Restaurant-Style Kitchen Decorating Themes

Mom and Pop Restaurant

• Add a mom and pop restaurant touch to your kitchen. Use plain restaurant chairs upholstered in bold fabric. Stick with one upholstery fabric, or choose several different ones that match your color scheme. Add a chalk board instead of a dry erase board for memos, grocery lists and even meal menus. Tin signs, bread wrapped in flour sack towels and placed in a basket and framed family photos along one wall all add to the family restaurant theme.

Diner

• Create a diner inside your home. Go with an authentic roadside diner theme, or choose a bright and shiny retro style kitchen. Install a kitchen nook with iridescent vinyl upholstery and a metal or Formica table. Opt for a long bar with spinning stools or a tall bistro table with bar-height chairs. Place a circular bar around a prep or serving area for an authentic feel, and decorate with diner-style curtains -- short valances hung at the guest's eye level when seated.

Retro Themes

• Go retro with your kitchen. Choose one decade, or take ideas from several. Decorate with vintage advertisements or restaurant or Americana memorabilia. Choose bold color schemes like black and pink or blue or red for a classic 1950s or even 1930s feel. Bring in a vintage stove -- how vintage depends on your needs and taste. Stand-alone storage cabinets hearken to pre-World War II kitchens, while avocado, gold and earth tones inject a '60s and '70s touch.

Bistro and Gourmet Theme

• If you want a more upscale or chic look in your kitchen, steal ideas from the local bistro or fine dining restaurant. Cover a tall wall with a glass mosaic for a bit of glimmer, or hang a giant chandelier or ceiling fan in the center of a large kitchen. Mix natural wood finishes with bold, saturated color or opt for grays, blacks and creams in glossy and delicate textures. Use black and white kitchen towels to match the modern look.