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(DailyExpertNews) — Taiwan’s first-ever gourmet food train has just hit the track — and this stunning creation is earning fast-paced fans not only for its food, but also for its looks.
The unveiling of the Moving Kitchen took place in March 2022 on the platform of Taipei’s Nangang Railway Station – a surreal moment for Johnny Chiu, founder of Taipei-based JC Architecture.
Looking at the chic orange and black train, it’s hard to believe that when it first debuted in 2019, its original appearance was referred to as an “aesthetic catastrophe” by local media.
Chiu has redesigned the entire train, including the new gourmet dining cars, and is the main reason why this former ‘catastrophe’ is now affectionately referred to as ‘Taiwan’s most beautiful train’.
The letter that started it all
“Traveling by train has always been a big part of our lives in Taiwan,” Chiu tells DailyExpertNews Travel.
“From going to the military (military service is compulsory for men in Taiwan) to going home for the Lunar New Year celebrations, to meeting our girlfriends or grandmothers, train journeys are in everyone’s memory.”
“The kitchen bar almost felt like a hospital, with white plastic countertops and trash cans that you could find on the street. And with the loud flowers painted on the wall – it really wasn’t tasteful. Everyone was going crazy. The pictures were on every media site and every social media account,” Chiu recalls.
Designed by Johnny Chiu, the Moving Kitchen made its debut in March 2022.
Lee Kuo-Min JC Architecture
Saddened by the situation, Chiu wrote an open letter inviting everyone to see this as an opportunity for Taiwan’s railways to modernize, and hoped someone would pass his message on to the TRA.
In response to the criticism, the TRA enlisted a group of creatives to come up with a more eye-pleasing solution. One of them saw Chiu’s open letter and reached out to him.
“I received an email reply saying, ‘Johnny, great. We’re glad you got this positive response. I’ll give you two weeks to present your ideas to us,’” recalls Chiu.
Two weeks of sleepless nights and whiskey-infused brainstorming sessions later, Chiu and his team presented the TRA with a makeover plan. Shortly afterwards, they were assigned the project.
Making a 50 year old train
Architect Johnny Chiu and his team were commissioned to transform this 50-year-old train in 2019.
Lee Kuo-Min JC Architecture
But the real challenge had just begun.
The team had just seven months to renovate the renovated orange train. Once known as the Chu-Kuang Express, it was an old diesel locomotive from the 1970s.
“We didn’t know it was an old train. We had to empty everything inside and paint it all over again,” says Chiu.
They faced many challenges, including power and structural issues.
There were complicated electrical wires that they had to hide. Meanwhile, safety standards were higher than for their usual interior projects, as train materials must be flame-retardant and durable.
Hardware aside, it was also difficult to convince a 132-year-old government organization to get involved in these new design ideas.
“Taiwan Railway isn’t about design — it’s about safety, punctuality and accuracy. But luckily, the TRA director and vice director were able to make the tough decisions and push the whole team with dedication and passion,” said Chiu.
The new design took seven months to complete — and was unveiled to the public again at the end of 2019. The historic orange color is retained but is enhanced by black to create a luxurious look.
The team replicated the original Japanese-style retro font on the car’s livery.
The interior is inspired by Taiwan’s natural environment, with wooden structures and black stone used to reflect the mountains and rock formations along the coast of Taiwan – which the train will cruise past.
“We’ve even thought about how to get the ticket. Just like in Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, you open an envelope to find a gold ticket and gleefully look forward to your ride,” says Chiu.
The Future 2.0: The First Gourmet Train in Taiwan
The livery of The Future is inspired by the orange color of the original train.
Lee Kuo-Min JC Architecture
With a big win, the TRA went ahead with production of The Future 2.0 – the Moving Kitchen gourmet train.
Victor Cheng is the senior director of Lion Travel, which handles bookings for the train.
“Gourmet trains are a well-known concept in Japan and Europe, but not in Taiwan,” he told DailyExpertNews Travel. “But Taiwanese love trains and they love food – so it was a logical and attractive step to combine the two.”
As The Future’s sole travel company and the largest travel agency in Taiwan, Lion Travel spent more than a year curating its experience with JC Architecture and TRA before unveiling it in March.
“To be the first five-star gourmet train in Taiwan, we had to overcome some hurdles – the lack of cooking water and electricity are the first two major problems,” says Cheng.
A lot of water is needed for drinking, cleaning and cooking. But there is limited storage space on board.
To solve the problem, fresh water and kitchen utensils are loaded on the train between meals at stops. The staff also works closely with its partner caterer, Silks Hotel Group, which operates luxury hotels and restaurants in Taiwan, to arrange the necessary equipment on board.
“The second challenge is to provide gourmet restaurant services in a moving train. Our servers have long practiced taking a firm stance while waiting at tables in a wobbly train. The timing of each dish must also be correct. moment,” Chen says.
The delivery of each course coincides with the views passengers will see.
For example, the first course of one of the meals on the two-day trip is abalone. It is presented when the train arrives at Turtle Island, which is famous for the mollusk.
The second course is a seafood salad on a blue dish, paired with the sea view of the east coast.
After that, the meal continues showcasing local specialties such as hot spring vegetables (vegetables grown using local hot spring water), duck, and sweet purple potatoes as they pass through different destinations.
“And because it’s a commuter train, we don’t have a schedule to rush from one station to another. We can slow the train down on some of the most scenic routes. The train stops while passengers dine on the most scenic part of the route — where the train is closest to the sea in Hualien,” says Cheng.
A culinary journey
The Moving Kitchen is the first gourmet train in Taiwan.
lion journeys
Cheng says all parties involved in the project have done their best to keep the Moving Kitchen running smoothly.
“At the station where we stopped our train, there was vegetation blocking parts of the sea view. Knowing this, TRA sent someone to pull weeds and prune trees for the journey,” Cheng says.
The train journey offers more than culinary experiences. It is combined with in-depth sightseeing activities such as visiting a local rice farm and fishing port to understand the foods they will eat on the train.
“So it’s not just good food on a moving train. The Moving Kitchen combines food, scenery and sights as a multifaceted journey,” adds Cheng.
Unlike the first version of The Future, the renovation of the Moving Kitchen trolleys took about a year, allowing more time for customization.
There are two new 54-seat dining cars, as well as a new bar and kitchen. The dining rooms feature a mix of high counter, bench booths and also tables with two to four seats.
“We pushed a little more material. We get marbles from Hualien province and rattan made by indigenous tribes in southern Taiwan,” says Chiu.
“I am also from southern Taiwan. I remember sitting in my grandmother’s rattan chair as a child when she spoiled me with her cooking.”
The chairs are made of rattan from southern Taiwan.
lion journeys
It inspired Chiu to design a special rattan chair for the Moving Kitchen. The seats can be fixed to the floor for safety, but are designed to feel light.
The armrest is angled at 45 degrees, which makes it easy for passengers to squeeze into their seat, but “still have an armrest seat that exists in a truly fine dining restaurant” – which JC Architecture has a lot of experience in designing.
Special spots have been designed to make the food look delicious and Instagram-friendly. A telephone and menu stand are placed next to the table. A moldable wall lamp allows passengers to manipulate the shape of the thin foil lampshade.
Sold out until September
Cheng of Lion Travel tells DailyExpertNews Travel that the response has been extremely positive. The gourmet train launched on March 30 and tickets for the Moving Kitchen journeys are sold out until September.
“On the first trip, we had a dress code of orange and black – matching the colors of the train. We see so many people dressing up for the occasion and they couldn’t stop taking pictures as soon as they got on the train. We were all so moved,” says Cheng.
Moving Kitchen currently offers one- or two-day itineraries. During this final step, the guests leave the train and spend the night at a nearby hotel. Six tours depart every month.
There are still six train journeys on The Future – without the Moving Kitchen – available every month. They have a seasonal theme and range from one to four days. The Future train has four business class carriages with 33 seats each.
“I’m very proud of this train. It’s because I think it’s uniquely Taiwan. I think it’s a success because the train gives confidence to this 132-year-old company. And there’s a saying that, if TRA would can, the other members of the public sector could too,” says Chiu.
“I also think there’s a lot more history and culture that we could dig out and express in a new storyline. So I’m really happy that this one letter has changed the public sector.”