Katsura Campus: Sterile?

This is my third post (and maybe the last) about Katsura campus. In a previous post I wrote that Katsura campus resembles a “golden cage”, brand new buildings and equipment but no life, no shops, restaurants or shopping areas around. Please allow me to elaborate. First, restaurants. Katsura campus has one cafeteria in cluster B, right in the middle of the campus. There is a small cafeteria (?) and a small bakery in cluster A and a French (!) restaurant in cluster B. The main cafeteria in cluster B basically monopolizes the catering market of the campus. Even local residents can be seen eating there, since there is practically nothing else around. What is wrong with that you might ask? First, with virtually no competition around, meal quality ranges from eatable to mediocre while prices are not fit for a University CO-OP cafeteria IMHO. If I have to rank the meal tastiness among the 5 CO-OP cafeterias (Yoshida main, Yoshida north, Renais, Uji and Katsura) I rank Katsura last.

Getting ready for the lunch rush at Katsura Cafeteria (Photo: Eddie)

There is more to that. Outside of the main cafeteria there is beautiful wooden terrace. On the terrace there are several wooden picnic tables. Unfortunately the tables are not used much. There are no bars, restaurants or cafes around Katsura campus. Friday nights on campus are depressing.