The current Main Hall was renovated in 1971 and houses an assembly hall and an employee cafeteria. Historically, it was an important venue for the daily life and leisure activities of staff at the Taipei Railway Workshop.
Continuing the original spatial context, the Preparatory Office of National Railway Museum has transformed the Main Hall into a multifunctional venue that provides dining and resting spaces for visitors while accommodating various events. The west side of the Main Hall serves as a multifunctional area for gatherings and events and includes a museum shop offering light refreshments and cultural-creative merchandise. The east side, formerly the Employee Cafeteria, now hosts the Lifescape in the Main Hall on-site exhibition.
This on-site exhibition uses comic-style storytelling to depict the history and past functions of the cafeteria. Within the original cafeteria and kitchen spaces, audiovisual elements recreate kitchen work scenarios. Original dining tables left behind after the workshop’s relocation have been restored and arranged according to archival photographs. Models portraying breakfast and lunch settings further recreate the dining atmosphere of the past.
Exhibits include lunchboxes donated by former employees, many engraved with their names and work areas, alongside items that remained in the Taipei Railway Workshop after its relocation.
Comic panels narrate the daily lives of employees in the cafeteria and Main Hall, while the preserved kitchen area, combined with audiovisual effects, simulates working scenes of the era.
Through historical photographs and employees’ memories, the exhibition reconstructs former dining scenes including tables, chairs, tableware, and typical dishes. The restored dining tables continue to serve as resting spots for today’s visitors.