Houston's Cat Cafe: Have A Coffee, Adopt A Cat

HOUSTON, TX -- Houston's first cat cafe opened in May and they have found homes for 18 cats since opening. While it seems the cafe may just be a normal cafe with a bunch of cats hanging around, the atmosphere is much more friendly.

"I thought we would just come, have a cup of coffee and there would be cats running around. So I didn't realize it was as interactive and playful as it is," said David Berthold after his first visit to El Gato.

"We just got comfortable and then they got comfortable. Started sitting in our laps, hanging out, and it's been really relaxing," Berthold told Click 2 Houston.

"We call it cat therapy," said Renee Reed, who opened up El Gato in May with the help of Kickstarter supporters. "Cats have known benefits of lowing blood pressure," she said, as well as reducing stress levels.

While the cafe has benefits to its patrons, the main focus of the establishment is to support the cats and find permanent homes for them. "Specifically, we like to focus on older cats that can get overlooked in the shelters," Reed said. The primary focus of El Gato is finding "forever homes" for the cats, she said.

"There's probably two that I want to take home right now," Berthold told Click 2 Houston.

El Gato is located at 508 Pecore St., Suite A. The cafe's hours are:

• Monday - Closed
• Tuesday - 2 p.m. - 7 p.m.
• Wednesday - 2 p.m. - 7 p.m.
• Thursday - 10 a.m. - 7 p.m.
• Friday - 2 p.m. - 7 p.m.
• Saturday - 3 p.m. - 8 p.m.
• Sunday - 3 p.m. - 7 p.m.

Click 2 Houston reported that El Gato encourages reservations to visit, but reservations are required for activities such as yoga, Saturday morning cartoons, movie nights and arts and crafts.

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