The Covid-19 pandemic hit everyone unexpectedly. For some people, together with the feeling of uncertainty and fear, it also brought a lot of financial difficulties.
March 2, 2021
OSAKA (THE YOMIURI SHIMBUN) – Feline friends saved the day for one restaurateur in Osaka who was on the verge of shuttering his business because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Diorama Restaurant in Tennoji Ward, Osaka, is well-known for its elaborate model train system set in intricate landscapes. Nowadays, though, the eatery has caused a buzz on social media as previously stray cats walk amid the miniature display and watch the trains come and go.
“At first, I wanted to save the cats,” said owner Naoki Teraoka. “But it turns out they saved me.”
Diorama Restaurant opened in 2018, but was temporarily closed between March and May 2020 due to the pandemic. The restaurant gradually resumed operations in June, but customers were so slow to return that Teraoka seriously began to consider closing up shop.
March 01, 2021
A cat watches a model train traversing a bridge.
Twitter/The Japan News
OSAKA Feline friends saved the day for one restaurateur in Osaka who was on the verge of shuttering his business because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Diorama Restaurant in Tennoji Ward, Osaka, is well-known for its elaborate model train system set in intricate landscapes. Nowadays, though, the eatery has caused a buzz on social media as previously stray cats walk amid the miniature display and watch the trains come and go.
“At first, I wanted to save the cats,” said owner Naoki Teraoka. “But it turns out they saved me.”
A cat walks over railway tracks at the Diorama Restaurant Tetsudokan in Osaka’s Tennoji Ward. (Kenji Tsuji)
OSAKA Take some stray cats and let them loose on your treasured model railway set. What might you expect?
A total train wreck?
Not so for Naoki Teraoka, who credits his decision to let kittens run amok on a miniature railway for saving a restaurant here after videos of their escapades went viral online.
Diorama Restaurant Tetsudokan, where a faithfully reproduced railway diorama sits at the center, was forced to close from March to September due to the novel coronavirus pandemic. The managers even considered shutting down the diner for good.