Our Review Of Java Whiskers Cat Café In Marylebone: Kittens, Coffee And Cakes

Until three years ago, I wasn’t a cat person. That was until I moved into a house where an adorable ragdoll lived on the floor below and came up now and then to watch New Girl with me. When my sister got one I took on my role as auntie seriously, and when Java Whiskers Cat Café opened up in 2020? I was eager to go and my dream came true last weekend. 

Founded in Sweden, the café has London locations in White City and Marylebone and rescues its cats and kittens from The Scratching Post (they're also all up for adoption - a dangerously tempting idea now that my TV partner has moved out). The cosy den is merely only a temporary home in its bid to fight cat homelessness while also offering a cute place to unwind with a slice of cake and a feline friend.

These rescued kitties had plenty of cat-itude.

DesignMyNight Reviews Java Whiskers Cat Café In Marylebone

My flatmate and I visited on a frosty Saturday afternoon where, after signing a waiver agreeing not to forcibly pick the cats up or feed them even a crumb of a croissant, we had to remove our shoes and coats and wash our hands before meeting our new friends. We’d be enjoying one hour and 25 minutes with the cats (£22.99 per person) before heading downstairs to the kittens for 55 minutes (£21.99 per person).

The space was kitted out with glass ceilings offering plenty of natural light, and a black marble fireplace displayed a video akin to what you’d find if you'd typed ‘relaxing fireplace with burning logs and crackling fire sounds’ into Google. There were also plenty of shelves, scratching posts and platforms mounted to the walls for the cats to climb on.

The Java Whiskers Cat Café menu features treats like shortbread, cookies and cupcakes. 

We settled into a corner, complete with a leather sofa and textured throw, and began to tuck into our curried chickpea wraps (£4.95) and millionaire shortbreads (£3.95) which we ordered from the café’ out front. The caramel-covered biscuit had an air of home-baked goods about it and wasn’t too rich - the ideal cappuccino companion. However, we washed everything down with a Coke Zero (£2.50 each) before setting about wiggling some feathers on sticks and giving a few scratches behind the ears.

I was sceptical about eating in front of the cats but they weren’t that fussed. It turned out it was time for their lunch too, as indicated by the sudden increase of meows and attempts at escaping. Individual bowls of finely chopped chicken were scattered about, with one cat being kept an eye on by a member of staff as it ‘had a habit of eating its own food too fast before moving on to everyone else’s and throwing up.’

Sometimes, the 'zoomies' wear off so be prepared to visit during nap o'clock. 

There were mixed temperaments among the cats - some spun in circles trying to catch toys while others sat in chairs like humans, and one simply faced the wall with its eyes closed, potentially all patted-out. I imagine it must be tiring being the centre of attention all the time.

When our time was up, we went downstairs to meet the kittens who all seemed to be sleeping, bar an excitable little white one who was bounding around and loving life. The atmosphere was a lot calmer here, enough to induce around five fur balls into a fuzzy slumber; two found sanctuary in a basket with their paws wrapped around each other's necks while another seemed to have passed out inconveniently in the middle of a soft play tunnel. I hoped that meant it was blissing out. That it had found comfort in its new, temporary home; the same way I had in entertaining its friends for over two hours. 

Overall: Java Whiskers Cat Café London

It’s scientifically proven that spending time with cats reduces stress and anxiety and after my experience at Java Whiskers, I could attest to this. The only thing was that there might’ve been too many people let into the café at once (one child treated it a bit like a petting zoo, which it wasn’t - have you ever had afternoon tea in a petting zoo?). Aside from that, it was wonderful to hang out surrounded by some of the cutest cats I’d ever seen. The only problem was that I wanted to rehome them all and have a stubborn landlord. 

More into canines? Then check out our guide to the best dog-friendly bars and pubs in London.