The year 1999, in which the sequence of Brussels stations was completed, gave Belgo a major push towards establishing its brand. Last spring saw the opening of Belgo Zuid in Ladbroke Grove, West London. Concurrently, the same architects designed Belgo Restaurants in New York and Bristol. Architecturally speaking , London's Belgo Zuid is a feat that far surpasses the creation of a good restaurant interior. The extremely narrow site originally housed laser-gun games for the teenage crowd.
Wooden walls envelop diners within the space.
The top-lit gallery features slits that allow natural light to flow in, while cleverly indicating the location of the restaurant in relation to neighbouring buildings. The character of the dining space is enhanced as the height of the roof diminishes towards the rear wall, a surface adorned by a playful wall mural of Belgo Bill, the gluttonous character created by in-house graphic designer Nick Elwood. The open kitchen area at the opposite end of the room continues the tradition of earlier Belgos, where food preparation adds to the spectacle that one buys into when eating at this chain. It also provides a sense of 'eating at the kitchen table', which is underscored when mussels are served in stainless steel pots. Utilitarian, but also bold and imaginative, the visual strategy makes poetry out of the ordinary.