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. One of them was Naoki Teraoka, a railway model enthusiast and owner of Diorama restaurant in Osaka, Japan.

Naoki opened the restaurant in 2018. It’s a miniature railway model-themed ramen eatery where people could not only try delicious food but also admire the miniatures around them. However, after the global pandemic struck, the owner was on the verge of shutting the business down. Luckily, a fluffy creature came to help and now the restaurant can operate again, but slightly differently.

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A giant cat? Well, no, it’s just a miniature railway model-themed diorama restaurant in Osaka, Japan

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

The restaurant was opened in 2018 by a railway model enthusiast, Naoki Teraoka

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

However, after the global pandemic struck, the owner was on the verge of shutting the business down

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

Naoki shared with Bored Panda that Corona exhausted him and his family physically and mentally. They were on the edge of giving up everything since there were not enough customers to maintain the business.

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

Luckily, an unlikely savior in the form of a stray kitten appeared

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

The kitten was very ill so Naoki decided to shelter it. After some time, the whole family of the kitten showed up

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

It was June 10, 2020, when Naoki noticed a critically ill kitten that was around 10 days old next to his restaurant. The owner decided to raise the animal and named him Simba.

The next day, Naoki saw another cat that was peeking out of the window. It would come every day to look into the restaurant. It was Simba’s mother. Naoki started feeding the mother surplus food because they had a lot of leftovers due to the lack of customers. Naoki remembered that it was raining every night from the end of June to July. On one of the rainy days, the mother cat brought three of her other kittens. It was then that Naoki decided to change the concept of his restaurant and rebuild it.

“It was a financially difficult time for us, but we decided to help the cat family. Yes, we thought we were helping them, but they were the ones who helped us.”

The cats started lounging and climbing on Naoki’s miniature models

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

The owner didn’t miss the opportunity to take pictures of the new “crew” and post them on Instagram

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

As of today, there are 14 cats in Naoki’s small restaurant. They are all protected cats that came or were rescued from the streets.

The animals come to customers when they order food and stay with them until they finish their meal.

It led to people showing up from all over Japan to see the cats

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

In 2021, as a way to thank his fluffy helpers, Naoki opened a cat shelter and a cat-only hotel on the second floor of his restaurant. People can also visit the cat hotel and spend up to two hours there while drinking tea and interacting with the cats. Visitors can also ask for adoption if there’s a pet they made a strong connection with.

The owner wanted to rescue cats from being killed so he searched for areas with the highest number of cats being slaughtered. In September, he went to one place, which was around 224 miles away from his restaurant, and rescued two kittens. Since then Naoki has helped around 100 animals and found a new home for more than 60 cats.

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

Thanks to these adorable fluffy beings, the restaurant is back in business again!

Image credits: diorama_syokudou

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