Butequim

Project description

BUTEQUIM™ Creating memories after hours Butequim was born from Rafael and Bruno’s passion for one of Brazil’s most iconic cultural staples: the Rio de Janeiro boteco. Recognizing a gap in the European market during a stay in Amsterdam, they turned their shared appreciation into a project that exports the effortless, informal spirit of Rio’s neighborhood bars to the Dutch capital. The concept presents itself as a Brazilian cocktail bar. The intentional spelling with a "U" embraces imperfection to break away from standard codes, while asserting the ambition to become a local authority in mixology. This tension between casual street culture and technical sophistication extends to the menu, where drink names authentically celebrate Brazilian roots. The visual identity embodies this same duality. Hand-drawn and organic, the primary logo finds its form in the fluid ring left behind by an ice-cold glass on a table. The identity scales through a set of supporting marks that reflect the diverse mix of personalities gathered in the space. The duotone palette strips back to pure red and black, blending Swiss Style precision with raw brutalism and minimalism. Through the deliberate use of negative space, chaos is organized into a calculated design language. The system is grounded by an unpolished, unfiltered photography direction. Butequim sheds formal etiquette to establish itself as the destination for creating memories after hours.