Cat Lounge coming to Troy
TROY, N.Y. >> The Capital Region’s first cat cafe is set to open soon, with the coming of Meong Cat Lounge in 2019.
Husband and wife Astra Wijaya and Sindy Limin of Troy are the entrepreneurs bringing Meong Cat Lounge and the trendy cat cafe concept to the area.
“Cat cafe is a theme concept that originated in Taiwan and Japan and has since made its way around the world,” Meong Cat Lounge’s website explains. “Customers typically pay a cover fee to relax and interact with cats, in a cat lounge. Food, beverages, and cat-themed merchandise are available for purchase, in a separate room.”
Additionally, the future Troy cat lounge aims to be a casual coworking space, the owners said.
Meong Cat Lounge is expected to open next spring, on Second Street in the Osgood neighborhood of South Troy.
The name, Meong, is the Indonesian onomatopoeia for a cat’s meow, and a nod to the owners’ native country.
Wijaya and Limin, in their first joint business venture, first started talking about opening a cat lounge jokingly last winter, and now they are in full swing of making it happen.
The owners, both artists by trade, enrolled in the New York Small Business Development Center’s Small Enterprise Economic Development (SEED) Program, through which they learned a lot about business planning. “It’s been really helpful,” Limin said. “It was a lot of new information for us.”
Currently, Wijaya and Limin are coordinating with Troybased organization TAP on a proposal for a special use permit before they start working on the lounge space, which they already own.
On why they wanted to start a local cat lounge, Wijaya said, “Nobody has done it yet.”
Limin added that she wanted to create a relaxing hangout spot that was not alcohol-focused like many others in the city. “It’s a nice, quieter space,” she said.
Of course, Wijaya and Limin are both cat-lovers themselves, and this was one of the major reasons they took interest in the cat cafe industry.
Interestingly, the couple’s love of cats only really started in recent years, and it began with a tragedy. An apartment fire in 2013 left them temporarily residing with a caring co-worker who happened to be a cat owner, and living with the cat during this tough time brought them both comfort.
So, once they moved into a new place, Wijaya and Limin decided to become cat owners themselves.
Now, they’re taking it to a whole new level by opening the region’s first cat lounge, where they plan to have as many as a dozen cats at a time.
Like most cat cafes in the U.S., Meong Cat Lounge will feature some adoptable cats from local rescues.
The owners look forward to contributing to the cat rescue and rehabilitation efforts in the Capital Region. They’ve been in contact with some different organizations in the area, but have not yet determined a partner for the business.
Along with great support from the community, Wijaya and Limin said they have seen a great deal of enthusiasm from potential future customers. A mailing list will soon be set up for those who wish to receive updates on the business’ progress toward the opening, which they hope to do in time for kitten season next spring.
Once open, Meong Cat Lounge will have monthly membership options, as well as hourly and daily rates.
“Customers typically pay a cover fee to relax and interact with cats, in a cat lounge. Food, beverages, and cat-themed merchandise are available for purchase, in a separate room.” — Meong Cat Lounge’s website