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Photograph by Ethan Covey via Meow Parlour
New York City is getting its very own dog cafe this December! It will be called Boris & Horton, and soon it will be the first place in New York City specially designed to cater to both canines and humans. This comes after several cat cafes have opened to great fanfare in the past few years.
New York City is a bit of a latecomer to the pet cafe trend. Tokyo is home to 58 pet cafes, and even has a hedgehog cafe and an owl bar. Hopefully New York City will catch up, and the opening of Boris & Horton certainly looks like a step in the right direction.
In honor of Boris & Horton’s opening, and in celebration of pets everywhere, here’s a list of five of New York City’s best pet cafes.
Koneko is New York City’s first Japanese cat cafe. Unlike Meow Parlour, this cafe is modeled directly after Japan’s immensely popular pet cafes, where you can actually sit and have glasses of sake with a cat in your lap.
Designed by CO-Office, Koneko is located on the Lower East Side. It serves artisanal Japanese fare, wine, juices, and sake, as well as the company of twenty cats. The space is split into three parts: an Upper Cattery loft area, a smaller lounge area called the Lower Cattery, and a unique outdoor “Catio.”
The cafe is a social media hotspot, complete with beautiful art and graffiti honoring the elegance of the feline form. Its set of inquisitive, wide-eyed furry friends are certain to brighten any day. Cats are notoriously mysterious and their unique, individual personalities are always entertaining to watch. They can also provide a peaceful presence and some much needed relaxation; one of Koneko’s employees is a former cat meditation teacher (she clarified that this involves humans meditating among cats, emulating their peaceful, composed mannerisms).
William S. Burroughs said, “My relationship with my cats has saved me from a deadly, pervasive ignorance.” This could certainly be said for Benjamin Kalb, Koneko’s founder. Mr. Kalb, a chef and classical pianist, found himself facing some existential confusion following his graduation from the New School. A visit to Japan brought him to the cat cafe Calico, which inspired him to found what has become Koneko.
Visits to the cafe are $15 an hour, and some of the money goes to Anjellicle Cats Rescue, an organization that saves at-risk cats from New York City shelters.
Long Island City‘s Chateau Le Woof provides gourmet treats for both humans and dogs, so you and your pet can both sip in style. This pet shop-and-cafe combination is the only location in Queens that sells La Colombe coffee, and it is certainly the only place in the area where you can feed your dog canard-flavored kibble while sipping on a latte.
If this sounds like a dream come true, it is. According to the cafe’s founder, Natassa Contini, the idea for the cafe actually came to her in a dream.
Chateau Le Woof sells high-class food for both dogs and humans. For yourself, you can choose from a collection of delicacies like spinach ricotta puffs and chocolate chip cookies. For your furry friend, you can select kibble from brands including Natural Balance and Blue Buffalo, and you can choose your pup’s flavor from a list that includes chicken, fish, duck, and more. You can also buy selections of raw food to feed your pooch, which many dog lovers believe is healthier for the canine’s digestive system.
Photograph by Ethan Covey via Meow Parlour
Sigmund Freud said, “Time spent with cats is never wasted.” Take it from the father of psychology, and work a little time with a furry friend into your busy schedule at New York’s first and most popular cat cafe, the Lower East Side‘s Meow Parlour. It was founded by pastry chef Christina Ha, who previously ran the East Village patisserie Macaron Parlour.
Photograph by Ethan Covey via Meow Parlour
The idea for the cafe started to blossom when Ha and her husband discovered a stray cat, whom they named Mr. Socks. They soon adopted two more cats, named Pickle and Bobo, and later on, several more stray kittens. Soon enough, Ha found herself daydreaming about starting a pastry shop where patrons could socialize with cats while they munched on macarons.
As of 2014, that dream became a reality. New York City’s health regulations make it impossible for the food to actually be made in the same vicinity where the cats are kept, so the cafe is split into two spaces—one that houses only cats, and another that serves food.
Inside the cat section of the cafe, you can sit on the floor and play with the ten or so felines that wander around the vicinity. Many of the cats at Meow Parlour are older cats adopted from shelters, and the cafe often takes in cats that have difficulty finding homes. Now, with endless rotations of patrons ready to pet and coo over them, every cat at the Parlour has a constant supply of love.
But don’t get any ideas: the cats will do as they please, and whether or not they come to sleep in your lap is entirely up to them. “In ancient times cats were worshiped as gods,” wrote Terry Pratchett. “They have not forgotten this.”
Brooklyn Heights’s first cat cafe opened in 2016. All of its cats are available for adoption, and it also streams live kitty-cams 24 hours a day, as shown above. This cafe has been in the news frequently of late because of a few of its kitten caretakers, which just so happen to be rats.
You heard that right: several older rats have been taking care of abandoned kittens. (Only in Brooklyn). Two rats, to be specific. Their names are Remy and Emile, and they’re the product of the Brooklyn Cat Cafe‘s innovative approach to caring for orphaned cats.
It all started when a kitten named Ebony contracted a disease that prevented her from being around other members of her species. A rat named Ivory, who couldn’t be affected by the disease, was introduced, and the two quickly became best friends.
This particular rat-cat relationship works because the kittens are small and non-threatening, and is an inspiring example of inter-species love. So the next time you cringe at the appearance of a subway rat, you never know—it could be harboring a heart full of love and kindness.
The rats were brought to the Cat Cafe thanks to HALT (Helping All Little Things), an organization dedicated to helping animals like chipmunks, hedgehogs, and rats find safe and loving homes.
You can visit the Brooklyn Cat Cafe to see the rats and kittens in person, and to grab a bite surrounded by furry friends.
Photograph by Milla Chappell. Courtesy of Boris & Horton
After all this time, New York City is really getting its very first dog cafe. Located in the East Village, Boris & Horton is different from most cat cafes in that you have to bring your own furry friend. It’s open to people who don’t have their own dogs as well, though, so if you’re desperate for some puppy love the cafe will be the place to get your fix. It will also host pop-up adoption events, so you can finally fill that dog-shaped hole in your heart.
The cafe was founded by Coppy and Logan Holzman, a dog-loving father and his daughter, along with their pooches Boris and Horton. The cafe is taking over a space previously occupied by Ost Cafe. One side of it will be for ordering your food, and the other side will be a lounge area for eating and hanging out with the dogs.
Some neighbors have expressed worry about excessive barking, but according to Grub Street, the cafe’s management clarifies that they will have “very polite rules of etiquette.” The cafe is expected to open by December.
For more, check out 10 spots in NYC to treat your pup on National Dog Day (or any day) and Fetch Club, the nightclub for dogs in NYC.
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