Archinect - News

More breathtaking photos take us inside "Under," Europe's first underwater restaurant

2019-06-25T15:09:00-04:00

With the restaurant's completion in March 2019, Europe's first underwater restaurant was a highly anticipated project from none other than Norway's Snøhetta. After Archinect's coverage of the restaurant opening, we take a peek inside this one of a kind gastronomical experience. Now three months after its initial public opening, photographers Inger Marie Grini and Ivar Kvaal take us on a visual tour of Under.

Textile-covered ceiling designed by Snøhetta in collaboration with Kvadrat and their sound-absorbing acoustic panels: Kvadrat's Soft Cells. Image © Ivar Kvaal

Image © Ivar Kvaal

It is quite easy to assume that upon entering the restaurant, feelings of claustrophobia may arise. However, thanks to the talents of Snøhetta's design team and design collaborators, the space is anything but confining. From the custom-made textile paneling by Kvadrat, which mimic the underwater colors of coral and sea life, to the custom made tables and seating by Hamran, every inch of the restaurant is ...

Snøhetta's underwater restaurant, first of its kind in Europe, completes

2019-03-20T14:47:00-04:00

This week, Europe's first underwater restaurant (and the largest of its kind in the world) will open its doors to its first set of diners. Guests will be treated to a 15 to 18 course set menu featuring dishes that showoff locally sourced ingredients like sea arrow grass and Norwegian berries, as well as a lot of seafood.

Photo by Ivar Kvaal.

Under, which has the dual meaning in Norwegian of "below" and "wonder," has been designed by the international firm Snøhetta, who have had a recent string of buzzed-about architectural proposals amongst which the submerged dining room has stood out prominently.

Sitting 16 feet underwater, construction for the project was an ambitiously orchestrated affair. The restaurant had to be built on a barge near the coast and then towed 600 feet to its intended location. To submerge the reinforced concrete structure, developers filled it with 450 tons of water and secured it to the sea floor with 18 anchoring points. The rather delicate and exciting feat ...

Snøhetta's underwater restaurant is almost complete

2018-10-03T19:22:00-04:00

Five meters below the surface of the North Sea, near the southernmost tip of Norway, Europe's first underwater restaurant is nearing completion [...] The restaurant was built in about six months on a barge near the coast, then towed into position -- about 600 feet away -- with a heavy-lift vessel. To submerge the structure, containers filled with water were placed inside, before securing it to the sea floor with a total of 18 anchoring points.

In the southernmost tip of the Norwegian coastline, Snøhetta is in its final stages of completing the world's largest underwater restaurant. Submerged five meters below the North Sea, the restaurant appropriately named Under is preparing for its debut in Spring 2019. This 110ft-long structure made its big plunge and was secured to the sea floor in July 2018. This rather delicate and exciting feat was a major milestone for the team.

Under's overall design concept and location along the coastline underwent several revisions. After much discussion with developers and architects, it was decided that placing the restaurant in a much harsher location along the coast was intentional. Developed to withstand the tough winds and waves of the Norwegian coastline, Under's senior architect Rune Grasdal pointed out that the structure's slight curved form helps with wave impact.

Reservations for this unique dining experience will be available starting in April 201...

Snøhetta's much-discussed underwater restaurant breaks ground

2018-01-19T13:51:00-05:00

The announcement of Snøhetta's design plans for a below sea restaurant called "Under" was one of the most discussed projects last year. The project, with an expected completion date of March 2019, will be the world's largest underwater restaurant, and the first of its kind in Europe.

Courtesy of Under.

SubMar Group, an interdisciplinary group of companies, are heading the construction process for the project, which began this week. The company is responsible for all wave calculations and the marine operations in the project. They have dimensioned and planned the construction, the shipping and the subsea installation, as well as calculated what the construction must be able to withstand from the fierce natural forces.

Photo Credit: Aina Regina.

"The project is a nice mixture of madness and reason. You definitely have to be a bit fearless in order to create something this spectacular" said co-owner of Under, Gaute Ubostad.

For construction, the structure will b...

Under the sea: new Snøhetta-designed underwater restaurant in Norway will be Europe's first

2017-10-23T17:34:00-04:00

Snøhetta has certainly not forgotten its Scandinavian roots — after unveiling a number of smaller projects this year tailored to the Norwegian and Swedish terrain, like a boat tunnel, a treehouse hotel, and a readymade cabin, the architects today presented designs for "Under," Europe's first underwater restaurant located at the southernmost tip of the Norwegian coastline.

Snøhetta describes Under as a concrete periscope that guides up to 100 diners from the rocky tidepools near the entrance down to a champagne bar (marking the transition between the shoreline and Neptune's world) and further down to the restaurant with its large, 11x4-meter panoramic acrylic window gazing out to the seabed.

The volume of the building is simple and the exterior is mostly wrapped in a thick, rugged concrete shell designed to withstand harshest weather conditions and be a welcoming breeding ground for mussels and related marine life.

Whenever the ki...