“Hookline is a chef-driven restaurant that specializes in “Gulf Coast Low County” cuisine served in a casually stylish and vibrant atmosphere with reasonable prices. A restaurant in the Del Sur Restaurant Group, Hookline is the full-service evolution of its 21-year-old sister restaurant, Hook Line & Sinker.
Seafood, Rewritten!
The Challenge:
When Hookline opened in 2017, it wasn’t trying to replicate Hook Line & Sinker. It was a reinvention, a modern, chef forward expression of Gulf Coast & Low Country seafood for a new Dallas audience. But by 2022, its identity had faded. The food still hit. The vibe still worked. But the brand voice was inconsistent, the content was flat, and the story wasn’t being told.
They didn’t need a reset, they needed a reframe
The Insight:
Hookline lives in a space few seafood restaurants do: casual polish. You can walk in for oysters and leave talking about the cocktail program. It’s not fine dining, but it’s close. We realized the brand wasn’t about nostalgia or grit. It was about confidence, detail, and making seafood feel new again.
So we leaned in.
The Execution:
We built a layered content strategy that highlighted the craft behind the food, the soul behind the ingredients, and the texture of the space. Every shot had to say, “this isn’t just seafood, this is seafood in its prime.”
We used light intentionally. We let the food shine. And we let the team speak, from Chef Aaron Nelson’s notes to front of house energy.
Visual Identity Tune-Up
Photography & Lighting Direction
Social Launch Content (Photo, Video, Grid, Ads)
Website Copy & Menu UX Pass
Meta + Google Ads Strategy
Seasonal Campaign Creative
The Result:
Hookline saw an immediate uptick in social engagement, with customer created content echoing our visual tone. Google Maps views and direction taps increased by 42% in the first 60 days post campaign. Paid ads generated high intent reservations and reintroduced Hookline to new Dallas diners who wanted quality without the stiffness of “fancy.” The space felt alive, digitally and in person.
Behind The Scenes Notes:
We shot during golden hour hours for full lighting control. Brought in real guests, regulars, and staff for all campaign visuals. Shot mostly handheld for warmth, no gimbals, no glide cams.
The food shots made and enhanced all the press.
Quote: ”This feels like how Hookline was always meant to look.” — Ricardo Alcala (GM), Hookline”
