The Cat Café is a place for animal lovers to stop by on the way home from work, pay USD$7.00 for three hours in a large room to have a cup of tea and relax with their favorite cats.
“This place isn’t on my way from work, but even if I’m pretty tired, I’d still stop by,” said 32-year-old system engineer and a Calico regular Kazunori Hamanaka, as he tried to take a photo of a white and brown Bengal cat curling up in a box.
“I want everyone to forget about their jobs and relax,” said Takafumi Fukui, the owner of Calico Cat. Fukui is a long-time cat lover who quit his job at a television game company and started the cafe in March. He says that the majority of visitors to Calico are working women and children, and about 70 percent overall don’t own cats due to allergies or housing regulations.
Cafe Calico is one of three cafes that have opened up in Tokyo this year, where severe housing restrictions keep animal lovers from having pets. Nekrobi is another well known location that allows patrons to dine and play Wii games for the family members who choose virtual life rather than animal life.