Review #3

For my third site review, I chose to compare and contrast the websites of Burgatory (burgatorybar.com) and Red Robin (redrobin.com). Out of these two sites I believe that Red Robin has a much more classic site than Burgatory as it follows a tight layout that I have seen on many other websites, food-related or not. Red Robin balances its website through the use of this layout, or grid, as well as through the use of color as its panels/links are pops of color on a more muted background. Burgatory, on the other hand, seems to use the term very loosely. While I enjoy its use of background and more interactive interface, I can’t help but feel that its elements are just floating in air without much thought to a grid or hierarchy. It does feel unbalanced to me as there are transparent images (the logo and burger/shake icons) on the left side of the home page that rely on negative space, while on the other side of the massive burger/shake gallery the navigation bar simply hangs with what looks like a gift card center positioned below it. I personally think that Burgatory’s choice of a less defined website, despite making it more interesting to look at, makes it more of a guessing game when trying to navigate the site. Both websites have a firm grasp on unity, despite some layout issues. Both are consistent in their use of color and typography. Both are also conscious of their use of background throughout their web pages. Burgatory’s website did confuse a bit, though as I noticed discrepancies through some of their pages where the bottom nav had a weird upper border.  Red Robin also has the upper hand with their clean and precise gridded layout, as mentioned before. In regards to Krug’s principles, both websites have their highs and lows. Krug’s “First Law of Usability” is apparent in Red Robin’s design. The page is laid out in a way where things are easy to spot and find as they use very little text, so links are simple and defined. Burgatory is a bit harder to decipher. It is difficult to tell what is a link in some cases as much of the page has a flat, unresponsive appearance despite it being very interactive once you begin clicking. On my first encounter with these sites, I immediately noticed the differences in how well one would perceive them. Red Robin can be easily scanned as most are familiar with its layouts. I was able to quickly find what I was looking for without reading in to it, but one Burgatory’s page I had to think about what I was looking for and got distracted along the way by giant pop-ups as I moved my mouse over the central image (burger or shake). If Burgatory were to fix its layout and comply to a stricter grid, I believe I would enjoy its site more just because it is entertaining and makes me want to explore the site, but as for which is more effective, I would have to say Red Robin has altogether easier to navigate site that the average person would maneuver much faster than one on Burgatory, especially if you are easily distracted like me.