Connect & Meet: 100 year old Netherlands food court gets the UXUS treatment

UXUS has designed Speys, a food court located in the Netherlands' largest multifunctional event centre, Jaarbeurs. Celebrating the venue’s 100th anniversary, UXUS created a central meeting space, between the cinema and the exhibition halls, bringing visitors to the together for food, coffee, evening drinks or hot desking.

Jaarbeurs is rooted in the exchange of goods and interaction of people within the Dutch industry, Speys (an old Dutch word meaning ‘food’) becomes the place where different worlds connect and meet. The food court is a fast, casual dining experience with an industrious market hall feel, offering freshly prepared foods, stimulating encounters and engagement.

The project incorporates spaces for lunch, coffee, dining, evening drinks and working throughout the day. Speys seats 520 people (660 including the outdoor terrace), the seating has been adapted to each area to accommodate group meetings, larger events and private parties.

"The standout features of the space are the geometric canopies which break up the hall into food zones and creates the Speys signature look, we wanted to play with the height of the building”

explains Bart Lans, Architect and Senior designer at UXUS,

“the changing light levels accentuate the mood for day and night while the canopies regulate the acoustics of the space.”

UXUS used inspiration from the rich visual heritage of the venue to play with pattern and scale in the design, including a selection of archive posters displayed as part of the scheme.The vintage posters formed the starting point for the Speys graphic identity, using vintage typography in the different zones. An art deco feel has been achieved with old-style cinematic lighting and geometric patterns.

UXUS worked in collaboration with Food and Beverage concept developers Conceptional to develop the menu, back of house, customer experience and flow of the space. In the food offering Conceptional has reflected the Jaarbeurs’ heritage as a trade fair for the Dutch industry. The food outlets can be broken down into Koffie&Graan (coffee&wheat), Hop (beer), Rund (beef), Basilicum (basil) and Olie&Azijn (oil&vinegar). Each outlet has a different colour palette and seating arrangements to reflect the cuisine.