Coffee and the Cats — Restaurant in Rapid City

I’d been hearing about this place for some time through Facebook chatter and I decided to come check it out. I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect. It was a cold and foggy day, so a piping hot coffee and snack seemed like a good idea. We set out to Coffee and Cats for our first experience. The store is on Saint Patrick’s street just, next to a daycare and across the street from Calvary Church. As we approached I could see a little sign in the window displaying an artistic rendition of a cat with the words “Coffee, Because Murdered is Wrong”. I burst out laughing because I happen to love cats, and the depiction was purrfect. Teaching one of the Ten Commandments across the street from a church using cats and coffee to get the point across seemed oddly appropriate.

In we go to a very cozy atmosphere, with cool ceiling tiles, plush couches, eclectic wall art and an ample supply of coffee flavors abound. Steam is rising through the air out of a nicely equipped coffee machine. From around it comes one of the owners to welcome us in. Very nicely done. Each choice is cat-related and I decided to go simple. I got the Siamese (Vanilla and Cinnamon) and our second was the hot coco (with marshmallow and graham cracker). After placing our order we had time to look at the delectable offerings in the glass case.

Cookies, pastries and fun stuff like the jiggly kitty infused with a flavored tea and milk. I got one of those too. It was a hard choice I must admit.

We opted to see the cats and made a donation. The cats are in an enclosure with clear windows so you can watch them play on the many obstacle courses inside. The entire store is very clean and well kept. I was wondering how you mix cats and coffee and now I had the answer. Both coffee and coco were amazing. The little jiggly kitty not only tasted great, but provided quite a bit of entertainment before taking the spoon to split its head open. I didn’t feel bad at all.

Once we were finished it was time to see the cats. We were guided over to the door, given friendly and clear instructions, provided sanitizer and sprayed our shoes before entering. We were greeted by some friendly cats who wanted attention and others that simply stayed where they were. All-around it was fun. We didn’t end up taking a cat home, but that’s not required and it was really enjoyable!

The owners are three young adults. I’m not sure of their age, but it was impressive to see entrepreneurial endeavors such as this with our youth. Way to go!

It’s worth it to take a drive over here and support such a cool place, great owners and a unique concept with wonderful coffee, coco, pastries and cats to entertain. I encourage you to support them and I intend to go back again, especially during the winter months when I feel like a sweet, a coffee, great service and a few cats to look and laugh with.

Congrats on your business and count me in as a customer and cheerleader...

The owner of this establishment, Jessica, threatened me by brandishing her beige pistol in my direction and then later denied it (likely because it's illegal). I know, I can't believe I'm typing this right now either. Jessica looks to be in her 50s, wears glasses and sits with a laptop at the shop most of the time.

I had been regular patron to this shop and even interacted and joked with Jessica and other staff on multiple occasions, so, when I felt self-conscious about having had a long phone conversation with my out-of-state mother in the parking lot while they were closing, I wanted to explain. When I approached Jessica in a non-threatening manner from no closer than ~50 ft away, she threatened me with her gun like I was an unknown dangerous criminal remarking "do you see this?!". On top of thinking she would have recognized me, it was broad daylight next to a very busy intersection on a Sunday.

After explaining the misunderstanding (which they understood) and making it clear that I was not upset, I expected an apology in return. Rather, and bizarrly, Jessica chose to lie about what actually occurred, altered her lies as she went along, continued to treat me poorly, blocked me on social media, while later making further threats in the form of police reports and even litigation for my previous negative review.

Knowing I would never remotely treat another human being in this manner, let alone a customer, I hold others to the same standard. Even after the threat of violence towards me I was ready to move on, but, unfortunately, the situation was mishandled every step of the way and ended with no accountability, apology, or even an olive branch.

Update: Do not believe the multiple dishonesties in Jessica's response; she had started lying from the word go and subsequently decided to dig her heels in further. Additionally, notice how she intentionally fails to admit she pulled her beige pistol in my direction; I could have had her arrested for her actions. Cameras would show she was so far away I was not sure if she could hear me or even recognize me, and, obviously no threatening actions were made. I was literally filled with incredulity that this was happening to me. I cannot believe this is a grown woman. Shame on you Jessica, all you had to do was apologize for grossly misreading...

What an adorable cat cafe! We were traveling in the area as a family, and I looked a few months ago to see if city had a cat cafe. At that time, we could not find one. We happened to check again when we were in town, and noticed that one came up on Google maps. We were so excited! A quickly scheduled reservations for the next day, and add the cat room to ourselves later in the afternoon. We've been to quite a few cat cafes, all over the US and Canada. We love supporting these places and their mission. I did go to the cafe with two school age children /teens.

Some awesome things about this location. First, and we love the atmosphere. Lots of comfortable chairs in the main room, including a fireplace and fun cat decor. Second, both of the employees that were working were super friendly and helpful. The male employee that was working actually introduced us to all of the cats, and gave us a bit of a backstory. You could tell he was really passionate about the cats and who cared for them. Third, we loved all of our drinks! The pumpkin coffee was delicious, they had some non-caffeinated teas which was wonderful for the afternoon, and we got some hot chocolate for the kids. They really enjoyed it! Last, we loved how we had the cat room to ourselves. They only allow five people to enter the cat room at a time, because it is a little bit cozy. It was a perfect size for the amount of cats they had, four at the time we visited. The cats had a great climbing wall and lots of activities. The room was also very clean. The cats were social, and allowed us to pet them and even jumped on our laps.

The cafe also just sell a variety of foods including some baked goods that looked absolutely delicious. They had a small area of non-food items you could purchase as well.

Even if you don't schedule time in the cat cove to spend with the kitties, I would highly recommend stopping in to get a few drinks to support! They do offer in house dining or you can get drinks to go. You can also see the cats from the main room. Great...