Are There Cat Cafes Worth The Visit In Yogyakarta?
ThePetsDialogue was
in Indonesia this month with a mission at hand, to sniff out the situation of
animals and Pets, in a whole new environment and culture. In case you were
wondering, our sunny island Singapore is not the only country to introduce Cafes
with a touch of fur lovin’, and this
trend has been sprouting overseas too! Pet cafes have long served therapeutic means
for us human to unwind with friends and family, with the company of Feline or
Canine Pals.
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| Cats and Coffee Yogya |
Thus begins this
series of experiences we had in Indonesia, and our first stop was in
Yogyakarta, also commonly referred to as
Yogya or
Jogja for short. Yogya is
a cultural and historical spot in Indonesia so rich in tradition, with the
streets now littered with tourists. Thankfully the slow-paced, (
slightly back-dated) quiet life of
locals have not changed preserving the way of living such as food stalls on
wheels and massive street basking. For the fact that the only animals we came
across were very skinny stray Cats and a bird or Rooster in every home, it
sparked our curiosity even further…
What are the Cat Cafes In
Yogyakarta like?
Cats and Coffee
Upon our research beforehand on the locations
of these Cat cafes, there were just two possible venues, and to our dismay one
of which has already closed down (
stay
tuned for the name of that Cat Café). Fortunately for us, there was still one
other location,
Cats and Coffee!
Located slightly off North of Yogya, these streets were away from the tourist
hot spots (
which was quite a good break
for us) and near to a couple of Universities. Surprisingly enough, the
roads were a little cleaner, buildings had proper structure and we spotted a
few sneaker and skate shops that reminded us of home
☺
Finding The Café
We got there by
GoJek,
a very popular form of Uber or Grab like transport service in Indonesia with incredible
rates to boot (
we will elaborate further
as we uncover our Indonesia trip series) and we almost missed the place! As
we alighted and stood there in the streets, figuring out which shop house it
could be, turning around only to see an ENORMOUS sign that read
Cats and Coffee, in graffiti style.
 |
| You can't miss this graffiti sign |
There was a simple seating area with
motorcycle parking for resting or catching a quick smoke (
no smoking in a Pet Café please!) prior to entering the Café. Peek
a little closer into the slightly tinted windows and you can see the nicely
furnished Café and its Feline hosts. Granted that it was a weekday and around
3pm (
that’s 4pm in Singapore time),
that café had two small groups of local patrons.
What To Expect
As you enter the
first door, you will be greeted by a shoe rack on the right to place your
shoes, hand sanitizer, and a list of rules stated on the second door. These
rules were pretty mandatory and basic, meant for the safety of its Feline hosts
and human patrons, even a 5 year old child could abide.
The rules include :
Sanitising hands before entry
No petting when Cat is eating or asleep
No photography with flash
No disturbing of Cat 's head with an object
No pulling of Cat's tail
No squeezing of Cat
 |
| Basic rules to abide before entering the Cat cafe. |
So we left our shoes on
the racks, cleaned our hands up, and headed on inside. Oh yes, you are allowed
to wear your socks inside. The Café had a rustic wooden vibe you’d find in most
Hipster cafes, with art on the walls that we could only presume was done up
personally by the owners or staff of the Café. The kitchen and counter are
separated from the cats with a half partition swing door.
Rates And Charges
The shop was lit only
with spotlights, making it seem a little gloomy. We approached the main counter
to get ourselves a beverage and check out the rates, most of our local Cat
Cafes have entry fees that go on hourly basis, i.e. $15 for the first hour, and $5 for subsequent hours. To our pleasant
surprise, there was no entry fee here, purchasing a drink or snack entitles you
to stay on as long as you’d like, cuddling and petting Kitties to your heart’s content.
Menu
It wasn’t a very
extensive menu, like everyone would say, “
Never
head to a Pet Café and expect a 5-star meal”. Because the focus of Pet
cafes aren’t exactly their food, they are simply providing a therapeutic session
for humans to be around furry companions, while being able to enjoy simple beverage
or snack!
 |
| Order your Food and Drinks here! |
Cats and Coffee’s menu had an array of Juices, Iced or Hot Coffee and fried
finger food like Fries and Wedges. Glad to say that their coffee wasn’t half
bad, decent latte (
with milk froth),
this was a nice highlight because the locals enjoy their coffee as it is,
simple, without the use of fancy coffee machines. Prices on the menu were
really affordable, you could score a nice cup of Latte at about
RP 28,000.
The Cats In The Café
On to the stars of
the Café, which was only about 4 Cats, and mostly mixed except for a Peke faced short hair. The Café had 2
window corner spots laid with carpet, bean bags and a small table, and 2 other tables
with a long sofa chairs on one side, and chairs on the opposite side. Cats are
kept entertained with ceiling instalments for climbing and resting, a
peek-a-boo floor structure, and wooden interior furnishing.
 |
| Feeding spot and a row of private potty huts |
Cats also had
individual tiny huts to do their business in private near the back door. It
could be due to the hot weather, and because the Café is nicely air
conditioned, most of our Feline hosts were lazing around. Some of them were
also pretty shy, so we only got our share of giving them some stroking whenever
we could, because we wouldn’t wanna stress them out.
 |
| Pretty but shy young Tabby here. |
Was It Worth The Trip?
The Cafe is a nicely
designed space to give patrons a homey feel, plus the coffee wasn’t half bad (we really enjoy a cuppa). We understand
that this isn’t a petting-zoo, hence we shouldn’t be forcing or expecting the
Cats to do anything. One of the rules entailed no touching while they are
eating (understandable), so there wasn’t much to do except wait. However we
must say that we were quite disappointed with the lack of Cats in the Café, especially
after getting a sneak peek via Instagram and Facebook. There should have been a
lot more beautiful and sociable kitty hosts.
 |
| Cats are known to sleep alot, and maybe We came at nap time... |
Where did all the other Cats go?
 |
| Please come back another time... |
We decided to make a
move and leave for our next destination. That was when we stumbled into the
mystery of why there were only 4 cats on the Café floor. Through the door at
the back of the Café is where the toilet is, and we were greeted by cages and
cages of Cats there were, snoozing or meowing at us. So that’s where they were!
 |
| The wooden interiors and Cat furniture of the Cafe |
All in all, Cats and Coffee offers a very attractive price range for Food and Beverages with no
entry charge. Believe it or not, we spent about RP 60,000 there for two beverages
(that’s approximately SGD 6.70). As
for the experience, we got our hopes high for more Cats, judging from
photographs on social media, but got a little let down in the end. In
conclusion, it was still good getting some company from Cats and enjoying time
away from the tourist buzz. If you love Cats, and you’re dizzy from the noise
and populated streets of Yogya, you could escape to Cats and Coffee for a little
peace and quiet while you are in Yogya for sure!
Address
Cats and Coffee
Jl. Bougenville, Caturtunggal, Kec. Depok,
Kabupaten Sleman
Daerah Istimewa
Yogyakarta 55281, Indonesia
Opening Hours
2.00pm to 11.00pm Daily
Contact
Tel - +62 852-6802-9822
Miaw Shake Cat Café Offically Closed
The only other Cat café
we were hoping to visit was Miaw Shake Cat Café, yet another Cat café claiming
to be the first in Yogyakarta (not too
sure what’s going on here).
Jl. Pakuncen, Pakuncen,
Wirobrajan, Kota Yogyakarta
Daerah Istimewa
Yogyakarta 55253, Indonesia
The above address is
where Miaw Shake Cat Café used to be, and while their
Instagram page’s last post was in 2015, their Facebook page has already been taken down. Shop
was also not found. What a pity, it seemed like they had an array of Cats like Norwegian Forests and the likes of it.
Well, that makes
Cats and Coffee the ONE and only Cat café in
Yogyakarta currently!
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| Still asleep :( |
Stay tuned with us as
we uncover the many sights and sounds to the life that Animals and Pets lead in
Yogya and Jakarta, giving you honest insights and review of our experiences. Indonesia
Trip series articles :
Cafes
Animal Markets
Patsy Animal Market –
Yogyakarta
Pramuka Bird Market –
Jakarta
Jatinegara Market – Jakarta
Zoo
Gembira Loka Zoo –
Yogyakarta
You may wanna check
out the local Cat Cafes here in Singapore first, here’s a complete guide:
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| Interesting looking Norwegian-Tuxedo of Cats and Coffee. |
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Disclaimer
This article was
written with informational purposes, as you know, we’d love to share our
collective research and experiences as fellow Pet owners and lovers. It is not
meant to alternate in any way as advice or diagnosis of Professionals. If you
do wish to use any of our published information, you are welcome to contact us!
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