Tired of just heading to those Starbucks like coffee shops? sitting down there with your cup of warm coffee listening to some chill out music? Are you looking to go one step ahead and have a whole new café experience? Well, maybe we have something for you! Kattakaffihúsið: Reykjavik’s first cat café.
A cat café? What is that? Well, kind of a mix between a coffee house and a cat shelter home. I know it sounds a bit weird, at least it does for me, as in Iceland this is not a common thing whatsoever. Many questions arose in my mind…why cats? Why cats and coffee? Are cats even capable of brewing coffee? Oh lord, I must have skipped that lesson in biology class back in my school days! So guys, let’s get nerdy, time for some further information about this new trend and where it comes from!
If you are an anime lover or just a fan of the Japanese culture, you probably know all about Neko-Cafés or Cat Cafés. Although the first cat café opened in Taiwan, it was in Japan where this crazy trend gained a huge popularity…Of course! it could not have been anywhere else! In the case of the Reykjavik First Cat café, the origin of this odd idea comes directly from the Land of the Rising Sun. If you dig further into their society and culture, you would understand why.
It seems that in huge cities like Tokyo, people live in tiny apartments where they are not allowed to have pets by law. This situation created a need of finding a way where you can actually enjoy the company of a cute animal. This is how cat cafés started: You pay for your coffee and you get the right to loiter with some feline friends. In Japan, cats are a symbol of luck and fortune, so two birds with one stone! Some say that spending time with these little animals, caressing them and just hang around them are beneficial for the health. Some state it lowers blood pressure and, of course, releases the mind from stress and worries.
In Iceland, we can have pets in our houses and the living space is not as limited as in Tokyo, so how come we ended up having a Kattakaffihúsið? Well, the owners decided to twist the original idea a bit. The cats’ roll is not just helping humans in their daily basis, now it is the turn of us humans to help those cats as well.
At the Reykjavik cat café, you will find a cozy café and restaurant where the cats will be up for adoption. The main objective of the café is to make the animals feel safe, loved and taken care of while they find a place they can call home.
Kattakaffihúsið: Reykjavik’s First Cat Café
This café offers a warm environment with vegan options, so even if you are not there to adopt a cat, you can still get a hot cup of coffee and some yummy pastries. All of this while being around this cute little furry guys. Reykjavik First Cat Café is located at Bergstaðastræti 10a, 101.
Come around an enjoy a purrrfect day!
