Until three years ago, I wasn’t a cat person. Then I moved into a house where an adorable ragdoll lived on the floor below and occasionally wandered upstairs to watch New Girl with me. From there, it spiralled. When my sister got a cat, I took my role as auntie seriously. So when Java Whiskers Cat Café opened its doors in London back in 2020, it went straight on my list. Last weekend, that long-held dream finally happened.
Originally founded in Sweden, Java Whiskers now has London locations in White City and Marylebone. The Scratching Post rescues all the cats and kittens here, and they are all available for adoption. This detail is dangerously tempting, especially now that my usual TV companion has moved out.
The Marylebone café is a cosy den designed as a temporary home for its feline residents. The aim is to help tackle cat homelessness while giving humans a relaxed place to unwind with a coffee, a slice of cake, and a cat curled up nearby.
These rescued kitties came with plenty of cat-itude.
My friend and I visited on a frosty Saturday afternoon. After signing a waiver promising not to pick the cats up or feed them even a crumb of croissant, we removed our shoes and coats and washed our hands before entering. Our booking included one hour and 25 minutes with the adult cats (£22.99 per person), followed by 55 minutes downstairs with the kittens (£21.99 per person).
The space itself is thoughtfully laid out. Glass ceilings flood the room with natural light, while a black marble fireplace plays a looping video that feels like something you’d get by searching “relaxing fireplace with crackling sounds” on YouTube. Shelves, platforms, and scratching posts line the walls, giving the cats plenty of vertical space to explore.
We settled into a corner with a leather sofa and textured throw and tucked into curried chickpea wraps (£4.95) and millionaire shortbreads (£3.95), ordered from the café out front. The shortbread tasted reassuringly homemade and wasn’t overly rich. The shortbreads went perfectly with a cappuccino, but we also chose to have Coke Zero (£2.50 each).
Once fed, we grabbed feather toys and offered a few gentle scratches behind the ears. I was slightly sceptical about eating around the cats, but they were completely unconcerned. That changed quickly when it was their lunchtime. Bowls of finely chopped chicken appeared, accompanied by a chorus of meows and one particularly enthusiastic escape attempt. One cat was carefully supervised, thanks to a habit of eating too fast, stealing everyone else’s food, and promptly throwing it back up.
The cats’ personalities varied wildly. Some spun in frantic circles chasing toys, others perched on chairs like tiny humans, and one simply sat facing the wall with its eyes closed, possibly all patted out. It must be exhausting to receive such adoration all day.
When our time upstairs ended, we headed downstairs to meet the kittens. The majority of the kittens were asleep, with the exception of one small white ball that was clearly having a great time bouncing around the room. The kitten area was calmer, almost meditative. Several fur balls dozed off completely. Two curled up together in a basket with paws wrapped around each other’s necks, while another had passed out mid–soft play tunnel. I chose to believe that the cat felt safe.
Java Whiskers Cat Café London: Overall
Spending time with cats is proven to reduce stress and anxiety, and after my visit, I can vouch for that. The only downside was that it felt slightly busy at times. One child treated the space more like a petting zoo than a calm café, which isn’t ideal for the cats or anyone trying to relax. Aside from that, it was a genuinely lovely experience.
The biggest problem? Wanting to rehome every single cat and having a very stubborn landlord.
Price: £87.87 for two, excluding service charge
Address: 105 Great Portland Street, W1W 6QF
Need to know: At the White City location, you can participate in kitten yoga.
