Hao Ju and Joey Fu are from China, where cat cafés originated. They love cats and want to share their passion with others. Their inspiration came as a result of visiting a cat café in San Antonio, Texas, but they were not impressed.
They thought that building a cat café like the ones in Asia would be better.
So they did some research and decided to open a cat café in College Station, Texas, home of Texas A&M University. Hao is a graduate student in agribusiness at the university, and he used his skills to make his dream come true. He and Joey opened H&J’s Teahouse in the late summer of 2021.
H&J’s Teahouse is the first cat café in Aggieland. It has 19 cats, most of them retired breeders or show cats. They have different breeds and personalities, and they love to play and cuddle with the visitors.
Only one of the cats is up for adoption. Hao and Joey want to partner with local animal shelters to offer more adoptable cats in the future. They explained that in Asia, cat cafés usually have permanent resident cats, but in America, people like to adopt cats from cat cafés.
Hao and Joey made their intentions clear that they wanted to help more cats find their forever homes.
Visitors to the café can pay by the hour or by the half-hour and enjoy the company of the cats. They can also feed them, groom them, and take pictures with them.
“They can expect a full cat experience,” Hao said. “The cats are very friendly and playful. They will make you happy and relaxed.”
The café also serves boba milk tea, a popular Asian drink. The best part is that the café donates 25% of its proceeds to the Aggieland Humane Society twice a month. That means by spending time with cats, you are also helping save more cats in need!
So, if you are in the College Station area, visit H&J’s Teahouse and have a purr-fect time with the cats! You might even find your new best friend!