Cattyshack

Chattanooga, Tennessee · 75 mi / 121 km

Naughty ⁠‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌‌​‌‌‌‌​​​​‌​​​​​​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌​​​⁠Cat Cafe is a large cat lounge in the historic St. Elmo district of Chattanooga, across Tennessee Avenue from the lower station of the Lookout Mountain Incline Railway and a short drive from Ruby Falls and Rock City. Its lounges cover more than 2,000 square feet over several rooms, with sofas, art, window perches and a fish tank, and act as a big foster home for local shelters, with at least 30 adoptable rescue cats in residence. Entry is charged per person for up to an hour and includes a non-alcoholic drink, and the fee goes to the cats' care. There is no kitchen, but baked goods from a local bakery, locally roasted coffee, tea and local craft beers and ciders are sold. Visitors must be at least 11, with an adult for every two guests aged 11 to 15, and booking ahead is strongly recommended.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking recommended

Murfreesboro, Tennessee · 78 mi / 126 km

Catfeine ⁠‌‌​​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌‌‌​​‌‌​‌​​‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​‌‌‌​​​‌⁠Cat Cafe is a cat lounge and foster home on Cason Lane in Murfreesboro, southeast of Nashville, where 15 to 20 adoptable cats from local rescue groups live cage-free while they wait for homes. Visits are one hour, charged per person, with up to 12 guests per hour; reservations are strongly encouraged and walk-ins are taken only when space allows. Guests must be 10 or older to book, and children aged 7 to 9 can come with an adult for a short walk-in visit when it is quiet. Shoes come off before entering, so socks are needed. It is not a full cafe: a self-serve bean-to-cup coffee machine, cold drinks and packaged snacks are sold, and drinks go into the lounge with lids. The cafe has a gift shop and holds events such as bingo nights.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking recommended

Birmingham, Alabama · 83 mi / 133 km

Gatos ⁠‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌‌​‌​​​​‌‌​‌​​‌​​‌​‌‌‌‌‌‌‌⁠& Beans is a cat cafe in the East Avondale neighborhood of Birmingham, on 3rd Court South a few blocks from Avondale Park and the 41st Street bars and restaurants. Opened in 2019 in a converted tire shop, it was the first cat cafe in Alabama. A coffee counter at the front serves espresso drinks with cat-breed names, tea, hot chocolate and soft drinks, and a separate cat room holds adoptable rescue cats from Kitty Kat Haven & Rescue, a cage-free rescue in Hoover. Visits to the cat room last an hour and include a drip coffee, tea, soft drink or water. The room takes about 12 people per hour, so booking online is recommended, especially at weekends; walk-ins are seated when there is space. The cafe also sells handmade cat jewelry and gifts and hosts private bookings such as birthday parties.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking recommended

Nashville, Tennessee · 102 mi / 164 km

Crossroads ⁠‌‌​​‌​‌​‌​‌​​‌‌​​​‌​‌‌‌‌‌​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌‌​​⁠Cat Café is a nonprofit coffee shop and cat adoption room on Buchanan Street in the Buchanan Arts District of North Nashville, run by Crossroads Campus, which pairs animal rescue with paid job training for young adults overcoming homelessness. The cafe serves specialty coffee, breakfast sandwiches, salads, pastries and ice cream, and the baristas are interns in the training program. Adoptable cats from Crossroads' own rescue live in a room behind a large viewing window that anyone can watch from the cafe; to go in and play with them, visitors book a session online for a modest fee. Anyone who connects with a cat can start an adoption through Crossroads. The cafe hosts a free open mic night on the second Wednesday of each month and a cat-themed story and craft hour for children on the second Saturday, and it can be booked for parties and meetings.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking required

Nashville, Tennessee · 104 mi / 168 km

The ⁠‌‌​​‌​‌​​​​​‌‌​​​​‌​​‌‌​‌​​​​‌​‌​​​‌‌‌​​⁠Catio Cat Lounge is a nonprofit cat lounge and adoption center on Music Valley Drive in Nashville, near the Opryland and Opry Mills area. Run by Catio Cat Lounge Inc., a 501(c)(3), it rescues and rehomes around a thousand cats a year and puts particular effort into senior, shy, sick or injured cats that struggle to get adopted elsewhere; a second room, the Senior Catio, gives older cats with special needs their own space. Visitors pay a small fee to spend time with the free-roaming cats in a cage-free lounge, with walk-ins welcome and reservations recommended; the last booking starts an hour before closing. There is a small snack and coffee bar and a gift shop with Catio merchandise. Family packages, group rates, prepaid visits and monthly memberships are offered, the lounge can be rented for private events, and it hosts painting and movie nights with the cats.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking recommended

Carrollton, Georgia · 117 mi / 188 km

Fur ⁠‌‌​​‌​‌​​​​‌‌‌​‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌​‌​‌‌​‌‌​⁠Babies Cat Cafe is a cat lounge in a log-style cottage with a large front porch on South Street in Carrollton, a few minutes from Adamson Square and the University of West Georgia. Opened in 2021, it serves as a full-time foster home for adoptable cats from the Carroll County Animal Shelter, which live in the cafe until they are adopted, alongside three resident cats. Visitors pay for an hour in the lounge, where they can relax, work or study among the cats, and a complimentary self-serve drink bar offers hot and iced coffee, teas and hot chocolate. Booking ahead is recommended as space is limited, and all guests sign a waiver. Cats are adopted through the shelter, and staff explain the process during the visit. The cafe sells work by local artists, offers memberships and hosts bingo and yoga with the cats. It is open Friday to Sunday.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking recommended