Wednesday 6 April 2022

Stand-up Noodle Diner of Himeji Station

Diesel railcar JR West 122 series stands at Himeji station on the Kishin line. 

Don't you feel like eating something? Yeah, I'm hungry, but we have only 15 minutes until our train leaves. Where shall we go?

I would think a stand-up diner is the best spot. For instance, there's a famous stand-up noodle diner, "Maneki", at Himeji station on the JR West lines. It's popular among passengers because they're able to eat so fast and cheap. Maneki was originally opened in 1949, still in the chaotic times after WWII. It was then reconstructed to its current state in 2019. We can see a unique shed on the platform of the station. The outside is similar to the kiosk of JR East's Fujisawa station. Its exterior is made to look like an old diesel railcar, which had been operated by the ex-Japanese National Railways.

Incidentally, how's the current diesel railcar going on the JR West lines? You can see an example at Himeji station. That's the KiHa 122 series being operated on the Kishin line. The KiHa122 series was launched in 2009 as a JR West's commuter railcar. 7 cars in total were built by Niigata Transys. The KiHa 122 series is a sister model of the KiHa 127 series. What's the difference between the 122 and 127 series? The former has a single cabin; meanwhile the latter has double cabins, so the 122 series is able to be operated as a single-car train in the daytime. It has a stainless-steel body with orange and vermillion-colored stripes. A 331kW diesel engine with a liquid transmission system is equipped.

Stand-up noodle diner, "Maneki", on the platform of Himeji station