Suburbs’ first cat cafe lets you lounge with some cool kitties

If you’re feline down, a new spot in Roselle offers the purr-fect way to get your paws-itive attitude back. You could even say the experience is cat-hartic.

The Cat House is the suburbs’ first cat cafe, offering a place for people to chill out and hang with some cool kitties.

“The feedback I’ve been getting is that this place is very Zen and very calming, which is what I was going for,” said owner Irene Lee. “I love when I see adults sitting on the floor, playing with cats. It brings them joy, and that brings me joy.”

The first cat cafe opened in Taiwan in 1998 and quickly became a global tourist destination. The idea soon spread to Japan, where they have become popular, especially in crowded cities where pet ownership is difficult, like Tokyo.

The phenomenon has since expanded to the U.S. There are a couple in Chicago and other parts of Illinois. But Lee’s lounge is the first in the burbs.

For $12, you can spend 45 minutes petting and playing with a clutter of cats, generally between 10 and 30 furry friends. A selection of packaged nonalcoholic drinks and snacks are for sale, along with cat-themed merch.

The cats roam free around the lounge, interacting with anyone who comes in. Comfortable chairs and couches are spread around the room, and once you sit down, you’re not alone for long.

“The cats are all so cute and so amazing,” she said. “It’s their world, and we just live in it.”

Lee has a partnership with Heartland Animal Shelter in Wheeling, which provides her with friendly, social cats that do well in a group environment. Lee is essentially the foster parent for the cats, just on a larger scale than normal.

“It’s a zero-pressure environment to just spend time with the cats. But if people do fall in love, they’re more than welcome to start the adoption process,” said Lee, who is trained as a volunteer and can handle the adoption logistics at the cafe.

Adoptions follow the same process as they would at the shelter, and Heartland receives all the associated fees.

Once the cats arrive at the cafe, they live there until they’re adopted. Since opening at 344 E. Irving Park Road in late June, 48 cats have been adopted by customers who visited the cafe, including six on Thursday.

“It’s a good feeling,” Lee said. “I really enjoy meeting the adopters and being a part of making sure the cats are going to a good home.”

A recent Wednesday visit found 14 cats that ranged in age from 4 months to 6 years old.

Cat lover Sarah Block of Evanston, who works nearby in Schaumburg, stopped in on her lunch hour after recently learning about the cafe.

“It was even better than I hoped it would be,” she said. “I miss my cats when I’m at work, and I love meeting new kitties.”

Lee grew up in the Joliet area and moved to Houston for college, where she also worked in shelters and fostered animals. After graduation, she moved back to Arlington Heights in 2021 for a job as a social worker and to be closer to her family, who had moved to the suburbs. She soon found herself looking for something to do for fun.

“I don’t drink, I don’t go to bars,” she said. “There’s a lot of restaurants, but what do you do after? That’s when I decided to open a cat cafe.”

Lee said she’s had people drive from as far as Indiana to visit.

“Obviously, cat people are our most frequent customers, but we have families that come in, people on dates or friend hangouts,” Lee said. “I’m right next to a Mexican restaurant and an ice cream shop, so that works out great. People love tacos, cats and ice cream.”

The Cat House also hosts after-hours adult events like movie nights and karaoke. In addition, she’s working with the village on special use permits to host wine nights and the like.

The Cat House is located at 344 Irving Park Road, Roselle.

https://www.dailyherald.com/20240901/news/suburbs-first-cat-cafe-lets-you-lounge-with-some-cool-kitties/