ST. AUGUSTINE | A nationally recognized St. Augustine nonprofit cafe helps find “furr-ever” homes for cats and kittens, one espresso or pastry at a time in St. Johns County.
Frisky Cat Cafe, at 1092 S. Ponce De Leon Blvd. in the Gates of St. Johns Plaza shopping center, promotes the adoption of cats and kittens through its affiliated nonprofit partner, Small Lives Matter Kitten Rescue, based in Ponte Vedra Beach.
The popular cafe offers handcrafted specialty coffee and espresso drinks, smoothies, teas, beer and wine, plus a selection of sweet and savory pastries. A small market inside features feline accessories and cat-centric merchandise.
The cafe’s best and biggest feature is offering guests an opportunity to pet, play, or just cuddle with about 50 to 60 kitties on any given day. There’s a detailed application process if guests want to adopt a cafe kitty.
Carla Forrest, a passionate and longtime cat rescue veteran, founded and owns Frisky Cat Cafe. Forrest also established and leads Small Lives Matter Kitten Rescue. She traded a banking career to focus on saving cats and kittens.
The cafe has found homes for an estimated 1,900 cats and kittens since opening in March 2020. They average about 350 adoptions a year, Forrest told the Times-Union while surrounded by a half-dozen felines — each vying for her attention, not to mention cat treats.
“It’s not as many as I would like, but we believe in finding [true] forever homes,” she said, noting their priority is finding good homes, not just moving them out to make room for more kitties.
“It’s very relevant to me because we love these cats. I love every single one of them. There is not a soul in here that I don’t really, truly care about. It’s hard for me and sad when they go, of course, but they need and deserve good homes,” Forrest said.
Nominated for nationwide recognition for the second time in as many years, Frisky Cat Cafe is one of the largest cat cafes in Florida, and possibly, the country.
What is a cat cafe?
A cat cafe is an establishment where guests pay a cover charge to hang out with cage-free, roaming cats and kittens while enjoying coffee, tea or other beverages and pastries.
Many, like Frisky Cat Cafe, are affiliated with feline rescue organizations or adoption centers. Most are also nonprofit.
There’s a cover charge — $12 to $14 donation per person, per hour — to visit the lounges. Along with an adoption fee, as well as proceeds from cafe sales, the charge helps pay for essential veterinary care, including spaying or neutering and vaccinations; microchipping, food, enrichment toys and other necessities for the kitties.
Frisky Cat Cafe, which has 50 volunteers, encompasses a total of 2,500 square feet. It boasts three cat lounges, including two separate rooms for kittens.
Resembling a living room, the main cat lounge is filled with home-like furnishings comfortable for cats and human visitors alike. Highlighting the decor are scratching posts, climbing perches, elevated beds and toys — lots of toys.
The 300-square-foot cafe is separate but adjacent to the cat lounge area. Macarons are a specialty of the cafe’s bakery, and locally roasted Bold Bean coffee is served barista-style.
Guests check in at the cafe counter to access the cat lounges. There’s also a small marketplace stocked with cat carriers and other necessities, as well as merchandise such as T-shirts, mugs, paintings and other items.
There are at least 300 cat cafes nationwide as of May. The United States leads the world in the number of cat cafes, according to That Cat Life, considered a definitive online map and guide to the establishments.
Frisky Cat Cafe is among about 25 in Florida. The only other one in Northeast Florida is The Witty Whisker Cat Cafe at 7 Old Mission Ave., also in St. Augustine.
National recognition
Frisky Cat Cafe is nominated for the 2026 USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards for Best Cat Café. The winners will be announced July 1.
In November 2024, Frisky Cat Cafe got its first USA TODAY 10Best Readers’ Choice Awards for Best Cat Cafe.
Last year, the national recognition continued. The cafe was ranked No. 7 in the 2025 Newsweek Readers’ Choice Award for Best Cat Cafe.
Titus, Reese, Jasper, Thema, Wembly and more await ‘furr-ever homes’
Frisky Cat Cafe serves as a foster home for cats and kittens until they have loving “furr-ever homes.” All its cats are available for adoption or just to visit.
Forrest said the adoption fee is $155 for most kitties. That covers the cost of spaying and neutering, vaccinations, a microchip with free registration, monthly flea, tick and parasite prevention, and testing for Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) and Feline Leukemia (FeLV).
Forrest emphasized that they only have cats and kittens that tested negative for FIV and FeLV.
Among the cats and kittens recently available were:
Frisky Cat Cafe is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday through Thursday and 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday, according to its website.
Teresa Stepzinski is the dining reporter for the Times-Union. Follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @TeresaStepz or reach her via email at tstepzinski@jacksonville.com.
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This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: How a St. Augustine cat cafe is finding homes for hundreds of cats
Reporting by Teresa Stepzinski, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union / Florida Times-Union
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Teresa Stepzinski, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union | USA TODAY Network
