After the opening of its first cat café and owl bar, London is getting a new animal-themed hangout, this one featuring a creature often misunderstood by residents of the British capital.
Due to open this May in an undisclosed East London location, Stevie the Fox will be a pop-up cafe inhabited by six young foxes, all of them trained and domesticated.
Visitors will enjoy hot beverages, Fox's Biscuits and Fox's Glacier Mints in the company of the mammals, representatives of a species too often misunderstood by London's human residents, according to the café's organizers.
"Foxes often receive a lot of bad press due to nuisance they cause in urban areas from destroying bin bags, digging gardens, fouling on the street and making noises throughout the night," reads the project's website. "However our aim is to change that perception and show you how foxes are playful gentle creatures."
The pop-up cafe is set to open each evening (5-9pm) for three weeks starting on May 25. Anticipating high demand, organizers have opened a ballot to distribute tickets. Visitors who gain entry will play £15 (around $22) for one hot drink and 1.5 hours among the foxes.
London's animal hangouts
Stevie the Fox will follow closely on the heels of another recently announced pop-up event, The London Pop-Up Pignic, at which guests will mingle with a litter of micro pigs. In addition to food, pig-themed cocktails and activities, participants will be educated about micro pigs and the realities of micro pig ownership by breeders PetPiggies.
That event will be held at The Proud Archivist, a hybrid gallery, restaurant and cafe on Regent's Canal from May 21-25.
The British capital has seen the opening of several critter-themed cafés in recent years. In May 2014, the city got its first cat bar, inspired by a Taiwanese concept that has become particularly popular in Japan. The idea is based on research showing that spending time with felines helps to reduce stress. At Lady's Dinah Cat Emporium, visitors can sip tea in cozy armchairs while caressing the multiple resident cats.
A few weeks ago, London saw the opening of its first pop-up owl bar, another Japanese import. Tokyo residents are said to be particularly fond of public spaces offering time with domesticated animals, as the city's cramped apartments make it difficult to have pets.
We may not have seen the last of this trend, as there are still other concepts that have yet to be imported, namely the penguin bar and the reptile lounge.
