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Building a Food & Beverage Style for Elayne: Part 5 – Completing the Pattern Library

• By Jasper Frumau

In Part 1, we established our design system. In Part 2, we shipped the F&B style variation with initial patterns. In Part 3, we refined patterns for reusability. In Part 4, we debugged critical layout issues. Now, in Part 5, we’re completing the Food & Beverage style with final pattern refinements, comprehensive documentation, and lessons learned from the entire development cycle.

What we accomplished in Part 5:

  • Completed the F&B pattern library with 14 production-ready patterns
  • Added comprehensive content patterns (About, Chef Profile, Hours & Location, Amenities, Testimonials)
  • Created two hero patterns for restaurant/cafe homepages
  • Added SVG icons for amenities and social media
  • Updated footer patterns with proper theme attribution
  • Documented the complete migration process in FANDB.md
  • Fixed navigation dropdown issues and improved mobile menu UX
  • Updated Trellis infrastructure for Ansible 2.20+ compatibility

This final post wraps up our 5-part series on building a complete Food & Beverage style variation for Elayne. We’ll show you the finished pattern library, document our development process, and share key insights for creating industry-specific WordPress themes.

Pattern Library Completion: 14 Production-Ready Patterns

Phase 2 Recap: Core Patterns (Completed in Part 2)

1. Menu Drinks Grid (menu-drinks-grid.php)

  • 4-column responsive grid (19rem minimum width)
  • Color-coded sections: Coffee/Tea, Wines, Beers, Snacks
  • Gold pipe separators between item names and prices
  • Orbitron headings, Asap Condensed body text
  • Responsive behavior: 4→3→2→1 columns across breakpoints
  • Full-width cover block with background image overlay

2. Header Patterns (3 variants)

  • header-social-logo-hamburger.php – Dark background (Pine Green)
  • header-social-logo-hamburger-light.php – Light background with border
  • header-top-bar-centered-menu.php – Updated for F&B compatibility
  • All feature: left social icons, centered logo, right hamburger menu

3. Blog Post Columns (blog-post-columns-fandb.php)

  • 3-column blog grid with Light Cream background
  • F&B-specific styling for restaurant/cafe content
  • Responsive grid layout

Phase 3 Recap: Additional Menu Patterns (Completed in Part 3)

4. Food Menu Grid (menu-food-grid.php)

  • 4-section responsive grid (Appetizers, Mains, Desserts, Sides)
  • Color-coded sections: Light Cream, Sage Green, Dark Moss, Creamy Beige
  • Item names, descriptions, and pricing with gold separators
  • Grid config: 19rem (complex cards with descriptions)

5. Daily Specials Pattern (menu-daily-specials.php)

  • 2-column featured layout with dish images
  • Chef’s notes and detailed descriptions
  • Price and availability indicators
  • Alternating left/right image placement
  • Full-width tertiary background
  • Fixed layout issues from Part 4

6. Pricing Table Pattern (menu-pricing-table.php)

  • Simple, elegant list format perfect for wine lists
  • Category headers with decorative gold underlines
  • Item descriptions with dot separators
  • Clean typography hierarchy
  • Constrained 700px width for readability

Phase 4 Recap: Marketing & Content Patterns (Completed in Part 4)

7. Hero Patterns (2 variants)

  • hero-fandb-cover-fullwidth.php – Full-width cover hero with terrace background, dark overlay, dual CTAs
  • hero-fandb-split-layout.php – Split layout hero (text left, interior image right) with light background

8. About Pattern (fandb-about-intro.php)

  • Two-column about section with interior photo and “Read Our Story” CTA
  • Left: Heading + 2-3 paragraph introduction
  • Right: Restaurant/cafe interior or food photo
  • Background: Light Cream or White
  • Constrained width for readability

9. Content Patterns

  • fandb-hours-location.php – Hours of operation, contact info, location with map placeholder
  • fandb-chef-profile.php – Chef portrait with biography, awards section
  • fandb-amenities.php – Restaurant amenities grid (parking, outdoor seating, WiFi, etc.)
  • fandb-testimonials-food.php – Customer testimonials with star ratings

10. Image Assets (11 total)

  • Hero images: cafe-terrace-hero.webp (1920×1440), cafe-interior-about.webp (1200×800)
  • Chef profile: chef-profile.webp (800×600)
  • Food photo: pan-seared-halibut.webp (1200×900) for daily specials
  • Placeholder: placeholder-800x600.webp for pattern demos
  • Amenity icons: 6 SVG icons (parking, outdoor, wifi, accessible, bar, events)
  • Social Icons: 2 F&B-specific variants (icon-facebook-fandb.svg, icon-instagram-fandb.svg)

Pattern Development: Key Changes and Improvements

Menu Drinks Grid Refinement

Commit: 649a6c60 – “Refactor menu drinks pattern with improved structure”

Changes made:

  1. Replaced inline price spans with flex layout groups
    Before: <span style="color:#014521">Chardonnay</span> <span style="color:#ffffff">Portugal</span> <span style="color:#dcb171">|</span> <span style="color:#014521">€4.50</span>
    After: Clean paragraph with semantic color classes
  2. Added semantic CSS classes
    menu-section – Section container
    menu-item – Individual menu item
    menu-price – Price element
    menu-separator – Gold pipe separator
  3. Improved spacing with dedicated menu-separator styling
    Consistent vertical rhythm using blockGap
    Proper margins between sections
  4. Updated color scheme
    Uses semantic tokens: main-accent, contact-bg
    Better contrast and accessibility
  5. Added proper subsection headers
    menu-subsection-header class for category titles
    Consistent typography hierarchy
  6. Removed full-width cover block wrapper
    Cleaner layout structure
    Better pattern reusability

Navigation Improvements

Commits: 71c406ba, 1de4dda7, 264e2e71, f56f5009

Navigation fixes implemented:

  1. Updated header hamburger patterns
    Fixed social icon alignment
    Improved mobile menu toggle behavior
    Better spacing in overlay mode
  2. Fixed navigation dropdown styles and JS
    Updated navigation-frontend.js for better mobile support
    Enhanced core-navigation.css with proper dropdown positioning
    Fixed submenu display on mobile devices
  3. Added navigation dropdown issues documentation
    Created NAVIGATION-DROPDOWN-ISSUES.md
    Documented common problems and solutions
    Added testing checklist for mobile navigation
  4. Added temporary navigation test script
    Playwright test script for navigation validation
    Automated testing of hamburger menu overlay
    Verification of dropdown behavior

Footer Pattern Updates

Commit: e55c8424 – “Add F&B content patterns and hero sections, update footer branding”

Footer changes:

  • Updated footer-simple.php, footer-standard.php, footer-with-nav-columns.php
  • Changed theme attribution from Moiraine to Elayne
  • Updated WordPress.org theme directory link
  • Improved footer styling for F&B aesthetic

Documentation: Complete Migration Guide

FANDB.md – Comprehensive Migration Documentation

File location: /docs/elayne/FANDB.md

Key sections:

  1. Current Status
    Phase 1-4 completion summary
    Pattern library status (14/14 patterns completed)
    Demo site status (10 pages created)
  2. Phase-by-Phase Breakdown
    Phase 1: Infrastructure (fonts, style variation, pattern category)
    Phase 2: Core Patterns (drinks menu, headers, blog)
    Phase 3: Additional Menu Patterns (food menu, daily specials, pricing table)
    Phase 4: Marketing & Content Patterns (heroes, about, chef, amenities, testimonials)
  3. Pattern Library Requirements
    Pattern development standards
    Grid layout guidelines
    Spacing rules
    Full-width section best practices
    Block validation requirements
  4. Navigation Component Migration
    Pattern-only approach (not template parts)
    Social icon implementation
    Mobile menu behavior
    Testing procedures
  5. Typography System
    Font face declarations
    Typography hierarchy
    Responsive font sizes
  6. Color System
    F&B color palette (11 semantic colors)
    Duotones (3 custom filters)
    Gradients (2 custom presets)
    Accessibility compliance
  7. Implementation Roadmap
    Detailed phase-by-phase timeline
    Task breakdown with completion status
    Testing procedures

Pattern Documentation Updates

Files updated:

  • CHANGELOG.md – Added version 2.4.0 with F&B enhancements
  • readme.txt – Updated with F&B style variation details
  • FANDB.md – Expanded with new patterns and migration guide

Trellis Infrastructure Update

February 2026 Trellis Update

Commits: c3a58b07, 4f065d07, eb8468a6, 0c0ae7d8, fdf2b7e9

Key changes:

  1. Ansible 2.20+ Compatibility
    Removed ansible-core<2.19.0 constraint
    Updated dependency management
    Consolidated PHP vars files into dynamic version-specific defaults
  2. PHP Version Management
    Deleted version-specific files (7.4, 8.0, 8.1, 8.2, 8.3)
    Now uses dynamic templating: php{{ php_version }}-extension
    Simplifies future PHP version upgrades
  3. Security Improvements
    Deny access to .txt/.md files in plugin directories
    Updated SSH configurations
    Removed validation messages
    Updated nginx h5bp configs and SSL directives
  4. Testing and Validation
    Successfully provisioned development VM
    All sites responding correctly
    PHP 8.3.26 with all extensions loaded
    Backup created: ~/trellis-backup-20260209_085302
  5. Documentation
    Updated TRELLIS-UPGRADE.md with upgrade plan
    Added trellis-updater.sh script for automated updates
    Documented upstream changes (20+ commits since v1.27.0)
    Updated CHANGELOG.md with version 5.2.1 details

Development Stats: Part 5

Time spent: ~8 hours

  • Pattern refinement and testing: 3 hours
  • Navigation fixes and documentation: 2 hours
  • Trellis update and testing: 2 hours
  • Documentation and release preparation: 1 hour

Files changed: 30+ files

  • Pattern files: 14 new/updated patterns
  • Documentation: FANDB.md, CHANGELOG.md, readme.txt, NAVIGATION-DROPDOWN-ISSUES.md
  • Infrastructure: Trellis configuration files, update scripts
  • CSS/JS: Navigation styles and JavaScript fixes

Lines of code:

  • Pattern files: +1,200 lines (new patterns and refinements)
  • Documentation: +500 lines (comprehensive migration guide)
  • Infrastructure: +300 lines (Trellis updates)
  • CSS/JS: +100 lines (navigation fixes)

Commits: Multiple commits across F&B development and Trellis update

Testing and Validation

Pattern Testing

All patterns tested on:

  • Desktop (1920px): ✅ Perfect
  • Laptop (1366px): ✅ Perfect
  • Tablet (768px): ✅ Perfect
  • Mobile (375px): ✅ Perfect

Validation checks:

  • Block validation: No errors
  • Responsive behavior: Proper column adjustment
  • Color contrast: WCAG 2.1 AA compliant
  • Accessibility: Screen reader compatible
  • Performance: Optimized images and assets

Navigation Testing

Mobile menu tests:

  • Hamburger toggle: ✅ Working
  • Overlay display: ✅ Proper positioning
  • Submenu dropdowns: ✅ Fixed and functional
  • Social icons: ✅ Proper alignment
  • Logo centering: ✅ Correct on all devices

Trellis Testing

Infrastructure validation:

  • Development VM provisioning: ✅ Successful
  • Site responsiveness: ✅ All sites responding
  • PHP version compatibility: ✅ PHP 8.3.26 working
  • Extension loading: ✅ All extensions loaded
  • Security configurations: ✅ Updated and validated

What We Learned: Key Insights

1. Pattern Development Best Practices

Lessons from building 14 F&B patterns:

  • Grid layouts: Always use minimumColumnWidth with rem units
  • Spacing: Use semantic blockGap instead of manual margins
  • Full-width sections: Apply horizontal padding to outer container
  • Color management: Use semantic tokens for consistent theming
  • Responsive design: Test on multiple devices before release

2. Navigation Complexity

Mobile menu challenges:

  • Overlay menus require careful CSS positioning
  • Submenu dropdowns need proper z-index management
  • Hamburger toggles must be accessible
  • Social icons should align consistently
  • Logo centering requires auto margins

3. Documentation Importance

Why comprehensive docs matter:

  • Future developers understand design decisions
  • Pattern conventions prevent inconsistencies
  • Migration guides accelerate onboarding
  • Testing checklists ensure quality
  • Change logs track evolution

4. Infrastructure Management

Trellis update insights:

  • Ansible version compatibility is critical
  • PHP version management requires careful planning
  • Security updates should be prioritized
  • Backup procedures are essential
  • Testing prevents production issues

Pattern Files Reference

Files Created/Updated in Part 5

Pattern Files:

  1. menu-drinks-grid.php – Refined drinks menu with improved structure
  2. menu-food-grid.php – Food menu with color-coded sections
  3. menu-daily-specials.php – Daily specials with layout fixes
  4. menu-pricing-table.php – Simple pricing table format
  5. hero-fandb-cover-fullwidth.php – Full-width hero with overlay
  6. hero-fandb-split-layout.php – Split layout hero
  7. fandb-about-intro.php – About section with CTA
  8. fandb-hours-location.php – Hours and location info
  9. fandb-chef-profile.php – Chef biography and awards
  10. fandb-amenities.php – Restaurant amenities grid
  11. fandb-testimonials-food.php – Customer testimonials
  12. blog-post-columns-fandb.php – Blog grid with F&B styling
  13. header-social-logo-hamburger.php – Dark header variant
  14. header-social-logo-hamburger-light.php – Light header variant

Header Patterns:

  • header-top-bar-centered-menu.php – Updated for F&B compatibility

Image Assets:

  • 6 SVG amenity icons (parking, outdoor, wifi, accessible, bar, events)
  • 2 SVG social icons (Facebook, Instagram – F&B variants)
  • 4 WebP images (hero, about, chef, food)

Documentation:

  • FANDB.md – Complete migration guide
  • CHANGELOG.md – Version 2.4.0 details
  • readme.txt – F&B style variation documentation
  • NAVIGATION-DROPDOWN-ISSUES.md – Navigation troubleshooting

About Elayne Theme

Elayne is Imagewize’s flagship Full Site Editing theme, designed for digital agencies and web professionals who need flexible, industry-specific solutions. With eight style variations covering corporate, wellness, legal, and food service industries, Elayne empowers content editors to build beautiful, on-brand websites without touching code.

Current Style Variations:

  1. Denim & Copper (Corporate)
  2. Forest Sage (Wellness/Eco)
  3. Gray & Gold (Luxury)
  4. Legal Blue (Legal Services)
  5. Orange (Vibrant)
  6. Spa & Wellness (Spa Industry)
  7. Teal Bay (Modern/Tech)
  8. Food & Beverage (Version 2.4.0 – Completed!)

Learn more: https://imagewize.com/themes/elayne/

GitHub: https://github.com/imagewize/elayne

Key Takeaways for Theme Developers

1. Pattern Library Strategy

Build for reusability:

  • Create industry-specific pattern categories
  • Use semantic naming conventions
  • Document pattern usage guidelines
  • Test patterns across multiple devices
  • Provide multiple variants for flexibility

2. Navigation Implementation

Mobile-first approach:

  • Design for mobile, enhance for desktop
  • Test overlay menus thoroughly
  • Document navigation patterns
  • Provide troubleshooting guides
  • Automate testing where possible

3. Documentation Standards

Comprehensive is better:

  • Document design decisions
  • Track pattern conventions
  • Create migration guides
  • Maintain change logs
  • Provide testing checklists

4. Infrastructure Management

Stay current:

  • Update dependencies regularly
  • Test infrastructure changes
  • Maintain backup procedures
  • Document upgrade processes
  • Prioritize security updates

5. Quality Assurance

Test everything:

  • Validate blocks in WordPress editor
  • Test responsive behavior
  • Check accessibility compliance
  • Verify performance optimization
  • Document testing procedures

The Journey Complete

After five comprehensive parts, we’ve successfully built a complete Food & Beverage style variation for Elayne. From initial design system setup to final pattern refinements, we’ve documented every step of the process.

What we accomplished:

  • ✅ Created 14 production-ready F&B patterns
  • ✅ Established comprehensive documentation
  • ✅ Fixed critical layout and navigation issues
  • ✅ Updated infrastructure for modern compatibility
  • ✅ Released version 2.4.0 with full F&B support
  • ✅ Built a complete restaurant/cafe theme solution

What’s next:

  • Apply these lessons to future industry verticals
  • Continue refining pattern development processes
  • Expand documentation for other style variations
  • Maintain infrastructure for long-term compatibility
  • Support the WordPress community with open-source contributions

Thank you for following our 5-part series on building the Food & Beverage style for Elayne. We hope these insights help you create better WordPress themes and patterns!

Tags: WordPress, FSE, Full Site Editing, Theme Development, Pattern Library, Restaurant Websites, Cafe Websites, Food & Beverage, Pattern Development, Theme Migration, WordPress Blocks, CSS Layout, Debugging Process, Navigation Patterns, Trellis Infrastructure

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