New cat café Purrfect Bean set for April opening in the Fan

Screenshot 2025 01 17 at 3.13.32 PM

The Purrfect Bean is slated to open sometime this April. (Photo by Jackie DiBartolomeo)

Cat and coffee lovers alike will soon have a new hangout when Richmond’s newest – and only – cat café debuts this spring in the Fan.  

The Purrfect Bean is set to open in April in a 1,700-square-foot, two-story location at 214 N. Lombardy St. The new café space used to host the brick-and-mortar location of Westray’s Finest Ice Cream, which closed last August to focus on its ice cream trucks. 

Purrfect Bean customers will be able to sip on coffee and tea options along with getting play time with adoptable cats from a local Richmond animal shelter. 

Owner Michelle Langham, who hails from Northern Virginia, fosters multiple animals out of her home in Powhatan. Not long after moving to Powhatan, Langham noticed the lack of a cat café in the Richmond area. 

Screenshot 2025 01 17 at 3.17.56 PM

Michelle Langham

With a love of animals and a background working various managerial and retail positions, she wanted to combine her two interests with a new venture.

“I wanted to do something different that married my passion with my background,” she said. “It aligned with my passion, which is helping animals.” 

One of the reasons she chose the Lombardy Street location is its walkability and proximity to VCU, the school’s students a demographic she’s trying to target with the café. 

She hopes that the café can be a place where people can hang out, relax and go on dates in an alcohol-free environment while also getting some face time with the adoptable cats, making the café a place that is “equally beneficial for humans and animals.” 

But don’t worry about getting cat hair in your coffee. The café space will be on the first floor, while the cats will be upstairs in a free roaming area for customers to come play with and potentially take home. The animal shelter Langham will be partnering with has not yet been announced. 

Customers will pay separately for their coffee or tea, along with an hourly rate for spending time with the cats, which Langham said hasn’t been determined yet. 

Though she’s still working on the café’s all-vegan menu, Langham is looking to source all local goods from the likes of Afterglow Coffee Cooperative and other local coffee and tea vendors. 

While the Purrfect Bean may be Richmond’s only cat café, it isn’t the city’s first. Shockoe Bottom used to be home to cat café Central Purrk at 1706 E. Main St. 

Screenshot 2025 01 17 at 3.19.23 PM

The ground floor, pictured here under construction, will house the Purrfect Bean’s café space. (Photo by Jackie DiBartolomeo)

Central Purrk operated for around three years and found homes for dozens of cats before ultimately closing in December of 2019. Former owners Angela and Jeff Sidener could not be reached for comment. 

As she gears up for a spring opening, Langham is doing some major renovations to the former ice cream shop. Work includes replacing flooring in the 1920s-era building. 

The café’s exterior will soon be painted with some feline-inspired art. Each floor will also be getting its fair share of cat-related décor, including a mural in the main café space. 

Tentative hours for Purrfect Bean are Sundays and Wednesdays through Fridays, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. The café will likely be closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.

Screenshot 2025 01 17 at 3.13.32 PM

The Purrfect Bean is slated to open sometime this April. (Photo by Jackie DiBartolomeo)

Cat and coffee lovers alike will soon have a new hangout when Richmond’s newest – and only – cat café debuts this spring in the Fan.  

The Purrfect Bean is set to open in April in a 1,700-square-foot, two-story location at 214 N. Lombardy St. The new café space used to host the brick-and-mortar location of Westray’s Finest Ice Cream, which closed last August to focus on its ice cream trucks. 

Purrfect Bean customers will be able to sip on coffee and tea options along with getting play time with adoptable cats from a local Richmond animal shelter. 

Owner Michelle Langham, who hails from Northern Virginia, fosters multiple animals out of her home in Powhatan. Not long after moving to Powhatan, Langham noticed the lack of a cat café in the Richmond area. 

Screenshot 2025 01 17 at 3.17.56 PM

Michelle Langham

With a love of animals and a background working various managerial and retail positions, she wanted to combine her two interests with a new venture.

“I wanted to do something different that married my passion with my background,” she said. “It aligned with my passion, which is helping animals.” 

One of the reasons she chose the Lombardy Street location is its walkability and proximity to VCU, the school’s students a demographic she’s trying to target with the café. 

She hopes that the café can be a place where people can hang out, relax and go on dates in an alcohol-free environment while also getting some face time with the adoptable cats, making the café a place that is “equally beneficial for humans and animals.” 

But don’t worry about getting cat hair in your coffee. The café space will be on the first floor, while the cats will be upstairs in a free roaming area for customers to come play with and potentially take home. The animal shelter Langham will be partnering with has not yet been announced. 

Customers will pay separately for their coffee or tea, along with an hourly rate for spending time with the cats, which Langham said hasn’t been determined yet. 

Though she’s still working on the café’s all-vegan menu, Langham is looking to source all local goods from the likes of Afterglow Coffee Cooperative and other local coffee and tea vendors. 

While the Purrfect Bean may be Richmond’s only cat café, it isn’t the city’s first. Shockoe Bottom used to be home to cat café Central Purrk at 1706 E. Main St. 

Screenshot 2025 01 17 at 3.19.23 PM

The ground floor, pictured here under construction, will house the Purrfect Bean’s café space. (Photo by Jackie DiBartolomeo)

Central Purrk operated for around three years and found homes for dozens of cats before ultimately closing in December of 2019. Former owners Angela and Jeff Sidener could not be reached for comment. 

As she gears up for a spring opening, Langham is doing some major renovations to the former ice cream shop. Work includes replacing flooring in the 1920s-era building. 

The café’s exterior will soon be painted with some feline-inspired art. Each floor will also be getting its fair share of cat-related décor, including a mural in the main café space. 

Tentative hours for Purrfect Bean are Sundays and Wednesdays through Fridays, 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. The café will likely be closed on Mondays and Tuesdays.

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jay levine
jay levine
22 days ago

Happy to see this spot re-open in the neighborhood, but wish they would consider opening earlier—mornings are the best time to attract coffee drinkers 🙂

Amanda Beagan
Amanda Beagan
22 days ago

I would love to find out how to get in touch with Ms. Langham regarding this project.

Dave Smith
Dave Smith
22 days ago

Do most cat cafe’s have a fee to just interact with the cats?

Liz Smith
Liz Smith
22 days ago
Reply to  Dave Smith

Not sure but I don’t think the one in Shockoe Bottom charged a fee.

J B Wood
J B Wood
21 days ago
Reply to  Dave Smith

Most of the ones I have read about in other cities do charge for visiting the cats