experiences.
Focusing mainly on Italic food, Modern on the Rails’ Dine-In menu manages to resonate with the ambience of the room. By using large bolded letters, set over a grey background that is in turn, subdivided uniformly, the menu creates an immediate awareness in the client of both the scope of the courses offered by the restaurant as well as having a brief description of each type of food. The font also helps to blend both the 19th-century architecture and layout and the modern elements of the locale. The dine-in menu comprises of starters, which comprises of Chipotle Calamari, Rice balls, and Mozzarella Sticks among others (Rails 1). Designing the menu to start with a section on starters, has the effect of welcoming the person to the restaurants and allowing them time to examine the rest of the menu in their own time. After this, and to the right, is the mains section, which encompasses the chicken and the meats. All these have their descriptions which enable the clients to come to a decision quickly. It helps that all the mains are very appealing to the culinary sense. Modern on the Rail also offer ribs, in the form of N.Y. Strip and the Rib-Eye, which are highlighted in their section within the mains. At the very bottom of the dine-in menu, is the section for Brick Oven Pizza, which the Modern on the Rails guarantees is 12-inch hand-tossed brick oven prepared. The section is filled in darker than the others to set it apart, and by extension, capture the reader’s attention. The types of pizzas for selection, which includes the BBQ chicken, Black Truffle, Sandra Special and Rails Special, also help to draw in the clients.
The valentine’s day menu of the Modern on the Rails restaurant is equally well designed for the romantic occasions. The entire menu is contained within a double line frame, marked by two signature red roses at the top left. The classic Modern on the Rails logo sits centred-top on the menu, directly above the title, which is written in a beautiful, appealing font. The menu then starts off with the appetisers. Only four choices are on the menu, among them the Wagyu Meatballs, which includes among other things, Wagyu ground beef seasoned with Locatelli, and the Burratta Mozzarella, which has the fig jam and the crumbled bacon and crostini (Rails 1). The valentine’s day menu does not contain as many courses as the dine in one. However, each of the courses are specially selected for intimate one on one culinary experiences. All the titles for the courses are written in red, hints of the red color that is ubiquitous with valentine’s day. The menu is simple and offers a small selection of carefully selected foods, which significantly enhances the romantic setting that the Modern on the Rails yearns for in their Valentine’s day culinary experience.
The desserts menu for the Modern on the Rails restaurant includes a simple design, encompassing large fonts, which are playful and appeal to the reader. The thought of dessert is enough to make anyone smile, and as pursuing to this, the Modern on the Rails’ dessert menu reflects just this. Primarily, it is designed to be easily legible, and written in a font that accentuates the delight brought by a serving of dessert. The Sunday Brunch menu also sticks to the minimalistic design aspect, choosing this time to only describe the food in a paragraph that is centred on the page. The offerings are separated only by bullets, which helps to maintain a form of order in the menu. All the menus contain a disclaimer at the very top concerning the per person, as well as the tax requirements of their clients. The menus also contain a disclaimer regarding allergies at the bottom. This is also effective as it enables the people looking at the menus in Modern on the Rail, to be aware not only of what the restaurant has to offer them, regarding a superb culinary experience but also what is expected of them. In turn, this creates a harmonious dining experience for everyone.
Works Cited
DeNitto, Emily. "Review: Modern On the Rails Brings Italian to A 19th Century Station". Nytimes.Com, 2018,
https://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/17/nyregion/review-modern-on-the-rails-brings-italian-to-a-19th-century-station.html.
Accessed 26 Feb 2018.
Rails, Modern. "About Us | Modern On the Rails | Mamaroneck, NY". Modern on the Rails, 2018, http://www.modernontherails.com/about-us.html.
Accessed 26 Feb 2018.
