Bringing together cats and coffee, Vancouver's first cat café quickly became a popular spot for the city's cat lovers. The concept of the themed café where visitors can watch and play with cats and take one home have spread throughout the world after the world’s first cat café opened in Taipei, Taiwan in 1998.

Vancouver’s version opened in December 2016 at International Village and is a home to eight to twelve adoptable rescue cats at a time. The capacity of this place is limited so no wonder that Catfe has been very successful - almost too successful - getting cats adopted when it almost run out of kitties shortly after its opening. Catfe staff member Leah explained the idea behind this unique place:

It’s not just a café with cats. Cats can be used as therapy too and people can connect with animals. It’s difficult to find a place that allows cats In Vancouver so some people come here to get that contact. Cats are also relaxed here and I love seeing them changing. When they come here, they are sometimes frightened so you see how they change from nervous to happy after a while.

Catfe offers drinks, snacks and coffee from local roasters. The light lunch menu includes Tartine quiches, vegetarian soups, savoury pastries and cat-themed treats as well as vegan and gluten-free options.

The café is open daily from 11 am to 9 pm except for Thursdays when the new cats are welcomed and the adopted ones picked-up. The public demand is exceeding the capacity of the café, so in order to maintain a healthy cat-to-human ratio, the number of visitors is limited to 16 people at the time. Admission is $5 per person with any cafe purchase (or $8 with no purchase) for a one-hour visit.

Meet The Photographer: Ricardo Vacas

Ricardo Vacas

Ricardo Vacas, owner of the firm Kerp Photography, always showed intense interest in many forms of creative arts. His professional photography career started in his home country, Spain, where he was the official photographer of several music bands, models and clothing brands. He decided to move to Wellington, New Zealand in 2012, knowing his real interest was fashion photography more than any other field. Currently living in Vancouver, Canada, he now combines his fashion, editorial and commercial photography projects with regular trips to Europe and USA.

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