Although KitTea Cafe, one of San Francisco’s newest teahouses, features somewhat standard fair like sustainably grown tea, cookies, and quiches, its patrons are noticeably hairier than at the average Starbucks. Among the tables and chairs sit roughly a dozen cats, all ready to play and cuddle with customers.

KitTea is the city’s first “cat cafe, ” a Japanese-style teahouse paired with a cat adoption lounge. Cat cafes became extremely popular in Asia, particularly Japan, over the past decade. Driven by a mission to increase cat adoption, KitTea’s founders spent two years developing an American version, dealing with mounds of city restrictions and San Francisco’s infamously pricey real estate.

“We saw how successful it was in Japan, and thought it would do well here, ” says Courtney Hatt, one of KitTea’s three co-founders. “KitTea’s primary commitment is to the welfare of its cats. According to the Humane Society, 71 percent of cats in shelters are euthanized, many of them kittens.”

Before catering to cat lovers, Hatt worked as a marketing specialist in San Francisco’s booming tech scene. When work-related stress started to give her panic attacks, she noticed how playing with her cats eased her mind. She thought others might benefit from feline-assisted relaxation and saw an opportunity to find happy homes for cats. KitTea partners with Give Me Shelter, a San Francisco-based animal shelter that rescues cats from around the state (with a focus on older cats that are often passed over). The founders don’t skimp on tea, either; KitTea’s offerings come direct from Japan.

“The cafe’s top-of -the-line cat lounge creates a relaxing environment for both the cats and patrons. KitTea’s goal is to allow people to interact with cats in a safe space that will encourage bonding and subsequent adoptions, ” Hatt says. “KitTea will also be featuring a variety of teas, and aims to introduce patrons to high-quality blends from a small, sustainable farm in Kyoto, Japan.”

When Hatt developed the idea in 2016, she used crowdfunding service Tilt to both raise money and gauge local interest. The response was staggering. KitTea raised $60, 000 from over 1, 000 San Franciscans in just 27 days.