Matt & Meera

Challenge

Launch an Indian Restaurant in a sea of Indian restaurants

Hoboken has no shortage of restaurants, and Indian cuisine was already well represented. The challenge was to launch a new restaurant with a distinctive identity in a crowded, highly competitive dining scene, without relying on the familiar visual clichés associated with Indian restaurants.

Matt & Meera needed to feel fresh, contemporary, and unmistakably its own, while still reflecting the Indian roots at the heart of Chef Hari Nayak’s food.

Strategy

Bring the City to the City

To stand out in Hoboken’s crowded Indian restaurant market, I created a New York City vibe—moving away from traditional Indian restaurant imagery in favor of something cool, urban, sophisticated, and unexpected. The positioning mirrored the menu itself, combining South Asian cuisine with Western influences to create a contemporary dining experience that felt at home in Hoboken, yet distinctly different from its competitors.

The Matt & Meera frogs are a recognizable secondary branding element that signals the store’s South Asian roots and adds a touch of humor. They were used in social media and ads. You just never knew where they would turn up.

Execution

Meet the tech-savvy demographic where they live.

We built the brand for a mobile-first audience, reaching Millennials and Gen Z where they were already spending their time. Social content was designed specifically for mobile, combining Matt & Meera’s distinctive personality with Hoboken culture, local events, and neighborhood life—making the restaurant feel like part of Hoboken, not just another place to eat.

Once inside the store, it was up to Chef Hari Nyak to keep them coming back, and he succeeded with a series of innovative dishes that married local favorites with Indian flavors. Pictured above is his take on a Cornish hen, one of the most popular dishes.

Outcome

Matt & Meera becomes a Hoboken destination

Matt & Meera went from an empty storefront to a local favorite almost immediately, supported by partnerships with Yelp!, nearby Stevens Institute of Technology, and other Hoboken businesses.

Reviewers gave the branding an A+ on Yelp! and praised Chef Hari Nayak’s creative East-meets-West menu—from traditional favorites like chicken tikka masala and samosas to inventive dishes like naan-pizza, naan-chos, and lamb burgers—along with the warm, inviting décor and its whimsical frog accents.