Kyoto Welcomes 'Future Train' Restaurant, Blending Dining with Immersive Art on Decommissioned Railway Line

Innovative 'Future Train' Opens in Umekoji

Kyoto's Umekoji district officially launched a unique culinary and cultural attraction yesterday, September 20, 2025, with the grand opening of the 'Future Train Kyoto Diner & Cafe'. This groundbreaking establishment transforms a decommissioned 681-series Thunderbird limited express train into an interactive restaurant and art space, situated on an abandoned elevated railway line. The project, a collaboration involving West Japan Railway Company and Kyoto Station Building Development among others, seeks to establish a new landmark in the city.

A Journey Through Art and Cuisine

The 'Future Train' is designed to offer guests an immersive experience, blending dining with artistic expression. The train's exterior has been repainted in a vibrant plum pink, a nod to the Umekoji area. The interior is divided into three distinct cars, each contributing to the 'journey to the future' theme:

• Car 1, 'Future Bird': This car serves as an immersive art space, featuring video, light, and sound installations. It is conceptualized as the 'engine room of a future-bound train' and offers a reservation-only 'FUTURE IMAGINATION Course' that includes a 20-minute interactive experience.
• Car 2: Designed as the main dining area, this car evokes the elegant luxury of a retro-futuristic dining car.
• Car 3: This car provides a more casual dining atmosphere, complete with a bar counter, booth seating, and elevated 'platform seats' that offer views of Kyoto Tower and a five-story pagoda.

Guests are guided through this experience by characters named Birdy Buddy, the conductor, and Pink Bird, a 'time and space attendant'.

Culinary Delights with a Kyoto Twist

The menu at 'Future Train Kyoto Diner & Cafe' embraces a 'KYOTO Diner' theme, combining a lively pop aesthetic with local Kyoto ingredients. Signature dishes include the 'Ume Mirai Gourmet Burger', a sukiyaki-style Wagyu beef burger served with a plum blossom-shaped bun, and the 'Future Ekiben Box', a three-tiered lunch box inspired by traditional train station bentos. Other offerings feature the 'Kawaii Five-Story Pagoda Parfait', a tribute to Kyoto's iconic landmarks, along with creative cocktails, mocktails, and colorful milkshakes.

Visionary Design by Sebastian Masuda

The creative direction for the 'Future Train' project was led by Sebastian Masuda, a prominent figure in Japanese kawaii culture, renowned for his work on Tokyo's Kawaii Monster Cafe. His vision, in collaboration with digital creative company IMAGICA EEX Co., Ltd., has transformed the disused railway line into a vibrant entertainment and dining destination. The restaurant's soft opening in August 2025 for Cars 2 and 3 saw significant public interest, with over 5,000 visitors, underscoring its potential as a new cultural and tourism hub in Kyoto.