Brooklyn Cat Cafe Clashes With Health Inspectors Day Of Opening

BROOKLYN HEIGHTS, BROOKLYN — The borough's first cat cafe, which opened its new location on Montague Street this week, is, for the time being, not a cafe.

The Brooklyn Cat Cafe — which lets visitors hang out in a cafe with cats from the non-profit animal shelter, the Brooklyn Bridge Animal Welfare Coalition — ran into some issues with health inspectors on its grand opening day after moving to a bigger space.

Inspectors denied the cafe a permit to serve food or drink after an inspection Wednesday, where it found that the cats violated its prohibition on animals, with the exception of service animals, in a food establishment. The cafe was given 94 violation points for the inspection, records show.

But, according to the owners, the closure was a misunderstanding, since they contend their cafe isn't actually a "food services establishment" since it does not prepare or handle food, BBAWC Executive Director Anne Levin said.

"We are disappointed in and disagree with the DOHMH’s decision to inspect our non-profit as a Food Services Establishment," Levin said. "We basically are offering self-service vending. And it’s all located in a protected area. Thus, we are not under the authority of the DOH and all violations should not apply to our location."

Levin said that the food service establishment designation doesn't fit since the cafe does not prepare or handle food. The retail food store classification also doesn't apply because they only offer pre-packaged, non-potentially hazardous food, she said.

The cafe is more like stores such as Staples, Home Depot or CVS that offer the same items but are not under the purview of the health department, she said.

Health officials did not immediately respond to questions about the cafe's designation.

This is the first official week for the cat cafe at its new space at 76 Montague Street. The cafe had previously operated out of a space on Atlantic Avenue, which Levin said had not been classified as a food service establishment and only inspected by the department's animal division.

Levin said the new cafe will not serve food or drink until they are given a resolution from a judge in a few weeks.

"This is a bit of a delicate situation as cat cafes are a new type of business entity and city agencies are not always able to respond to new situations with necessary flexibility," she said. "While we vehemently disagree with the DOHMH and their position, we would never want to convey a lack of respect for the city code and public health, with which we diligently comply."