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Restaurant and cafe
A restaurant sign works hardest after dark, when people decide where to eat from the car or the sidewalk. Front-lit channel letters keep your name readable from the road; open-face letters with LED neon or warm white halo-lit letters set the mood on a patio or a dining room wall. We draw your sign on a photo of your building, lit and unlit, with an exact price before anything is built.
- Most chosen
- Front-lit letters outside, neon or halo inside
- Light color
- Warm white 3000 K suits most dining rooms
- Controls
- Photocell on at dusk, timer off at closing
- Not included
- Installation, permit, electrician
The complete sign
Front-Lit Channel Letters, Custom 304 Stainless Steel Sign LettersLetters, LEDs, power supply, full-size template and hardware, made to your drawing.Est. from $940Estimated price $940 – $1,270
4 letters · about 3 ft wide
Range built from our own recent quotes for signs like this. Your free drawing gives the exact price; nothing is charged before you approve it.
Get my free drawing and exact priceNot sure about the size? Letter height calculator →
Signs that suit this project
- Front-Lit Channel LettersThe whole face glows, so drivers read your name from the road at dinner time.Est. from $940
- Open-Face Channel Letters with LED NeonLED neon along each stroke gives a diner, taqueria or coffee bar a retro look without glass tubes.Est. from $1,250
- Halo-Lit Channel LettersA warm glow on the wall for a quieter, upscale front or the wall behind the host stand.Est. from $1,130
- Matte Black Halo-Lit LettersBlack faces read by day and glow around the edges at night; a good match for brick, concrete and wood.Est. from $1,890
- Double-Sided Blade SignProjects over the sidewalk so people walking by see you from both directions.Est. from $845
Parts and add-ons you can order now
Untick anything you do not need. Made-to-order signs are priced on their drawing.
From idea to switch-on
- Decide where people first see you: the road, the parking lot or the sidewalk. That sets the letter height.
- Check your lease and the city sign code; patio, window and projecting signs often have their own rules.
- Send your logo, the wall size and a straight-on photo for a free drawing and exact price.
- Approve the drawing, choose the light color, and add a photocell or timer if you want one.
- Your installer mounts the letters with the full-size template; an electrician connects outdoor power.
Tip: Choose the light color with your interior in mind. Warm white 3000 K suits dining rooms, wood and brick; white 6500 K looks crisp on a street front. You can use white outside and warm white inside.
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Questions
What kind of sign is best for a restaurant?
For the outside, front-lit channel letters are the easiest lit style to read from the road at night. Inside or on a patio, open-face letters with LED neon or warm halo-lit letters are popular because they set a mood as well as show the name.
Can the sign turn on and off by itself?
Yes. A dusk-to-dawn photocell switches it on when it gets dark and a timer switches it off at closing time; many restaurants use both. Your electrician wires them on the power side, or we can wire them into a new sign.
Dusk-to-Dawn Photocell Switch for Outdoor Signs
Digital 7-Day Timer for Lit SignsDoes LED neon get hot like glass neon?
No. LED neon is flexible silicone with LEDs inside; it runs on 12 V and does not get hot the way glass neon does. In open-face letters it runs along the center of each stroke, held by clips.
How tall should the letters on my restaurant be?
Plan about 1 in of letter height for every 10 ft between the sign and the people you want to reach, then check the wall and what your city allows. A sign read from across a 100 ft parking lot needs letters of about 10 in.
Not sure which sign fits?
Send a photo of your wall and your logo. We reply with a free drawing and the exact price.
