Cat Cafes in United States

Newport News, Virginia

Toby's Cat Cafe is a cat cafe and lounge on Jefferson Avenue in Newport News, on the Virginia Peninsula, run by a mother-and-daughter team. In autumn 2026 it took over the space previously used by Cups and Claws Cat Cafe, and it is named after a rescued long-haired tuxedo cat. Rescue cats from local rescue partners roam freely in the lounge, and every cat is available for adoption through those partners. Visits are booked online as paid lounge sessions, with locally roasted coffee and snacks sold in the cafe. Guests sanitize their hands before entering, wear socks in the cat room, and let the cats approach on their own terms; children under 14 must be supervised by an adult. The lounge has board games, card games, puzzles and a wall of vinyl records, and it also hosts evening events and group gatherings.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking required

Culpeper, Virginia

Kanga's Catfé is a cat lounge inside Hundred Acre Books, an independent bookshop on South Main Street in downtown Culpeper, and is the town's first cat cafe. All of the cats are rescues available for adoption through Forgotten Felines of Culpeper, and they live cage-free in the lounge while they wait for homes. Visits are sold as 30-minute or one-hour sessions, and a full-day pass is also available with a reservation. Reservations start every half hour and are recommended, though walk-ins are accepted when there is space; guests check in at the main desk, pay in store and sign a waiver. Smoothies, coffee and tea from Minerva's are served during the middle of the day, but food has to be eaten in the bookshop's seating area and drinks taken into the lounge need lids.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking recommended

Williamsburg, Virginia

Schwartzy's Cat Cove is a cat lounge inside Nautical Dog, a locally owned pet supply shop on Main Street in New Town, Williamsburg. Opened in July 2022 as Williamsburg's first cat lounge, it occupies the shop's former space next door and is named after Nautical Dog's first shop cat, a black senior with special needs. Visitors sit and spend time with adoptable cats from Heritage Humane Society and other local shelters, with an emphasis on adult and senior cats, FIV-positive cats and others with special needs who tend to wait longer in a shelter; kittens are rare. Guests sign a waiver before entering, and anyone who falls for a cat can apply to adopt. The Cove passed its 600th adoption in April 2026. It closes an hour before the shop, which also has a self-service dog wash.

• Adoptable cats

Wilson, North Carolina

Catopia at North Star is a cat adoption lounge and gift shop on Green Street in historic downtown Wilson, and the town's first cat lounge. Owner Wendolyn Moore runs it in a house-like setting where adoptable rescue cats and kittens roam freely, so visitors can see their personalities before deciding whether to adopt. Visits to the cats are arranged by text message to reserve a time, and the lounge is open on Fridays, Saturdays and Sunday afternoons. The shop sells cat-themed goods and work by local artists, and the space also hosts monthly artisan workshops such as beginner stained-glass classes. Guests who do not plan to adopt are welcome to come and spend time with the cats.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking required

Morganton, North Carolina

The Cats' Cradle Adoption Center and Cat Café, also called The Mews Herald, is the first permanent home of The Cats' Cradle, a volunteer-run cat rescue founded in 1999 that serves Burke, Caldwell, Catawba and Alexander counties. It opened in early 2026 in the former News Herald newspaper building on Collett Street in downtown Morganton. Cats from the rescue's foster homes and from Burke County Animal Services rotate through the center, where they live outside cages while they wait for homes. Visitors can buy coffee, soda drinks and packaged snacks in the cafe area and watch the cats play in their rooms, then spend one-on-one time with a chosen cat or kitten in the cuddle room. All cats are adoptable through an application. The former newsroom, now The Mewsroom, hosts cat yoga, paint parties and other events and can be rented.

• Adoptable cats

Sevierville, Tennessee

Black Cat Lounge is a cat adoption lounge on Winfield Dunn Parkway in Sevierville, the main road from Interstate 40 to Pigeon Forge and the Great Smoky Mountains. It is a lounge rather than a cafe, with only bottled drinks and pre-packaged snacks, and the focus is on the cats. It houses adoptable cats and kittens from partner shelters and rescues, including the Sevier County Animal Shelter. Visitors pay an entry fee for one-hour, two-hour or full-day passes, which goes towards the cats' food, litter and care; people coming only to meet a cat they want to adopt do not pay. Reservations are recommended at weekends and during events, and walk-ins are welcome when there is space. Children are welcome with an adult. The lounge hosts paint nights, bingo and yoga with the cats, and can be booked for birthdays.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking recommended

Hattiesburg, Mississippi

Café 1321 is a cat cafe and small rescue on South 11th Avenue in the Oaks district of Hattiesburg, a few blocks from the University of Southern Mississippi campus. Visitors check in at the front desk, where coffee, water, soft drinks and pre-packaged snacks are sold, and then go into a separate cat room at their booked time. The room holds around 15 adoptable cats and kittens and has a retreat area where the cats can get away from visitors. Visits are charged by the half hour or hour; reservations are encouraged because the room can fill at busy times, and walk-ins are fitted in when possible. Guests are asked not to pick up the cats, to keep voices down and to avoid flash photography. All the cats can be adopted through the cafe's own application process, with spaying or neutering, vaccinations and a microchip included.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking recommended

Pigeon Forge, Tennessee

Smoky Mountain Cat House is a cat-themed gift shop on Old Mill Street in Pigeon Forge, a block from the Old Mill and its restaurants and about a mile from Dollywood. It has been run by the Anderson family since 1985 and sells cat jewelry, clothing, clocks, toys, treats, locally made items and some dog goods. It is not a cat cafe, but the shop is home to a group of friendly resident cats, around eight of them, that roam the rooms and the porch and greet shoppers, and staff happily introduce visitors to them. Entry is free and there are no sessions or bookings; you can simply browse and pet the cats. The owners are involved in local cat rescue, and adoptable kittens are sometimes in the shop. It is open every day and also runs an online store.

Tallahassee, Florida

Fat Cat Books is a nonprofit used bookstore and cat adoption center on North Magnolia Drive near Tennessee Street in Tallahassee, run by Feline Advocates of Leon County, the group behind Fat Cat Cafe. It opened in Railroad Square in October 2020 and moved to its current building in 2026, reopening there in September. Adoptable adult and senior cats roam freely among the shelves and armchairs, so visitors can browse and spend time with them in the same room. All the books are donated and sold at low prices to fund the cats' care, and a small boutique sells stickers, magnets, candles, soaps and jewelry from local makers. The cats are spayed or neutered, tested, microchipped and vaccinated, and can be adopted through an application to the rescue. The shop also hosts art exhibits and First Friday events. It is open Thursday to Sunday.

• Adoptable cats

Key Largo, Florida

The Upper Keys Humane Society Cat Café is a cat room at the front of the Upper Keys Humane Society, the only no-kill shelter in the Florida Keys, at mile marker 101 on the Overseas Highway in Key Largo. Rather than a separate business, it is the shelter's cage-free cat and kitten area set up as a cafe, where visitors can relax with coffee, tea or water for a donation and play with adoptable cats and kittens, whether or not they plan to adopt. There is a separate room for kittens, a small cat library and cat-themed gifts for sale. All the cats are available for adoption through the humane society, a nonprofit founded in 1972 that runs on donations. The café keeps the shelter's short public hours, mornings from Wednesday to Saturday and a short window on Sunday, so check before driving down.

• Adoptable cats

Portland, Indiana

CAT TALES Books, Crystals & Cats is a nonprofit used bookstore and crystal shop on North Charles Street in Portland, in Jay County in East Central Indiana, run by and connected to the Midwest Pet Refuge rescue. It fills a spacious former church, with tens of thousands of used books in the old sanctuary, a section of antique and pre-1950 titles, and crystals, jewelry, handmade gifts and pet supplies. Several adoptable cats, typically 8 to 10, roam the bookstore and greet browsers, and visitors can go through to the rescue side to spend time with many more cats in free-roaming rooms, a catio and kitten suites. There is no charge to visit, children are welcome and comfy chairs invite people to stay. All the cats are spayed or neutered, vaccinated and microchipped and can be adopted through Midwest Pet Refuge. All proceeds from the shop support the rescue.

• Adoptable cats

Owensboro, Kentucky

The Handsome Cat Café & Adoption Center is a cat lounge in The Thatch shopping center on Sweeney Street in Owensboro, between Art Lab Owensboro and Moonbow Apothecary. It is run by Saving Paws Animal Rescue of Kentucky (SparKY), a nonprofit founded in 2006. Opened in July 2026 as Owensboro's first cat cafe, it gives the rescue's adoptable cats and kittens a calm place to meet people, and only cats that are fully vetted, vaccinated and fixed are brought in, so numbers vary. Visitors pay a small admission fee and can book online or come in during opening hours, generally Wednesday to Sunday from morning to mid-afternoon. No food or drinks are served, apart from bags of Kitty Town Coffee for sale, but guests may bring their own. Adoptions follow SparKY's standard process and fees, and the lounge can be rented for parties and workshops.

• Adoptable cats
• Booking recommended