Europe's first underwater restaurant will open in Norway

The restaurant will feature a periscope-inspired, 36-foot long window. (Photo/MIR and Snøhetta)

Oslo- and New York-based architecture firm Snøhetta is giving us another reason to book a trip to Scandinavia: an underwater restaurant on Norway's southern coast, about five hours southwest of Oslo. Dubbed "Europe’s very first underwater restaurant" by the firm, the appropriately-named Under will be half-sunken some 16 feet into the sea, with a 36-foot wide, ocean-floor-to-ceiling acrylic window to allow diners views of the sea life. And while what's on the menu has yet to be released, we can imagine it will feature plenty of saltwater residents.

While the building's primary purpose is as a 80- to 100-person restaurant, Under will also serve as a marine research center, according to Dezeen. Researchers at Under will help "optimize conditions on the seabed so that fish and shellfish can thrive in proximity to the restaurant," the firm said on its website. Plus, the ridged concrete exterior will serve as an artificial mussel reef, specially designed with nooks and crannies to attract the mollusks over time, much like underwater museums; the reef's inhabitants will clean the seawater around the restaurant, helping diners see the sea life more clearly from their dinner tables, and attract more marine life to the now more purified waters.