The look from the outside may appear more foreboding than inviting at first glance. Is it a war bunker? A partially submerged fallout shelter, perhaps? It's neither. The mysterious-looking structure protruding from the sea is a groundbreaking entry in one continent's diverse culinary landscape. Europe’s first underwater restaurant opened last week on the coast of southern Norway, Reuters reported, and it offers guests a unique dining experience with a panoramic perspective of marine life.
The architectural marvel is situated on the southern tip of Lindesnes, Norway, in the North Sea. The restaurant is named Under, which also means “wonder” in Norwegian and it was built with inclement weather and rough seas in mind. Kjetil Traedal Thorsen, the founder of the firm behind the project, told Reuters Under is fortified to the point that it could survive "the wave of the century."
More than half of the structure is submerged, and guests gain access through a glass walkway that will bridge the gap between the coast and the entrance, which is at shore level.
Water pressure, wind, and waves were all taken into consideration while designing and building the structure.
"The general location is at the southern tip of Norway, bordering the North Sea. The area is often windy with open water being rough, with sometimes awesome seas," AccuWeather Meteorologist Jim Andrews said.
According to Andrews, the exact site of the restaurant is tucked back up an inlet, a few miles back from open water, thus sheltering it from extremely rough waves.
"A series of islands and small peninsulas help to narrow the opening for waves that could reach the site. Specifically, only strong southerly winds would send big waves toward the site, and even these would be somewhat attenuated as they interact with the many specks of land between the site and open water," Andrews said.
Thick, reinforced concrete walls allow it to withstand pressure and shock from any sea conditions found in the area of the Norwegian coastline.
To withstand all these forces, the building is slightly curved, so it can better withstand constant pounding by the waves.
A large floor-to-ceiling window offers a view of the seabed for 35 to 40 dinner guests in a dining room protected by half-a-meter-thick concrete walls. The 1-foot-thick acrylic windows were installed prior to submersion.
Lights have been installed to attract sea life to the window.
The rough concrete shell will gradually transform into an artificial reef, and the restaurant is also welcoming interdisciplinary research teams to study marine biology and fish behavior. Researches will have access to Under's cameras and other measurement tools that are installed on and outside the facade of the restaurant.
The researchers’ aim is to document the population, behavior and diversity of species that are living around the restaurant through cameras and live observation. The goal of the research is to create new opportunities to improve official marine resource management.
The restaurant was built in about six months on a barge near the coast, then towed into position with a heavy-lift vessel and crane, according to CNN. Once in place, it was bolted to a concrete slab anchored to the bedrock beneath the sea.
To submerge the structure, which floated on its own, containers filled with water were placed inside before securing it to the sea floor with a total of 18 anchoring points.
"Under is a natural progression of our experimentation with boundaries," Snøhetta founder Trædal Thorsen, said in a statement.
"As a new landmark for Southern Norway, Under proposes unexpected combinations of pronouns and prepositions, and challenges what determines a person's physical placement in their environment. In this building, you may find yourself under water, over the seabed, between land and sea. This will offer you new perspectives and ways of seeing the world, both beyond and beneath the waterline," Thorsen said.
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The restaurant is opening to the public for guests in April 2019; however, friends and family of the owners have already had the privilege of experiencing it first beginning with a soft open last week.
If you're looking to book a table, be ready for a lengthy wait. According to the Under website, the earliest reservation available for one guest is in September 2019.
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