Behold America's One and Only Cat Café

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• The coffee bar serves espresso drinks, drip coffee, and a small selection of pastries, and all of it's for free. The coffee comes from a "local vendor." Purina won't say who, but rumor has it that it's a popular Brooklyn roaster.
• The house special is the "cat'achino," featuring cat face latte art.
• The cats are all behind those glass doors. The cat room has to be separated from the coffee bar in order to keep the Health Department happy. But rest assured, food and drinks are still allowed in the cat lounge.
• Entering the cat lounge, customers are greeted by a wall of cats.
• The lounge area is filled with a few small tables and comfy furniture for people and cats alike.
• And there are lots of cats. 16 in total, all of which can be adopted through the North Shore Animal League. According to a representative for the shelter, all of the cats have been tested to ensure they're calm and people-friendly.
• There's a corner just for kids to hang out. Children under 16 aren't allowed to actually handle the cats, and will have to be accompanied by an adult.
• There are cats in every corner.

Ladies and Gentlemen, have a look around America's very first cat café, which pet food brand Purina ONE is hosting as a pop-up on the Bowery tomorrow through Sunday. Just like its Asian and European counterparts, this Cat Café provides the opportunity to drink a latte while completely surrounded by cats.

Eater got an early look at both cafe and cats, and now, without further ado, here's a glimpse of a real life, made-in-America Cat Café.

For the truly dedicated cat person, it will also offer a series of lectures and demonstrations by cat experts on such topics as "health and communication" and "cat-friendly interior design." The drinks are free, although the organizers of the event are keeping quiet about which coffee company is supplying the goods.

For those who can't make it to the pop-up, or who just can't get enough of it, Purina ONE is also livestreaming the whole thing. The cats can be adopted throughout the weekend (although they can't be taken home until the end), and the pop-up will conclude with a big adoption event on Sunday. After that, America will have to go back to drinking its coffee sans cats. But not for long: permanent cat cafes are in the works in San Francisco, Oakland, Portland, LA, Vancouver, and Toronto. And now that this cafe has paved the way, it seems only a matter of time before New York jumps on the bandwagon.
· Cat Café by Purina ONE [Official Site]
· All Coverage of the Cat Café by Purina ONE [~ENY~]
· All Coverage of Cat Cafés [~EN~]