The Underground

A difficult basement beneath Traitor’s Gate in Shrewsbury, reworked into a distinctive hospitality space by designing with the existing building rather than against it.

The brief

The Elephant & Co team had a difficult basement with low brick vaults, no natural light, limited existing services and a tight budget and programme.

The challenge was not simply to make the cellar usable. It needed to feel intentional enough to become a destination within the wider venue.

My role was to develop the concept, palette, FF&E and styling while working within the limitations of the existing space and available budget.

The strongest feature of the space was already there: the vaulted brick structure. Rather than covering it or trying to make the basement behave like a conventional ground-floor room, the design retained its existing character and used lighting, colour and furniture to make the space feel deliberate. The brick was cleaned and retained. Quarry tiles with a Victorian border introduced a hard-wearing floor appropriate to the setting. Warm lighting emphasised the vaults rather than attempting to compensate for the absence of daylight.

Client · The Elephant & Co

Sector · Hospitality

Venue · Traitor’s Gate, off Mardol, Shrewsbury

Role · concept, palette, FF&E, styling and delivery involvement

Key constraints · existing basement, no natural light, limited budget and programme

Arrival

The experience begins on the stair

The transition begins before guests reach the basement. Dark walls, warm lighting and the gold elephant sign establish the character of the room on the descent, so arrival reads as deliberate rather than as access to a leftover lower-ground space.

Gold elephant mural facing the tiled stair at The Underground, with the Shhh signage visible beyond — The stair sets the character before the room is reached

Gold-leaf Shhh signage hand-painted on the dark brick wall of the stairwell — Hand-painted gold leaf on existing brick — a low-cost intervention at the point of arrival

Low-lit corner table beneath the gold elephant mural with the Elephant & Co menu — The same motif carried through to the seating areas

The bar

The bar as the visual anchor

The bar had to be legible from the point of arrival. Deep green panelling, a timber top and open shelving create a clear focal point beneath the vaulted ceiling, with lighting positioned to catch the glassware and hold the eye.

The Underground bar: green panelled counter, timber top, hanging glass rack and cast-iron column beneath the brick vault — The existing cast-iron column was retained within the bar composition

Beer taps on the bar top with the menu in a tray, chosen to sit with the room — Bar hardware specified to sit with the existing materials rather than against them

Table setting with the Elephant & Co menu, ribbed glassware and linen — Glassware, linen and menu specified as one family

Dining

Creating distinct spaces within one cellar

The basement is divided into a series of smaller zones rather than treated as one open room. Mirrors and framed artwork add depth to the brick walls, drapery softens the harder surfaces, and existing structural elements help define tables and smaller seating areas — each part with its own character within the same material and lighting language.

Vaulted brick dining room at The Underground, lit with festoon bulbs, heritage photographs set into the brick and a quarry-tiled floor — Heritage photographs of Shrewsbury add depth and local context where the basement has no outlook

Second vaulted dining room with mirrors, framed pictures and heritage photograph windows — Mirrors and framed work used to give the brick walls depth

Dining table beside an exposed brick pillar hung with gilt-framed pictures — An existing pillar used to define a two-cover table

High tables beneath draped curtain pelmets and heritage photograph windows — Drapery introduced to soften an entirely hard-surfaced room

The snug

Giving the deepest part of the basement its own identity

The furthest part of the basement was given a more enclosed character through panelling, slatted timber, softer lighting and upholstered seating. Where the budget was limited, existing furniture and fittings were adapted rather than replaced unnecessarily, which kept spending concentrated on the elements with the greatest effect on the finished environment.

Green panelled snug at The Underground with slatted timber wall, fringed pendant and the gold elephant motif — Panelling, slatted timber and softer lighting distinguish the snug from the vaults

Designing within the budget

Spend where it changes the experience

The project required strict decisions about where money would make a visible difference.

Existing elements were retained where they contributed to the character of the space. Furniture and fittings were adapted where replacement was unnecessary. More of the available budget could then be concentrated on lighting, key surfaces and the parts of the venue customers encountered most directly.

The result was a coherent environment without relying on a conventional high-cost fit-out.

High tables and stools in a brick alcove at The Underground beneath festoon lighting — Existing alcoves used as seating rather than rebuilt

Outcome

The completed space now works as a sequence rather than a single basement room. The stair establishes the arrival, the bar creates an immediate focal point, the dining areas provide different levels of intimacy and the snug gives the deepest part of the space its own identity.

The project shows how an awkward existing building can become an asset when the design responds to its limitations rather than trying to erase them. Related: commercial design · Clogau, retail estate

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