Good find.
Anyone else go there, ask if other big stations around Taiwan have a similar set-up.
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Whereas taking an east coast train with a bike is 3rd class
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Looks to be fairly new. Good find, I’ll have to check it next time I’m up in the area if I get the chance.
On the TRC website they only list two locations, one in Nangang and the other in Hualian.
https://www.railway.gov.tw/tra-tip-web/tip/tip00J/tipJ11/view
Looking at the reviews it seems to be the standard minimum one drink or meal order. Menu has English as well.
Nangang location:
Hualian location:
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TRA had restaurants at some stations in the past
They were not fancy like this just a sparsely decorated restaurant
I often went to the one in Keelung right next to the station. And if memory serves one in ktown ?
Was pretty decent food at decent prices
I remember the curry chicken at the Keelung one was one often got
Even third class trains on TRA are pretty decent these days
I’m headed to Hualian in a couple of weeks so I’ll check it out 
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Just very slow, especially after dark
The point that I thought of is that almost none of the really fast trains headed to the east coast stop at Nangang! They instead go: Shulin, Banqiao, Taipei, Songshan, Hualien, Yuli, Taitung. Perhaps an adjustment is in order?
Guy
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Right now I’m at the new TRA lounge in Hualian. If you enter by the front station (east side) you’ll need to walk to the rear station. It’s spacious with plenty of drinks, snacks, and light meals on the bilingual menu. It’s noon on Sunday and it’s pretty quiet inside.
There’s plenty of space around the seating for any luggage. Each table, counter seat, and lounge seat has electrical outlets. Free wifi as well.
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Whole lot better than the hole in the wall TRA
Resto In keelung in the 70s
But then curry chicken was only something like 50nt
Reminds me , does TRA still do dining cars ? I don’ think so but they should as they have about 4 hours TAipei to Ktown and same to Taitung so theres time to have a dining car? Would be a cool thing, But at 60kph the soup was already sloshing about and at 100kph it would spill for sure. As TRA still uses the same rails it probably wont work.
Am i gettting senile? Presenting something and then negating it myself? 
I regret to say there is no solid evidence to the contrary! 
Hope you can come and try the new TR (the “A” has disappeared following its corportation).
Guy
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I’ve never seen any dining cars, but I sometimes see a worker pushing a snack/bian dang cart down the aisle. I haven’t been able to figure out which lines do this though; it definitely doesn’t seem consistent.
I think it’s lukewarm “famous” lunchbox on the express lines, and the whole car will smell like it!
(I think you order and pay at the station. Sorry, it’s been awhile.)
Slow train doesn’t have it, in my experience.
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New tourist train
Seems nice
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WTF was that guy thinking.
Guy
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Thinking?
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NT$1,500~7,500? Fines are really low in Taiwan, l feel.
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Price hike coming. Ticket prices will see an increase starting on June 23.
The Ministry of Transportation and Communications approved the request on Feb. 21, with fares increasing by 26.8 percent on average in the first rate hike since 1995.
Rates would depend on the kind of train and the distance traveled, the ministry said, adding that fares would increase by a lower percentage the further the travel.
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Nothing against this “lounge” per-se but there’s nothing about it that makes it TRA really. It’s just another cafe space of the many you’ll find at these large train stations. The name (in particular the Chinese name) suggest that it’s for exclusive use by TRA ticket-holders, but that’s not the case.
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