The Cat House - Norwich — Restaurant in Norwich

In short, this is a must go if you think cats are cute and like coffee.

The cats are obviously loved and the atmosphere is lovely. The cats are calm and friendly, my partner and I had a cat immediately come up to us and cuddle with us for a solid ten minutes. My partner liked his iced coffee, the deluxe hot chocolates looked delicious (think Ned Flanders’s hot chocolate). Loved that they sold independent artists work and art of the cats in-house. It’s also a walkable distance from the city centre or you can grab a bus as there’s a stop right outside if you don’t drive. This place has soul and you can tell it’s a true labour of love.

The young man that served us was an absolute star.

Guide for any fellow autistic or anxious people: aim to arrive 10-5 mins earlier for your appointment. You’ll be greeted at the door by a member of staff and asked for the name on the booking.

In the waiting area you’ll find some chairs to the left for you to sit in while you wait, and to the right the till and gift shop. The waiting area may get a little crowed but there’s some space by the till that you can wait by.

Once it’s time, you’ll be given a brief overview of the Cat House Rules, and given a token to use back for a drink (if it’s not used it has to be returned).

You’ll walk through two sets of doors to the open plan cafe. At the end of the left hand side of the cafe you’ll find the area that you order any food or drinks from. On the left side to this through the glass doors there’s a catio. The cafe itself has a selection of seats to choose from - dining chairs, sofas and armchairs. When someone’s order is ready a staff member will call out the order. The cafe has art dotted around. On the tables you’ll find little guides about the cats and a menu. Cat toys are placed throughout the cafe. Towards the end of the time slot a member of staff will call out that the time slot is ending and how much is left. The atmosphere is friendly, respectful and quiet. Personally, I found the music playing to be quite low and calm and the lighting is also quite gentle and not dazzling. As this establishment is for cats things can’t get as hectic your usual cafe. The noise can pick up but it’s not to the usual cafe or restaurant levels.

I’ve added videos and photos to my review so you can check out the volume, brightness and “busy” levels, so keep in mind that our appointment was midday...

We were hugely pleasantly surprised by how many cats and how many variant breeds are here. This is approximately the fourth or fifth such feline-related areas I have been to across two countries and this is by some distance the best of them.

The primary purpose being angled as a lounge rather than a cafe makes a subtle but important distinction and enhances the therapeutic aspect of being amongst the animals in a very laid-back and welcoming environment. That the premises also host a wide variety of other sessions such as arts and crafts, yoga, and other cat-themed sessions further serves to set this venue apart and elevate it above "just" car cafés.

The cats were clearly very well-loved and cared for and have a catio outdoor space as well as a private back room to which they can retreat if they want to, an abundance of multifaceted sleeping and playing spots as well as constantly running water fountain, exercise wheel, plenty of climbing and lounging options further make this a cat nirvana. There also appear to be quite strict quantities of people per session which likely ensures that the sweet pussycats remain chilled and stress-free.

The variety of drinks and snacks provided are equally ethical in their sourcing and wide variety with some locally sourced ice creams for milkshakes (including vegan options!), kombucha's and all the cakes were vegan (at least 1 was also gluten-free, and local beers!

The staff are friendly and welcoming, the other customers were respected one another and most importantly of the cats. There were also many cat-themed games and other activities available to play or engage in, and the gift shop has an eclectic range of items including some incredibly beautiful artwork by local...

What a wonderful place to go! I have only been to another cat cafe in London once before and Cat House in Norwich is at least as good as that one! We went on a Friday evening after work to do crochet. Every single person we met was lovely. The staff were kind, knowledgeable about the cats, polite and prompt in everything they did. The cafe itself was light, bright and clean. The cats had SO MANY places to hang out and the catio was awesome too! Finally, the most important thing, the cats: I was impressed by how relaxed, friendly and at ease the cats were in the space. There were cats everywhere and most of them were sleeping on one of the many extraordinary perches available to them. Some of the braver cats were getting involved with the crochet, some were watching cat TV and some were chasing toy mice. Cleo was running on the cat wheel and clearly enjoying herself, calling over to us and begging us to watch her go! The crochet was good, but I was terrible at it and after doing about 20 basic stitches I ended up chilling with the cats and left the other visitors to it! I was very impressed to see that there was a tunnel from the main room into a back room where the cats could go to the toilet, eat and also just chill out away from people if they chose to. They were clearly choosing to be together, with the visitors, in the main cafe. They all looked so well cared for too. I would definitely go back again and would highly recommend it to anyone who loves cats. What a wonderful place to find so...