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Real-Life Café In A Place Further Than the Universe Closes Due to Owner's Health
posted on by Kim Morrissy
The Cafe de Staël in the Gunma Prefecture's Tatebayashi City will close on Saturday. The café was the real-life inspiration for the café frequented by the protagonist in the opening episodes of the A Place Further Than the Universe anime. Although the establishment was loved by anime fans and locals alike, the 59-year-old owner Takaaki Maeda made the decision to close the store due to his deteriorating health after he suffered a fall.
Maeda suffered a cerebral hemorrhage at the end of September, while the café was temporarily closed in order to prevent the spread of COVID-19. He suffered a fall and was taken to hospital; due to the after-effects, he found it difficult to reopen the business later. His wife Miyoko ran the café during lunch hours in his stead with the help of friends, but he ultimately decided to close the store within the end of the year.
"I am full of gratitude to everyone who visited, not just locally but from around the country," Miyoko said. "I am grateful to the A Place Further Than the Universe fans who came from all across the country."
The café, nevertheless, has a legacy. An acquaintance of the couple will open a new café in the new year, which they hope will maintain the establishment's atmosphere and its importance as a pilgrimage spot for fans.
The café first opened in 2013, and is located close to the Tatebayashi Station. It is named after Nicolas de Staël, a French painter of Russian origin of whom Miyoko is a fan. The café was loved for its hot dogs and curry rice. When the A Place Further Than the Universe anime started airing in 2018, the café was also coincidentally offering a 200-yen purin dish, which the anime's protagonist is also a big fan of.
A Place Further Than the Universe premiered on Japanese TV in January 2018, and was streamed weekly on Crunchyroll. Although the story opens in Gunma Prefecture's Tatebayashi City, it centers on high school girls going to the South Pole, "A Place Further Than the Universe." They struggle and grow together as they cope with extreme conditions.
Source: Jomo Shinbun via Goo News
