CHENNAI: Loud barks welcoming vehicles and pedestrians outside Twisty Tails, the dogthemed restaurant on Ananda Road, in Alwarpet, is a regular affair. But, on Tuesday, it wasn’t these friendly barks but cheers and hoots from a frenzied crowd thronging the entrance of the resto cafe, that guided us to the eatery that was launching its Cat Cafe.
Well, this definitely wasn’t to take a sneak peek of their cafe, which they claim to be the first in South India; but to catch a glimpse of Cooku with Comali fame Ashwin Kumar and Bala, who were invited as chief guests for the launch. Unlike us, who had to wade through a crowd that wasn’t adhering to protocols like wearing masks or maintaining social distance, the in-house puppies and kittens were kept in their designated rooms, away from the chaos.
“We were taken aback by the crowd. To ensure we had a limited guest count and we followed the protocols, we even organised a contest on Twisty Tails’ official Instagram page. Only those who won the passes were supposed to have dinner with us and the celebrities. Despite keeping a tab, things went for a toss. But, with the help of our staff, we were able to do some damage control,” says Rekha Dandey, cofounder Twisty Tails. Launched in 2018, Twisty Tails has now opened its doors to cats.
The 350-sq-ft cat corner houses 16 kittens, of which 12 are exotic breeds and four are indie breeds. “My business partner, Vikram Vaishnav, and I are animal lovers. While I’m a dog person, he’s a cat person; so this idea has been brewing for a couple of years now. A few cat cafes in other parts of India and abroad have also inspired us. Our plan to launch one last year got stalled owing to the pandemic. It’s finally happening! And, given that dogs and cats do not get along, there’s ample distance between the two corners,” she says, excitedly.
The pet lovers at the kitty room would get to walk in and play with the cats. A note with the do’s and don’ts while interacting with the kitties is stuck outside the room. “As of now, we are not allowing customers to bring their pets but they can play with our in-house pets. Unlike the 700-sq-ft puppy room with four attenders, the one for kitties is smaller, attractive with wall murals and toys to keep them engaged. We have three attenders to feed, groom and take care of the kittens,” points out Rekha.
The restaurant is also partnering with NGOs to foster and help facilitate adoption of kittens. The customers, if interested, can directly adopt the kitten from the restaurant. They will also be taking adoption requests for puppies. “We are working on an apparel line for pets and pet parents called Woof and I which is expected to be launched in another two months. We’ve also launched Twisty Treats, a dessert bar, in Madurai. We will be expanding our outlets to other cities soon,” says Rekha who has planned for an interesting line-up of events for pet parents.