Halal Guys' new restaurant designs include subway tiles and branded manhole covers, which pay homage to its origins as a Manhattan food truck

The Halal Guys' new redesign.The Halal Guys

• The Halal Guys started rolling out its new restaurant design in the spring.
• The design pays tribute to the brand's humble origins as a Manhattan street cart.
• The new restaurants feature subway tiles, branded manhole covers, and park bench-style seating.

The Halal Guys had already coming up with its new restaurant design before the pandemic, Margaret Carrera, chief development officer at the Halal Guys, told Insider.

The Halal Guys

The fast-casual chain, which has close to 100 restaurants worldwide after opening its first in 2014, started rolling out the new designs in the spring.

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The design pays tribute to the brand's early days as a lone Manhattan street cart back in 1990. Carrera said that the Halal Guys wanted to keep its New York roots clear throughout the restaurant.

The Halal Guys

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This includes hinged graphic metal panels and subway tiles ...

The Halal Guys

... as well as manhole covers on the floor of the ordering queue, which the chain says is reminiscent of what it was like to visit the original New York City street cart.

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The new design also includes park bench-style seating around New York City-themed photo tables, as well as window barstools.

The Halal Guys

The restaurants also have an open design, which means that diners can watch their orders being made.

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The new designs don't just focus on dine-in. Carrera said that dine-in customers are flocking back, but that delivery and collection makes up a huge part of the business. The new restaurants have a designated space for both customers and delivery drivers to collect takeout orders.

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