Drink Your Caffeine With Cats: Chicago's First Cat Cafe on the Horizon

Get those coffee cups and cat toys ready—Chicago is getting its first cat cafe. Cat'fe—apparently unaffiliated with similarly named cafes planned for Los Angeles and Vancouver—is part of a new location of Tree House Humane Society and Veterinary Clinic heading to 7225 N. Western Ave. in West Rogers Park. Groundbreaking on the $7 million facility could happen in April, DNAinfo reported.

Cat'fe, where patrons and cat-lovers will be able to hang out with cats and drink coffee and tea drinks as well as munch on snacks, will be located in the facility's first-floor lobby and waiting area. The space could accommodate 25-30 people a day, and it will also serve drinks to go.

Cat cafes have been one of the trendiest concepts on the continent in recent months, as 24 cafes have either opened or are in the planning or funding stages in North America. Some are more of a coffee shop format, while some, like Cat'fe, are located in adoption clinics. Some are so popular that they charge entry fees and NYC's Meow Parlour only takes reservations exactly two months in advance. The first North American cat cafe opened in August in Montreal.

Now, it appears that Chicago will finally have a cat cafe sometime soon. Stay tuned.

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