Cats & Crumbs cat cafe for rescued kitties opens in Marikina

By ALMA J. BUELVA

​IF Puss in Boots were to open a cat cafe, where do you think it would be?

Well, a bootstrapping cat would probably open one in Marikina, the shoe capital of the Philippines where he can have his favorite leather footwear made to boot (pun intended).

Like taking a page from Puss in Boots' book, a new cat cafe in Marikina opened about a month ago and named itself Cats & Crumbs. Located at the 2/F Terraza Phase 2 C&B Circle Mall, Liwasang Kalayaan Street, Marikina Heights, this latest cat cafe in Metro Manila made room for 10 rescued puspins (Pusang Pinoy) from the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS).

Cats & Crumbs' store facade lets cats to see and be seen outside. (Photo: MetroPets)

​Cats & Crumbs is a halfway home for Miraz, Jadis, Drinian, Rina, Aya, Florita, Venti, Piper, Yuni and Chanyeol. Since arriving at Cats & Crumbs from the PAWS shelter, the 10 cats went straight to work-- which means sleeping, eating, playing and relaxing all the time. If they are up to it, they may engage with the visiting humans who pay P199 for an hour of purrfect joy.

​All 10 cats have been fixed (spayed/neutered) and are up for adoption. They are clean, healthy and with sweet disposition. As you enter their special room, some of them will quickly fuss over you while others will remain as cool as cucumbers just waiting to be petted.

​Swannie Lim and Joyce Abesames of Cats & Crumbs said they are proud to partner with PAWS and to be the first to open a cat cafe in Marikina. They said they really wanted to help raise the public's appreciation for the underrated but brilliant puspins.

“Puspin is a breed. They are beautiful!,” exclaimed Swannie. “I'm glad that a cat cafe for puspins is feasible,” she added.

Joyce Abesames and Swannie Lim of Cats & Crumbs have partnered with PAWS to spread love for puspins. (Photo: MetroPets)

​​Focusing on adoptable puspins was first done by Cat Cafe Manila which partnered with CARA Welfare Philippines, followed by the short-lived Uchi No Neko – Cat House Cafe which had puspins from individual rescuers and organizations like the Philippine Animal Rescue Team (PART). Other cat cafes in the city showcase imported cat breeds—from the common to the exotic.

A visit to any cat cafe also becomes a unique experience because of the thoughtful interior designs. An overstated cat theme is to be expected and welcomed, but those that also provide enough comfort for the cats and patrons alike always get our vote. Cats & Crumbs is not ostentatiously decorated, in fact it's rather sparse, which is okay. We'd rather have comfortable seating areas both in the cafe side and in the cat area side. It has its own toilet and mall parking is available. If you are not familiar with the area, Waze can take you there. Cats & Crumbs' place is bright, clean and roomy enough, but at 50 square meters or so for the entire restaurant, they've decided to limit the number of visitors to the cat area to 10 humans at a time.

​​Although cats make this place go round, getting a quick bite before or after playing with the cats never hurt anyone. Cats & Crumbs offers quick-to-prepare snacks and light dishes as part of the cover charge. A glass wall separates the dining area from the cat area so guests can have pasta or panini and still see a true feline reality show.

Cats and Crumbs is open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.