Mimi Hanaoka reports for GlobalPost.com about the emergence of cat cafes in Tokyo. The cafes cater to lonely Tokyo residents who do not have the time or the place for a pet. At the cat cafes people can enjoy a cup of tea as well as the company of the cafe's feline staff. One of the cafes Mimi writes about is called the Calico Cat Cafe.
I first heard of Calico cat cafe when it opened in March 2007, but then it was an oddity and the preserve of lonely women and cat fanciers. It is now staggeringly popular. This March it opened a second branch in the high-rent Shinjuku business and shopping district. Last October it published a glossy coffee table book featuring its "feline staff." The original branch is so packed that reservations are recommended on weekends.
Browsing in a bookstore, I found 39 establishments listed in the "cat cafe yellow page" section of a magazine. Calico advertises itself as a great "date spot," a place to make "friends" - both cats and humans - and a "fun place" to swing by after work.
Tea plus feline companions sounds like a great combination as long as the cats are well cared for, of course. There's pictures of the Calico cat cafe with the GlobalPost article. Here's a video clip from inside the Calico Cafe in Kichijoji near Tokyo. The video's description says you "pay about 6 bucks an hour to relax in a lounge area and play with 15 different cats."
