by Bruce Rutledge, (Photos by the Cat Cafe)
Cat lovers, there’s a new cafe in town where you can pet a cat while sipping your drinks. Neko Cafe opened on the corner of Pine Street and Belmont Avenue on November 7. It’s the brainchild of Caitlin Unsell, who was inspired by cat cafes in Japan while living there. She taught kindergarten in Japan and “visited every cat cafe possible,” she writes on her website.
Unsell has teamed with Regional Animal Services of King County (RASKC). Unsell gets the kitties for her cat cafe through RASKC and encourages patrons to consider adopting them. All the cats at Neko Café have an immune deficiency called feline leukemia virus, or FELV, which makes them susceptible to developing conditions such as cancer. Unsell writes that through her partnership with RASKC, she “wants to help the kitties that need it most.”
Unsell asks for reservations to meet the cats. The charge is $10 per hour. The cafe serves coffee, tea, beer, wine and sake as well as cakes, cookies, Japanese snacks and bentos. The kitties get a rest day on Tuesday, but seven to 12 of them are out to play in the cafe the other days of the week. The cafe opens at 10am during the week and at 9am on Saturdays and Sundays. For reservations, visit the website or call 206-708-7287.
NEKO – A CAT CAFE
519 E Pine St, Seattle, WA 98122
(206) 708-7287
Website
