Yesterday, I visited Nottingham for study related purposes. Since I was there already it only made sense that I'd visit the Kitty Cafe too - I live far and hell no, I wasn't going to pass on this!
I had booked for free, two weeks in advance through the Tripadvisor page but you can also book through their own website. Bookings are for one hour only because it really is a busy place, you're told 15 minutes before the end that you'll need to go soon. It's really not in a pushy horrible way either, it was a friendly reminder.
We arrived 15 minutes early and were checked in but asked to wait until our table was free which was fine because they allow you to play with the cats in the meantime. I wouldn't advise going early as there's no designated waiting area and there can soon be a build up of people at the front when other groups are coming and going or paying for orders or entrance. At checking in we were asked if we'd been here before and then given a sheet of house rules to read and a sheet to sign that we'd read it. After that we then payed the entrance fee of £5 per person.
The cafe is a lot larger than I'd expected. There's two big rooms for seating, we were seated in the second one which is more spacious however has less cats walking about. From this room you could see into the kitchen through the glass wall as pictured above. It was nice because aside from looking good, it also gave customers peace of mind by being able to see how their food or drink was being prepared. The same room had what they call the 'cat snug' where all the cats can go to get out of the way for some peace and quiet - a lot of the adoreable kittens were hiding in there and occaisonally popped out to say hi.
'Do not pick up the cats'
'Do not wake a sleeping cat'
'No holding the cat down or in any position'
'No cornering or trapping the cats'
'No flash photography'
I'll be honest I was disappointed to know I couldn't pick them up and properly play with them but I can fully understand why that is. It must be exhausting for the cats to have hundreds of strangers wanting to play with them every day, at every time of the day.
Think of the cats as an added environmental element to your regular visit to the cafe. You're just eating, drinking and chatting away whilst cat's roam around. It's also an open kind of environment where you'll have strangers coming to your table if there's a cat. Everyone is really friendly so it all works well, like the unspoken rule of having turns to pet a cat thats letting you.
All the cats at the cafe are rehomed and the cafe itself is a rehoming centre so if you go and meet a cat that you feel a connection with, you can ask about the adoption process.
There are baby changing facilities and both entrances are wheelchair friendly so if you are interested in making a visit, below are the details to get you there.
The Kitty Cafe website
Address: 31 - 37 Friar Lane, Nottingham NG1 6DD, England
Phone Number: 0115 924 2214
