KITAKYUSHU – An upscale restaurant in this southwestern Japan city, built during a booming coal industry, is full of interesting design details.

The long-established Kinnabe traditional Japanese restaurant in Kitakyushu’s Wakamatsu District has witnessed the transition of key industries that support modern Japan. The current structure was built in 1910, when coal was called the “black diamond.” Nearby Wakamatsu Port was Japan’s largest coal shipping port, and the busy part of the city where Kinnabe is located was bustling.

Windows with bat motifs, mountain-shaped and curved windows that take in the light, and windows on the wall separating the corridor and the dining room are decorated with different designs, giving the luxurious place its unique magnificence and fun spirit. There is a stage in the large hall where geishas can dance.

During the industrial transition from coal to steel production, this restaurant was often used by large corporations to entertain customers, and today it remains a favorite social gathering place for local businesses and citizens.

Ashihei’s room was called “Ashihei’s room”, which was used as a study by novelist Ashihei Hino (1907-1960), known for his works “From Mugi to Heitai” (Wheat and soldiers) and “From Hana to Ryu” (Flowers and dragons). It is called “. ,” and preserves the atmosphere of the time.

Kinnabe’s three-storey main building, a wooden structure with a tiled roof and a front door with glass transom windows on both sides, was registered as a national tangible cultural property in 2004.

(Japanese original by Minoru Kanazawa, Kyushu Photography and Video Department)

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The Japanese version of this article was first published on May 1, 2022.

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