This won’t be found at Alexandria’s cat café, but it really should be. Photo by angela n.
Apparently, cat cafés are the new cupcake shops. After the inaugural one—Crumbs & Whiskers—opened in Georgetown earlier this summer, there’s already a Kickstarter to bring one to Alexandria.
Nyree Wright is hoping to open the pHinicky pHeline Cat Café in Alexandria soon, the Post first reported. But what separates her cat café vision from Crumbs & Whiskers is her target clientele, which is much older than the Georgetown café’s.
“We welcome and want everyone to enjoy the company of our cats, but we especially encourage senior citizens on a specific day to visit and to spend quality time with our mature pets,” Wright says in her Kickstarter page.
Wright adds that her cat café will operate in a similar fashion as Crumbs & Whiskers: there will be a cover fee to get in as well as refreshments patrons can enjoy while playing with the cats. But pHinicky pHeline will take the concept a bit further, with plans to have a wine bar in the evening. Of course, you’ll be able to adopt all the cats in the café.
Like Crumbs & Whiskers, pHinicky pHeline is going to take a lot to open up shop. So far, Wright says she’s already talking with the city of Alexandria for a location, looking into adoption partners, and exploring the regulations of having a wine bar in a cat-friendly place.
Her Kickstarter is looking to raise $65,000 to help pay for leasing, licensing and permits, and initial operating costs. The Kickstarter, Wright says, isn’t to determine if the café opens, but when.