Europe's first underwater restaurant will open on Norway's southern coast, according to the architecture firm Snohetta, which is based in both Oslo and New York.
Plans for the restaurant, to be named Under, were released to the public and feature an artificial mussel reef covering the exterior, with a 36-foot panoramic window so guests can see marine life as they dine, according to CNN.
Construction on the underwater restaurant is scheduled to begin in February 2018, with completion expected in early 2019. It is designed to become part of the marine environment and will be 16 feet under the water’s surface with thick walls that can withstand variable ocean conditions.
“One of the benefits of this building is how it links nature and land, and how you can come safe from the land and in a very dramatic way go down through this concrete tube to the nature at sea level, and experience what normally is not experienced,” lead architect Rune Grasdal said, CNN reported.
The restaurant is expected to have three levels and capacity for up to 100 people. The design is meant to resemble a periscope, and natural materials like oak and good lighting are meant to counteract any claustrophobic feeling.
“It should be an exciting experience but people should also feel secure and well when sitting down there,” Grasdal said, CNN reported.
The restaurant will double as a marine research center and researchers will make sure conditions on the seabed are optimal for fish and shellfish to swim around the restaurant so they can be seen through the huge windows, Conde Nast Traveler said.
In Norwegian, the word “under” can also be translated “wonder,” according to Snohetta’s website. The dining experience is meant to inspire “a sense of awe and delight” as well as inform the public about the sea’s biodiversity.
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