Last Saturday, my sister‑in‑law and I decided to spend the day in Birmingham for some well‑deserved shopping. We took the train separately and met at the Bullring. To be honest, we wanted to focus on a few specific places rather than wander around with no real plan. Our aim was to visit Kenji, Miniso, Bandai Namco, Oseyo, Uniqlo, and TokyoToys. Both of us being a bit on the nerdy side, our day was very Japanese‑ and Korean‑inspired.
Speaking of Asian inspired things, we decided to go to kitty café, which you have to book in advance. For a bit of history: the first cat café appeared in Taiwan in 1998, followed years and decades later by many other pet cafés featuring mini pigs, dogs, bunnies, and all sorts of adorable four‑legged friends. Soon the whole world followed the trend, and now it’s very common in most cities and towns to have their own cat café. Usually, they exist to help rehome pets, which we love a lot. For the little story, my last visit to a cat café was in 2009 in Tokyo during a two‑week trip.
So here we were, heading to the kitty café at 1 p.m. on the dot to meet our little four‑legged friends.
My first impression was very positive: the Kitty Café was clean, the staff were friendly and welcoming, and it seemed very safe for the cats too, with double doors so they cannot escape. We had to sign in, and we were allowed to stay for one hour, which I believe is enough time to enjoy a bit of brunch, maybe a coffee or a cold drink, and pet a few kitties along the way.
We were shown to our cosy sofa seat and handed menus. It was table service, so we could just sit and relax… at least until we decided to walk around and meet our furry friends. Of course, we knew the rules (which you have to read and agree to before entering the premises): no running, no poking animals, no picking them up, no giving them food, no loud noise, etc.
All was well but the first thing I noticed, and immediately disagreed with, was kids… and toddlers. Yes, quite a few children were around, including a screaming one‑year‑old toddler. Don’t take me wrong: I have nothing against kids being in public cafés, public spaces or restaurants. But some of the kids were running around and not respecting the rules, and the parents were nowhere to be seen. This made the cats scared and hiding in corners. That was a big no‑no for me.
We were sitting a few seats away from a lovely young couple with, I assume, their one‑year‑old daughter, who had other ideas and was crying a lot, clearly distressing the cats. I think Kitty Café should look into this, as most cat cafés do not allow children under 10 to enter the premises. They should consider putting this rule in place. The aim of the Kitty Café, let’s not forget, is to rehome the cats, they are not a show or toys for kids.
This worried me a lot until halfway through the experience, when I noticed the cats had access to a room that no guests could enter, only staff. I was pleased to see the cats had an escape room if things got too much for them. That said, I still think kids — and definitely screaming babies — should not be allowed. Cats should be petted (if they comes to you for petting) in a calm and quiet atmosphere.
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Apart from that, the staff were lovely and the food was actually really nice. The menu was rather large and offered many brunch‑type dishes such as jacket potatoes, pizzas, all sorts of toasties, hot drinks, and even cocktails. Everything was served quickly, and even though our choices were simple, they were very tasty and not overpriced.
I forgot to mention: there is a £9 fee/Per Adult ( £6 for kids) to be paid at the entrance. This money, of course, goes toward the cats’ needs such as food, vet care, etc.
Would I recommend visiting Kitty Café in Birmingham? Absolutely. But for the sake of our gentle kitty friends, please do not bring your young kids. Bring them when they are older (above 10, an age where they can understand the rules). Too many young children were there, and we could clearly see it did not help the cats settle down.
Have you ever visitd a Cat Cafe before, how was your experience? Tell me all by commenting below.
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