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| The Cat Cafe GM Tony Wang |
Cat ladies unite!!! Want to get all hyped up on caffeine and pet some cats?!? Now you can at The Cat Café, now open at 472 3rd Avenue in Downtown San Diego’s Marina District, offering patrons locally roasted coffee and the opportunity to interact with adoptable cats. Part of a strange, spreading global phenomenon of cat-filled coffee houses, The Cat Café is the first of its kind in America's Finest City.
In addition to a menu of coffee concoctions made with beans from local roasters, Cafe Virtuoso and West Coast Coffee Roasters, The Cat Café also offers a variety of muffins, scones, donuts, croissants and other snacks, as well as free Wi-Fi for customers. A separate cat room, adjacent to the cafe, offers up to 20 patrons at a time the chance to mix and mingle with 5-10 adoptable cats. Rest assured, there's a separate entrance and space for the cafe area in order to keep everything sanitary and in accordance with Health Department guidelines, although entrance to the cat playground room is limited to customers only.
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| The Cat Cafe cat playground |
and support a wonderful animal rescue group, the San Diego Humane Society,” said Tony Wang, General Manager of The Cat Café.
The Cat Café has worked out a special partnership with the San Diego Humane Society to help at-need cats and kittens. Firstly, all tips at The Cat Café go to benefit the Humane Society. Wang is also part of the Humane Society's foster pet-parent program, allowing him to take care of the cats until they find a good home, hopefully with a friendly patron. The cats at The Cat Café have all been spayed or neutered, are up to date on their vaccinations and all are available for adoption. Same day adoption is available and adoption fees are the same as at the SD Humane Society - $65 for adult cats and $95 for kittens. The process takes about 30 minutes and adoptees also get a complimentary box of goods from Petbox.
Cat cafes had their origin in Taiwan, but became very popular in Japanese culture in the early 2000s, now with over 150 open in Japan. Cat cafes have spread throughout the world and can now be found in Korea, Austria, Spain, Hungary, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom. Cat cafes moved into North America in 2014, with the first one opening in Montreal, then Oakland, New York, Los Angeles and now, San Diego
