By TADASHI MIZOWAKI/ Staff Writer
November 24, 2023 at 10:04 JST
A cat is interested in running model trains on Oct. 23 in Ise, Mie Prefecture. (Tadashi Mizowaki)
ISE, Mie Prefecture--A businessman is giving back to furry companions who provided a lifeline to him during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Naoki Teraoka, 59, was involved in the opening of the Diorama Restaurant cat cafe on the grounds of the Ninja Kingdom Ise theme park here in September last year.
Felines there innocently toy with miniature trains running on tracks inside the restaurant. They also walk freely between the buildings and deal cat punches to operating vehicles.
Such scenes resembling something from “tokusatsu” special effects movies are attracting attention on social media, making the eatery a high-profile destination among feline aficionados.
In summer 2020, Teraoka was thinking of closing his cafe, which is also called the Diorama Restaurant, in Osaka’s Tennoji Ward due to financial reasons. It was furnished with a model railway set for customers to enjoy.
Teraoka then happened across four kittens and their mother near his shop, and he brought them home with him.
He filmed a video of the animals playing about in the deserted cafe and posted it on YouTube. The footage drew a huge response on the video-sharing platform.
His Diorama Restaurant saw hordes of cat lovers visit despite the pandemic restrictions at the time. Sales dramatically rebounded.
“I wanted to do something for the felines who rescued my business,” recalled Teraoka over such a chance encounter that ended up with the unorthodox combination of a railway diorama and cats.
Teraoka set up a shelter on his cafe’s second floor to take care of cats.
Learning of this, the operator of Ninja Kingdom Ise appointed Teraoka as an adviser. His task was to create a similar restaurant outfitted with a cat-caring facility on its site in September 2022.
A total of 400 cats have been accepted at both the outlets so far, with nearly 300 of them having already been adopted by new owners.
The Diorama Restaurants are proving to be such popular spots that even sightseers from outside of Japan show up there.
“I never imagined that,” said Teraoka. “Our cafe was possible because it was in the novel coronavirus crisis. We will continue offering adoption events and other matchmaking opportunities from now on.”
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