Try to muffle your squeals if you're at the office, cat people. Because it's here. Cat Town Café (2869 Broadway) is officially open over in Oakland, meaning that they beat out a similar business racing to get open in Hayes Valley to become America's First Cat Café.
What is a cat café, you ask? Well, as we reported back in July, it's a place where you can go and chill with some coffee or tea and also chill with a bevy of adoptable felines. But as Eater reports after this past weekend's grand opening, Cat Town Café has, for health-department reasons, divided their space into a coffeeshop on one side, with beans from Oakland's Bicycle Coffee, and the cat play area, or Cat Zone, where you can presumably take your beverage and interact with the cats. Walk-ins are welcome, but it looks like you can also reserve cat play time, which may become necessary if every future crazy cat lady in the East Bay descends on this place to cuddle and purr with their spirit animals.
The café is a collaboration with Oakland Animal Services and owner Ann Dunn along with this guy allowing for expanded shelter space for orphaned cats who get to stay over in this free-range cat play land for a spell, awaiting adoption.
Cat Town Cafe is open Wednesday to Sunday from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m., with the Cat Zone opening at 10 a.m. So that means you will have to contain your cat excitement for the next two days before making a beeline over there.
Meanwhile, as far as we know, the cat-friendly tea house dubbed KitTea is still raising money and looking for a lease in the vicinity of Hayes Valley. Stay tuned for more on that.
Previously: Rising S.F. Rent Delays Cat Cafe Opening In Hayes Valley