The original White Men Can’t Jump came out in 1992, but if there was one pop culture earworm spawned from the movie, that was it. Culturally, Sizzler was ubiquitous, and all the references it racked up over multiple decades reinforced just how popular the family steak house was. That it continued to be namechecked spoke to the warm and fuzzy place it held in our collective imagination.
And that was precisely the problem.
Fast forward to today, Sizzler had a genuine crisis on its hands. Many people had fond memories of the family steak house and endless trips to the salad bar, but the brand had become little more than a memory. Most fans hadn’t tried going to Sizzler in years and couldn’t even tell you if it was still around. So, they had plenty of brand love—a very good thing—but too little brand awareness. To bring a new generation of families back to their steak house, Sizzler needed to build equity back into its brand and remind fans why they used to love going in the first place.
To do this, we needed to own the Sizzle.
Catching ZZs
Teaming up with the restaurant chain’s new management, we set out to reignite fans’ love of this California icon. Plenty of Millennials can wax nostalgic over cheese toast, but now that they’re parents themselves, they’re looking to rekindle those core childhood memories of eating out with friends and family. By reimagining the brand through the lens of modern heritage, we tapped into the restaurant’s rich history, and the new identity we created blends timeless elements with contemporary design sensibilities. We did that by going all-in on rebuilding equity into familiar assets, as well as the language around the visual identity.
Let’s get this out of the way–there are some words in the English language that are an absolute gift. I don’t mean the Googles or the Ubers—words that become verbs and actions to dominate a category, though those are nice enough—I’m speaking of words and phrases with a playful, lively quality, something with a little razzle-dazzle, a little sizzle.
That’s Sizzler.
Sizzle is also the perfect word for a family steak house, and the brand needed to own it more than anyone; we rebuilt that equity through repetition. The goal was to inject fun, flavor, and fiery modernity into everything we say and do. We employed the sizzle as a verb, noun, and adjective—any which way we could use it, we did. We invited fans to return to the fold for a little “service with a sizzle.” After all, we want to “share the sizzle.” And who amongst us wouldn’t “rather be sizzlin’?” Sure, we also took the cheap and easy route with a few puns that celebrate Sizzler’s steakhouse heritage because, well, everyone does love a good pun, and how can you not? “Well done” and “Steak it Easy?” Whatever brings some joy and playfulness to the proceedings.
Celebrating the sizzle even further, we broke down the Sizzler name into a visual kit of parts. We turned them into design assets used alongside our team’s copy to add what was essentially an exclamation point to the visual identity. We pulled the ZZs straight from the logo and applied them wherever possible.
We repurposed a deep-fried heritage mark with an emphasis on onomatopoeia and sizzle sounds. We wanted you to really hear the sizzle, even in copy.
Sometimes, we used the logo as a literal cattle brand, creating a mark that could flex across multiple visual avenues, from billboard to brand merch.
When appropriate, we’d even extend the “sizzzzzzzzle" or inject the ZZs into everything from playful headlines to food names. No, it’s not Cheese Toast; it’s Cheezze Toast. Do you want ribs? Well, Sizzler has Steak House Ribzz. The name of every hero menu item needed to tie back to our steak house heritage or add a little extra sizzle.
Big Characters
Rescuing an obscure asset from Sizzler’s past, we rediscovered a cartoon bull that appeared in multiple Sizzler print ads from the 60s. Renaming him Ribby Ribeye, we turned the Hanna Barbera-esque character into a brand mascot with a slew of friends, the Taste Buddies. Along with a skateboarding lobster tail (Rippy), a walking piece of Cheese Toast (Toasty), and the Salad Bar-Barian (Nuff said), the cast of characters brings a new kid-friendly branded element into the fold, further situating Sizzler as a purveyor of pop culture as it takes their audience on adventures with Ribby and his pals.
Ribby’s voice is the same as Sizzler’s overarching tone of voice and follows the same three pillars as the visual identity. To guide our verbal identity, we translated each principle into verbal best practices that broke down what we have to say as a brand and how we say it (because both are equally as important):
Fresh
We made the old new. We never let Sizzler’s style get stale, so fresh writing is always prioritized. Fresh stories help revitalize the brand and give it a newfound sizzle, bringing relevance to the past but celebrating what made the restaurant so special to those who remember it best (and the people who will create new memories in the future).
Craveable
Good copy excites all five of the senses, and we went beyond the basic to make mouths water. But Sizzler isn’t just about tasty foods; it’s the crave-able moments that come from breaking bread with friends and family alike. Food is the heart of the brand, yes, but who you’re sharing it with has equal weight.
Delightful
Every piece of writing carries a twinkle in its eye. We could have played with our food, but we played with our words instead and kept the creativity cooking by really focusing on all things “sizzle.” Great stories surprise and delight, and by focusing on the brand's timeless appeal, those narratives will resonate with a new audience.
And that was really the challenge in bringing this brand back from the brink.
Visually and verbally, we brought the Sizzle reigniting fans’ love of this storied brand and reveling in the magic that made them fall in love with the restaurant in the first place. By tapping into the brand’s rich past and reimagining it, we gave a new generation of diners something they can call their own, something that can inspire an entirely new round of warm and fuzzy memories as they rediscover the joys of Sizzler Family Steak House.
Lisa Franck is a designer-turned-strategist with 10+ years of experience bridging the gap between business and creative. She has worked across every stage in the brand-building process with various clients, including Sizzler, Gallo, Beam Suntory, Diageo, Reckitt, Colgate, and more. In 2023, Lisa played a key role in launching TAVERN, where she blends her passions for design, social science, and business to help clients create and cultivate compelling, relevant brands that keep consumers coming back.
The original White Men Can’t Jump came out in 1992, but if there was one pop culture earworm spawned from the movie, that was it. Culturally, Sizzler was ubiquitous, and all the references it racked up over multiple decades reinforced just how popular the family steak house was. That it continued to be namechecked spoke to the warm and fuzzy place it held in our collective imagination.
And that was precisely the problem.
Fast forward to today, Sizzler had a genuine crisis on its hands. Many people had fond memories of the family steak house and endless trips to the salad bar, but the brand had become little more than a memory. Most fans hadn’t tried going to Sizzler in years and couldn’t even tell you if it was still around. So, they had plenty of brand love—a very good thing—but too little brand awareness. To bring a new generation of families back to their steak house, Sizzler needed to build equity back into its brand and remind fans why they used to love going in the first place.
To do this, we needed to own the Sizzle.
Catching ZZs
Teaming up with the restaurant chain’s new management, we set out to reignite fans’ love of this California icon. Plenty of Millennials can wax nostalgic over cheese toast, but now that they’re parents themselves, they’re looking to rekindle those core childhood memories of eating out with friends and family. By reimagining the brand through the lens of modern heritage, we tapped into the restaurant’s rich history, and the new identity we created blends timeless elements with contemporary design sensibilities. We did that by going all-in on rebuilding equity into familiar assets, as well as the language around the visual identity.
Let’s get this out of the way–there are some words in the English language that are an absolute gift. I don’t mean the Googles or the Ubers—words that become verbs and actions to dominate a category, though those are nice enough—I’m speaking of words and phrases with a playful, lively quality, something with a little razzle-dazzle, a little sizzle.
That’s Sizzler.
Sizzle is also the perfect word for a family steak house, and the brand needed to own it more than anyone; we rebuilt that equity through repetition. The goal was to inject fun, flavor, and fiery modernity into everything we say and do. We employed the sizzle as a verb, noun, and adjective—any which way we could use it, we did. We invited fans to return to the fold for a little “service with a sizzle.” After all, we want to “share the sizzle.” And who amongst us wouldn’t “rather be sizzlin’?” Sure, we also took the cheap and easy route with a few puns that celebrate Sizzler’s steakhouse heritage because, well, everyone does love a good pun, and how can you not? “Well done” and “Steak it Easy?” Whatever brings some joy and playfulness to the proceedings.
Celebrating the sizzle even further, we broke down the Sizzler name into a visual kit of parts. We turned them into design assets used alongside our team’s copy to add what was essentially an exclamation point to the visual identity. We pulled the ZZs straight from the logo and applied them wherever possible.
We repurposed a deep-fried heritage mark with an emphasis on onomatopoeia and sizzle sounds. We wanted you to really hear the sizzle, even in copy.
Sometimes, we used the logo as a literal cattle brand, creating a mark that could flex across multiple visual avenues, from billboard to brand merch.
When appropriate, we’d even extend the “sizzzzzzzzle" or inject the ZZs into everything from playful headlines to food names. No, it’s not Cheese Toast; it’s Cheezze Toast. Do you want ribs? Well, Sizzler has Steak House Ribzz. The name of every hero menu item needed to tie back to our steak house heritage or add a little extra sizzle.
Big Characters
Rescuing an obscure asset from Sizzler’s past, we rediscovered a cartoon bull that appeared in multiple Sizzler print ads from the 60s. Renaming him Ribby Ribeye, we turned the Hanna Barbera-esque character into a brand mascot with a slew of friends, the Taste Buddies. Along with a skateboarding lobster tail (Rippy), a walking piece of Cheese Toast (Toasty), and the Salad Bar-Barian (Nuff said), the cast of characters brings a new kid-friendly branded element into the fold, further situating Sizzler as a purveyor of pop culture as it takes their audience on adventures with Ribby and his pals.
Ribby’s voice is the same as Sizzler’s overarching tone of voice and follows the same three pillars as the visual identity. To guide our verbal identity, we translated each principle into verbal best practices that broke down what we have to say as a brand and how we say it (because both are equally as important):
Fresh
We made the old new. We never let Sizzler’s style get stale, so fresh writing is always prioritized. Fresh stories help revitalize the brand and give it a newfound sizzle, bringing relevance to the past but celebrating what made the restaurant so special to those who remember it best (and the people who will create new memories in the future).
Craveable
Good copy excites all five of the senses, and we went beyond the basic to make mouths water. But Sizzler isn’t just about tasty foods; it’s the crave-able moments that come from breaking bread with friends and family alike. Food is the heart of the brand, yes, but who you’re sharing it with has equal weight.
Delightful
Every piece of writing carries a twinkle in its eye. We could have played with our food, but we played with our words instead and kept the creativity cooking by really focusing on all things “sizzle.” Great stories surprise and delight, and by focusing on the brand's timeless appeal, those narratives will resonate with a new audience.
And that was really the challenge in bringing this brand back from the brink.
Visually and verbally, we brought the Sizzle reigniting fans’ love of this storied brand and reveling in the magic that made them fall in love with the restaurant in the first place. By tapping into the brand’s rich past and reimagining it, we gave a new generation of diners something they can call their own, something that can inspire an entirely new round of warm and fuzzy memories as they rediscover the joys of Sizzler Family Steak House.
Lisa Franck is a designer-turned-strategist with 10+ years of experience bridging the gap between business and creative. She has worked across every stage in the brand-building process with various clients, including Sizzler, Gallo, Beam Suntory, Diageo, Reckitt, Colgate, and more. In 2023, Lisa played a key role in launching TAVERN, where she blends her passions for design, social science, and business to help clients create and cultivate compelling, relevant brands that keep consumers coming back.
