Furry meal companions
A FEW years ago, Sam Ramos spent time in Taiwan. There she saw a cat café, an establishment where diners eat and drink while playing with furry little felines.
Regarded as the first cat café in the world, Cat Flower Garden began operations in Taiwan in 1998. The concept, however, gained greater traction when it reached Japan, particularly in Osaka, where the first cat café of the country was established in 2004.
Realizing that such a business did not yet exist in the Philippines, Ms. Ramos suggested to her sister, Loida Benson, the idea of founding a cat café in lieu of a cattery they had in mind.
“She agreed,” Ms. Ramos told BusinessWorld in an e- mail, “and Miao Cat Café was born.”
The restaurant fits perfectly with the sisters’ shared passion — cats. Ms. Ramos and Ms. Benson are proud owners of dozens of felines.
Miao Cat Café is situated on Congressional Avenue, in Quezon City, a few steps away from the thoroughfare’s intersection with Mindanao Avenue. It opened for business on Valentine’s Day of 2015.
“We have different breeds of cat and a very homey feel in the place,” Ms. Ramos said. Some of those breeds include Scottish Fold, Persian cat and Munchkin. The cats have their own names, such as “Felix” and “Snarky.” On the social media accounts of the café, shots of the felines in various states are often posted, accompanied by captions beseeching visitors to come and play with them.
For P300, customers, who can book reservations or walk in, will have these cats as their furry meal companions; they can pet them, relax with them or simply appreciate their furry glory while sating their appetites. They also get the chance to socialize with others who may love the cats as much as they do.
“We have pastries, pasta, finger food ( fries, chicken chops, etc.) and nachos. For the drinks we serve coffee, tea, milkshakes, and frappes,” Ms. Ramos said. “[ W]e’d want the customers to have good experience with the cats and the food we serve.”
That experience, however, is limited. Every customer is allotted a maximum of two hours in the restaurant, which, according to Ms. Ramos, has the capacity to hold 45 people at most.
In between the two-hour dining period is an hour devoted to cleaning the place, and giving the cats, which are fed twice a day so they won’t get too fat, a breather.
Cleanliness is taken seriously by the restaurant. Measures that forbid wearing of shoes inside the café and
that require customers to disinfect before entering are in place.
To protect their health and safety, as well as those of the felines, customers are obliged to observe several proper behaviors. “There are rules that they need to follow like not carrying the cats and poking them in the face…” so that the cats won’t turn aggressive, Ms. Ramos said. “But cats aren’t really aggressive unless provoked or hurt by people.”
Ms. Ramos said they are planning to serve other types of food soon, and, of course, branch out, a possibility that ailurophiles (cat lovers) certainly welcome.