Maginahawa Chronicles: Cat Cafe Manila

Research shows that cats can help us deal with our stress. Just by watching your cats do antic tricks already help relieve stress, said David Frei who is the spokesperson for the Delta Society. which is a nonprofit organization interested in relationships between people and animals. 

I was trying to find a way to calm myself and temporarily escape the pressure of school with loads of papers and other requirements, and so I called my childhood friend Brine and invited him to go to Cat Cafe Manila in Maginhawa, Quezon City. I have seen a documentary on Pop Talk that Cat Cafe Manila is a must-try since you can not just have your usual coffee and cupcake, but you can also throw away that stress by mingling with different cats at the cafe.

We had once a cat named Muning and other two stray cats which we named Orange (because of her fur color) and Blue (because of his bright blue eyes). We lost them when we moved away from La Mesa Dam to Bulacan four years ago, and most of the time I missed them because there's nothing like hugging and stroking a cat which calms me down and takes away whatever stressed feelings I have. I remembered how smart Muning was, who would often sneak into our bedroom windows and climb onto our beds to wake us up in early in the morning.

As we entered the Cat Cafe, I was suddenly filled with nostalgia when I saw the beautiful cats, which had name tags and were sleeping during that time. There were house rules before entering the cafe: you should first wash your hands and take off your shoes or sandals. The place was a little small but very comfortable and bright-lit. The ambiance was also nice: once you enter, you would first see the counter and the variety of cupcakes and brownies that you could order, and also a wide array of cat-inspired merchandise. 

Rainbow Cat Cupcake

Moica Cupcake

You would automatically have a one-hour session with the cats, which is P100 and another P100 worth of food and drinks. 

Because there were still quite a lot of people who were playing with the cats during that time, my friend and I decided that we ordered first and chat for a little while. We ordered coffee and Moica and Rainbow Cat Cupcakes (P60 each). The cupcakes were moist on the inside with the right amount of sweetness. The coffee was not too strong. You could also add creamer, milk and sugar in your coffee.

A guy who always has interesting stories to tell, Brine told me about his life so far studying in UP Los Banos. He also talked about our favorite series "Big Bang Theory" and shared scientific ideas. I on the other hand, simply listened and we also exchanged stories.

After a while, we decided to play with the cats but unfortunately, most of them were still sleeping. Part of the house rules was to not stress the cats by carrying them especially when they sleep, and so we just sat with them and took pictures of them. Some of the cats were roaming around and even one of them climbed on top of one of the high stools.

Cat Cafe Manila is located at the 2nd Floor of 189 Maginhawa Street in Sikatuna Village. You can visit their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/catcafemanila?fref=ts.