Today’s foodies have a lot to chew on. There’s the variety of restaurant offerings, from full-service to fast food to fast casual with curbside pickup. Grocers are also trying to get a seat at the table, using expanded food offerings as new and fresh ways to differentiate themselves. That competition has led to an explosion of prepared food and take-home meals available from the same place where you pick up that gallon of milk and loaf of bread.

Safeway Inc. (Pleasanton, Calif.), the national supermarket chain, is responding by bringing a new player to the table. But this retailer’s concept isn’t another store prototype with an expanded deli section or an in-store café. It’s a 5000-square-foot, fast-casual restaurant called Citrine New World Bistro, in Redwood City, Calif. It’s not located near a Safeway grocery store. It doesn’t even carry the company name on its façade.

The fast-casual, limited-service concept means customers pick up a menu inside the door and proceed to the host station to place an order. Guests seat themselves, while servers bring meals out to the table.

“Citrine is part of the Safeway strategy to test and prove many of its retail meal and food concepts,” says Jeff Shamburger, Safeway’s vp, marketing.

By testing its private-label products on an actual menu (which changes seasonally) for a dining audience, Safeway is trying to better understand emerging food trends and consumer expectations. “Fast-casual restaurants are the big thing right now because they’re responsive to customers’ desires for better food at a certain price point and delivered in a convenient manner,” says Eric Daniel, prototype director for WD Partners, a Dublin, Ohio-based design consultancy.

Several seating configurations, including a bar near the kitchen, freestanding tables or booths for the most private and quietest of settings, allow patrons to choose how they spend their time at Citrine.

At Citrine, guests and their taste buds can tour the globe, with a menu organized into seven regions of the world, including Mediterranean, Latin and Pacific Rim. Items such as Thai lemongrass and sweet chili, Italian pizzas and fresh mozzarella are served, plus a selection of international wines, craft beers, coffees and teas. All the while, Safeway is educating its customers on branded products available at its grocery stores, such as O Organics and Rancher’s Reserve, by listing them on the menu. “The restaurant serves as a lab where the average shopper learns what they can do with the ingredients available from Safeway,” says Daniel.

Citrine’s emphasis is on fresh and healthy meal solutions, and elements within the restaurant communicate that message. A vibrant graphics package features food-as-art images of pasta, vegetables and fruits. Light woods, bamboo flooring, stainless steel and warm tones peppered through the dining room add to the bistro environment. Guests can choose from several seating options, including stools at the wine bar, community tables in the center of the room or more private booths and banquettes. A separate entrance and counter, called “dash & dine,” handles carryout orders and complements the convenience of the fast-casual experience.

Carryout orders are picked up at the "dash & dine" counter next to the host station.

Behind the host station, the message “Where do you want to go today?” encourages customers to listen to their stomachs as well as their thirst for travel and adventure. The same question could also be applied to grocers and their ongoing efforts to satisfy shoppers’ needs. With Citrine, Safeway is taking a step toward answering that question.

Client: Safeway, Pleasanton, Calif.  -- Eric Quick, formerly president of SRG; Loret Carbone, president and chief operating officer, SRG; Jeff Anderson, vp, culinary exploration, SRG; Jeff Shamburger, vp, marketing, SRG

Design, Architecture: WD Partners, Dublin, Ohio -- Lee Peterson, vp, creative services; Bob Welty, director of integrated prototype solutions; Mike Corbett, client program manager; Keith Jasinski, architecture/engineering project manager; Eric Daniel, prototype director; Rob Turner, 3-D studio manager; Christopher Michaels, Sarah McDaniel, Randy Moore, and Brian Bucher, prototype designers

Outside Consultant: Rodgers Townsend, St. Louis, Mo. (graphic panel design)

Furniture: Avis Furniture, Kansas City, Mo.; Commercial Furniture Group, St. Louis, Mo.; Gordon Int’l., New York; American Trading Co., Fallsington, Pa.; TSE Restaurant Fixtures, Toledo, Ohio; Knoll Studio, East Greenville, Pa.; Tim O’Neil and Associates, Columbus, Ohio

Millwork: Wisconsin Built, Deerfield, Wis.

Metalwork: Cozmyk Enterprises, Columbus, Ohio

Graphics: P&R Group, Chicago; Tork Inc., Columbus, Ohio (oven logo)

Exterior Signage: CenSource, Anaheim, Calif.

Photography: Kingmond Young, San Francisco