There was a time when the coolest thing you could own was a New Yorker tote. It was a status symbol of the highest degree: a signifier of intelligence, of thoughtfulness, of discernment. These days, though, a different kind of merchandise is taking over the streets, and it’s swapping reading preferences for eating preferences.
Restaurant merch is, by all accounts, having a bit of a moment. Whether you’re sporting a T-shirt from your favourite local eatery or a hat from that bucket-list restaurant in a faraway place, it’s become cool—necessary, even—to wear your stomach on your proverbial sleeve.
“It’s a fun way to increase profits while also connecting with the customer base,” says Rebecca Hergett, brand manager of Halifax’s Black Sheep restaurant. “We have tourists that come to our restaurant, love our restaurant, have heard about it, couldn’t wait to come. Then they get here and they’re like, ‘Oh, you have merchandise as well, great, we’ll grab a T-shirt,’ or whatever it happens to be. We have staff that have grabbed T-shirts or tote bags, and they’re proudly carrying around our brand, which is really awesome. And then plenty of locals are regulars—people that have been coming to our restaurant for many, many years, and are very loyal to us—who also carry around our merchandise.”
Black Sheep opened in 2015 as a humble word-of-mouth spot and became so popular that it moved to a bigger space in 2021. Its merchandise reflects its locally sourced, globally inspired menu of elevated gastropub fare: a recent drop of tees features two of the restaurant’s most well-loved dishes—lobster ravioli and grilled cheese with tomato soup—immortalized in adorable illustrations drawn by Hergett herself.
Over in Toronto, cult-favourite Pizzeria Badiali works with Canadian illustrators for its merchandise drops. “We wanted to do merch as soon as we opened,” says co-founder and chef Ryan Baddeley, who launched the pizzeria with his business partners in 2021. “People love wearing restaurant shirts. Industry people love representing their city and what they have to offer. And we wanted to be a part of that.”
Badiali’s merch store currently features T-shirts, sweatshirts and dad caps, but Baddeley’s got even bigger ideas for future drops: “I would love to find time this year to start doing some more interesting pieces. I always have in my mind that I would love to do a really fun, low amount of a track suit. That would be cool.”
He and Hergett both point to some of their own favourite restaurant merchandise as inspiration, including Vinvinvin and Joe Beef in Montreal, and Bar Isabel in Toronto. But in Vancouver, 33 Acres Brewing—which opened in 2013—has long ruled the merch game, with its tote bag becoming more ubiquitous than a Herschel backpack (the brewery now has a location in Calgary, too). Then there’s ¿Cómo? Taperia, which has, as of late, given the 33 tote a run for its money lately, and Fat Mao Noodles, which has two T-shirts that play off of those classically cheesy souvenir designs: one says “I <3 Fat Mao” and the other says “I Just Ate at Fat Mao” with a cheeky sauce splatter.
“A lot of people will go to New York and go visit the Statue of Liberty, but other people will go to restaurants that have cool shirts,” says Fat Mao owner and chef Angus An. In his eyes, though, it’s not just enough to have merchandise at all—it has to look good, too. “I’m drawn to good graphics, good design,” he continues. “And I think it does get your attention, because if your swag is nice, people want to use it—and it’s a walking advertisement.”
Hergett agrees: “I love things that are aesthetically pleasing. If I’m purchasing your merchandise, it’s not just because I went there and I liked the restaurant. It’s because I also think your branding is gorgeous or really cool, or something that I want to incorporate into my everyday attire.”
It’s also an expression of taste—quite literally. “With some restaurant merchandise that I personally own, part of is a little bit of a bragging right to say, ‘Yeah, I went to this really great restaurant, and now I have the tote bag with the brand on it,’ which is very recognizable for anybody who’s in the know,” Hergett says. “There’s that part of it that’s feeling like you’re a part of this mini society of restaurateurs that know the good places to go, and you’ve got the merch to prove it.” —Sara Harowitz
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