Maxwell A.
Yelp
On the lower slopes of Capitol Hill nestles a somewhat peculiar tourist destination: one of Seattle's handful of cat cafes, known as Neko.
Through my stressful time living two blocks away from Neko while fostering my beloved cat with a relative in another neighborhood, this little space set into the ground on the corner of Pine and Belmont gave me solace with its array of beautiful, inquisitive cats rolling playfully around their amply-provisioned room or sleeping comfortably in the windows (and sometimes posing for my camera). When I had the time to come in, the pawtenders greeted me pleasantly and helped me get to know the cats and unwind from the tension of the day.
In an age of drama and high tension, Neko's Seattle location provided an island of feline and human calm. The pawtenders were always pleasant and willing to talk, and the menu was always fun to check out. The options for _pan_ (a Japanese pastry with a filling that's usually savory) make for a delightful snack, the cat-shaped cookies are a delight to view, and the everpresent coffee (as well as tea and kombucha) is good and reasonably-priced for the neighborhood. The available alcoholic drinks (beer, cider, wine, and hard seltzer) are pleasant but not too strong, and the pawtenders watch over patrons carefully to make sure they're not too intoxicated to abide by the calm atmosphere or interact safely with the cats.
The cafe section of this location is small but boasts a comfortable ambience. On less busy days, it is a wonderful place to have some coffee or tea and a snack and dwell with a book or some work for a while. However, if you do, be aware that large groups of visitors preparing to enter the cat room will come and go.
Of course, the cat room is the main feature here. I confess I have never gone into it; the time and pricing ($22 for 45 minutes with the cats) was never right for me, and I never had a good group to do it with. But I have observed from both outside on the sidewalk and inside at the counter how much fun the visiting groups have with the cats--as well as how active, healthy, and entertained all the cats are.
The employees all adore their location's cats and will be happy to bend your ear about the status of their favorites and whether the latest of the adoptable residents has found a fur-ever home. It is always a delight to pause by the windows on my way past the cafe late at night and observe the cats playing with the closing employees as they clean the room and check on the feline residents.
The impression I get is also that the employees are respected and treated well, which is a major aspect I look for at any business location involving customer service employees. Pawtenders are granted the authority to use their own music playlists at the bar (one of the specific things I look for when trying to gauge what freedom and respect they have, due to my own experiences in retail and customer service), and more than that, some of them are invited to sell their cat-themed independent art in the location along with the official Neko products.
I can't end without a shoutout to those official products: Neko has a wide array of fun merchandise themed around both cats in general and the Neko business in particular, from clothing to enamel pins to cat toys. In particular, I am deeply endeared to their practice of creating and selling monthly stickers and enamel pins of resident cats, encouraging visitors to get to know and love their feline personnel.
Although I no longer live around the corner from this location, I have it in mind to return here seeking an island of genial calm and feline affection still.