Cat Café: What to Expect On Your First Visit

Author: K. Marie Altoby K Marie Alto Updated 3 min read

Cat Café: What to Expect On Your First Visit

As a follow-up to last week's blog, I wanted to share a few more details about my first visit to my local cat café Patriot Pawsabilites in Fairfax, Virginia.

Checking In

Eager with anticipation, my niece and I arrived before the café opened.

We were immediately drawn to one large window that was full of cat shelves and a bunch of kitties that kept coming up to visit through the window!

When the Café opened, we walked into a small glass room, checked in with the owner, Mo (reservations encouraged), signed a standard waiver (that you’ll find at all cat cafés), and paid a very reasonable entry fee, which to me was more of a donation to a great cause.

The Cat Room

Being the first couple of visitors of the day was amazing! It was quiet with just two employees so we really had all of the kitties to ourselves. I was taken aback by the décor of the café.

There was ample seating for humans and unlimited enrichment items for the resident kitties. From standard cat trees, wand toys, and crinkle tubes, to a cat superhighway of ledges and even a custom-built floor-to-ceiling tree of ledges!

Everywhere you looked there was an adorable cat, we didn’t know where to start! We opted to start with a little walking tour meeting all the residents along the way. When I finally sat down I was immediately greeted by Flounder who proceeded to bed down on my lap. I was in heaven!

The Kitten Room

Separated from the big kids in their own space were 12+ insanely cute kittens! They were very sleepy when we first came in, but soon their scampiness came out and they were ready to play!

There was no shortage of toys and comfy beds for these little ones and they even had their own wall ledges and tunnels to explore! It’s been so long since I’ve had a kitten, so I was all smiles as the kitties wrestled, chased their own tails, and clumsily attacked the smorgasbord of toys!

I had forgotten how sharp those little tiny talons were but was reminded as my leg turned into a tree to climb! All little scratches were forgotten when I ended up with a lap full of warm kittens. I could seriously get used to this place!

Wrapping up our Visit

Two hours went by in a flash and soon it was time to say our goodbyes. I can’t wait to go back for another visit and if you’re in the area I highly recommend dropping in! If you don’t live nearby check for a cat café near you!

Note: Patriot Pawsabilites only sells some prepackaged food and drinks due to health code restrictions, but they also allow you to bring food in from your choice of the restaurants located in the same complex.

Not the right time to rescue a kitty? Visit a cat café and share some love instead!

Read More Cat Care Guides

One more thing, if you are feeling like getting a little special something for your fur baby that is unique, made right here in the USA, 100% pup and cat safe, USDA certified organic and brought to you by a US company, check out Toe Beans online pet supplies store!

K Marie Alto
K Marie Alto

K. Marie is an animal lover, wife, kitty mom, dog auntie, writer, and co-founder of Toe Beans, a proud American family-owned online boutique pet supplies store focused on the improvement of the life of furry family members via pet parent education, better products, and advocacy. She has over 20 years of experience as a pet momma. She loves sharing her personal journey and experience as a pet parent via her blog and Facebook page where she currently has more than 50K followers (@furrytoebeans) and counting :-). Read more

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