Buy a coffee, adopt a cat: Cattitude Cafe opens Saturday in downtown Sioux Falls

Symmone Gauer, Sioux Falls Argus Leader
·4 min read
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Owner Heather Wendlandt plays with cats at The Cattitude Cafe on Wednesday, July 12, ahead of the opening Saturday.
Owner Heather Wendlandt plays with cats at The Cattitude Cafe on Wednesday, July 12, ahead of the opening Saturday.

Get ready for cat cuddles, because The Cattitude Cafe opens this Saturday in downtown Sioux Falls.

The new cafe will feature a separate room where customers can pet and play with adoptable cats from the Sioux Falls Area Humane Society, all while enjoying their favorite coffee drink.

Owner Heather Wendland got the idea after visiting a cat cafe in Minneapolis several years ago, and knew it was just what the city needed.

“I just fell in love with the concept,” she said. “I mean, helping cats find their forever home and giving them a really good place to be while they wait for it is what drives me.”

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Anywhere from 15 to 20 cats at a time will live full-time at the cafe until they are adopted.

The cafe menu will include standard coffee drinks like lattes and espresso as well as smoothies, coke products, beer and wine. The focus will be on “light and healthy” food options such as charcuterie boards, salads, parfaits, sandwiches and gluten free wraps.

Drinks can be taken into the cat room, but food cannot.

The dining room at The Cattitude Cafe features a separate HVAC and ventilation system than the cat room, so customers with allergies will not have to worry.
The dining room at The Cattitude Cafe features a separate HVAC and ventilation system than the cat room, so customers with allergies will not have to worry.

Cat room features resident, adoptable cats

Up to 15 customers can be in the cat room at a time, so everyone will have a cat to cuddle, Wendland said.

There is a separate HVAC and ventilation system, so people with allergies can enjoy the cafe worry-free. There is also a “cat tv” window between the two rooms so guests can watch the cats and vice versa.

A kitten named Darla will be a permanent resident at the Cattitude Cafe. She’ll arrive Monday after getting her shots.

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And don’t worry, there are designated cat sitters employed at The Cattitude Cafe who will make sure the kittens are well-cared for. Wendland said there was so much interest in the position; they had 300 applicants but only needed eight.

“Everybody is just really excited to be here,” she said.

Jenkins the cat sits in the "cat tv" window between the dining room and the cat room at The Cattitude Cafe on Wendesday, July 12 in downtown Sioux Falls.
Jenkins the cat sits in the "cat tv" window between the dining room and the cat room at The Cattitude Cafe on Wendesday, July 12 in downtown Sioux Falls.

There are seats and lounge areas as well as a table area where people can “work from home” on their laptops. There is also a separate room behind a mural, closed to customers, for the cats’ litter boxes and for if they get overstimulated and want time away from people.

Wendland’s own four cats are featured on the mural, which was painted by Josh Baade.

How to adopt at the Cattitude Cafe

“The Humane Society’s just been amazing through all this,” Wendland said. “They even have a 'Feline Friends' room where all the cats coming here can get adjusted to each other first.

The Cattitude Cafe opens Saturday, July 15, in downtown Sioux Falls. The cat room will feature between 15-20 adoptable cats from the Sioux Falls Area Humane Society.
The Cattitude Cafe opens Saturday, July 15, in downtown Sioux Falls. The cat room will feature between 15-20 adoptable cats from the Sioux Falls Area Humane Society.

If someone falls in love and wants to take a cat home, they can fill out the application right on the humane society’s website, and approvals generally only take 20 minutes. Then they’ll receive a call and make a payment directly to the shelter.

All that person has to do in the meantime is let the staff know which cat they want to adopt, and they’ll switch out green “adoptable” collars for red “pending” collars.

“Hopefully, they’ll be leaving with the cat,” Wendland said.

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All cats are vaccinated, chipped and spayed or neutered. Outside pets are not allowed because the mission is to get cats adopted, Wendland said. She also said she’s excited but also knows it will be hard to see them go. She’s already really close with the cats, she said.

“I love them all so much I just want to keep them,” Wendland said. “But it’ll be good. Each of them has their little thing…but they’re all friendly and just so lovable.”

Cafe hours will be 6:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, and 6:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays. The cat room opens at 7 a.m. each day to give people a chance to order food beforehand.

The Cattitude Cafe will feature a separate room where customers can take their drink and play with adoptable cats from the Sioux Falls Area Hume Society.
The Cattitude Cafe will feature a separate room where customers can take their drink and play with adoptable cats from the Sioux Falls Area Hume Society.

“Bringing something like this to the community, I think, is so beneficial to everybody and to the cats,” Wendland said. “It gives them an opportunity to be showcased and to get adopted faster, and it hopefully makes them more socialized so they’ll make better pets. This is really a special venture for me and I'm excited to open.

Customers can make reservations for the cat room online or in person. The admission price is $10 per person per hour, or $6 per person per half hour. For more information about the cats, visit online or follow along with The Cattitude Cafe on Facebook.

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: Cattitude Cafe opens in downtown Sioux Falls on Saturday