The Best Places for Cat Lovers in Los Angeles

The Black Cat in Silver Lake is a warm and inviting bar with attentive staff, handsome design, good food and cocktails. But The Black Cat is much more than a bustling neighborhood tavern. The Stonewall Inn in New York is widely regarded as the flashpoint that gave rise to LGBTQ pride. However, the original Black Cat was the site of a peaceful demonstration that took place on Feb. 11, 1967 - two and a half years before the 1969 Stonewall riots. A plaque mounted on the exterior of The Black Cat declares it as "the site of the first documented LGBT civil rights demonstration in the nation." In 2008, the City of Los Angeles recognized The Black Cat as Historic Cultural Monument No. 939. The demonstration that’s commemorated by the plaque stemmed from police raids that took place on New Year’s Eve 1967 at The Black Cat and other gay bars in the area.

The official mascot of the LA Kings, Bailey the Lion wears number 72 "because it's always 72 degrees in Los Angeles." Originally introduced in 2007, Bailey has cheered on the Kings through their first two Stanley Cup championships. Bailey is named in honor of Garnet "Ace" Bailey, the team's Director of Pro Scouting, who was aboard United Airlines Flight 175 on 9/11. Ace Bailey's legacy is honored through his namesake's work with the community and the nonprofit Kings Care Foundation.

Fans can request Bailey for their events - the 30-minute appearance includes a meet & greet and photo ops.

Opened in 1976, Little Tokyo's Kouraku is renowned as the first ramen restaurant in the U.S. The late Hiroshi Yamauchi, who took over Kouraku in 1986, attracted a late night crowd with Japanese comfort food like Tenshin Chahan Ankake - a shrimp omelette on pork fried rice with gravy.

Kouraku is open until 1 a.m. on weeknights and 3 a.m. on weekends. Stop by for lunch, dinner or a late night snack, admire the vintage Japanese posters, and order favorites like Kouraku Special Ramen and Katsudon from the adorable BellaBot. When the kitty robot delivers your order, she instructs you to be careful when you pick up the dishes from her trays. So kawaii and thoughtful!

In Burbank, Catnip Coalition is a vintage mall with a mission to help local felines. Founded by a former vet tech, the shopping destination is filled with independent vendors, all of whom donate a portion of the proceeds to cat rescue partners. Cats roaming through the vintage mall are adoptable, but shop cats Franklin and Nigel have already found their forever home. 

Crumbs & Whiskers started with owner Kanchan Singh’s Kickstarter campaign and the dream of helping more shelter cats get adopted. The first Crumbs & Whiskers in Washington, D.C. did so well that she opened another location on Melrose Avenue in LA. Crumbs & Whiskers ​​partners with local rescues to house homeless cats (mostly six months to two years old) until they find their furever families.

Advance booking is highly recommended. Two ticket options are available (coffee and snacks not included): 30-minute session for $25 and 70 minutes for $40. Guests must be at least 7 years old. Children under age 12 must be accompanied by an adult 18 years or older. Parties of 7 people or more must book a private event.

One of the most recognized cartoon characters in film history, Felix the Cat was created in the silent era and reached the height of his popularity in the Roaring Twenties. Numerous individuals and organizations have adopted the mischievous black cat as a mascot, including LA automobile dealer Winslow Felix, who opened Felix Chevrolet in 1921 at 12th Street and Grand Avenue. Felix was a friend of filmmaker Pat Sullivan, whose animation studio created the pop culture icon. Today Felix Chevrolet is located at Figueroa and Jefferson near the USC campus. The dealership's famous three-sided sign, installed in 1957 and featuring a smiling Felix the Cat, has been a familiar sight to generations of students and drivers.

Unique among aviation museums in Southern California, the Flight Path Museum & Learning Center at LAX is the only aviation museum and research center situated at a major airport, and the only facility with a primary emphasis on contributions of civil aviation to the history and development of Southern California. Exhibits include Commercial Aviation History, Flight Crew Uniforms, Space Exploration, DC-3 Plane and Fire Fighting Vehicle. The Flight Path Simulator Training Program encourages students to pursue further education and careers in aviation.

Named for the Flying Tigers fighter squadron of World War II, the Flying Tiger line (aka Flying Tigers) was the first scheduled cargo airline in the United States and a major military charter operator during the Cold War for both cargo and personnel. Founded by Flying Tigers ace Robert William Prescott, the airline was bought by FedEx in 1988.

The Flying Tigers Exhibit traces the history of the airline, with artifacts from before its founding to its acquisition by FedEx. The former Flying Tigers HQ still stands at LAX and is used by LAWA for administrative functions.

"This is where comics live" - along with shop cats. Opened by Warren Jaycox in 2009, who sadly passed in 2024, Galaxy of Comics offers a free pull service and weekly specials like Twitter Tuesday and Facebook Friday. Galaxy of Comics also hosts Friday Night Magic, Yu Gi Oh! tournaments on Sundays, and SoulGeek Singles night on the second Saturday of every month.

Bookstores are great, and bookstores with resident felines are even better! With over 150,000 books in stock, The Iliad Bookshop in North Hollywood is one of the largest used bookstores in LA, specializing in Literature and the Arts with an inventory that includes a wide range of subjects. Apollo and Zeus came to The Iliad as eight-week-old kittens in August 2014. According to The Iliad, "Apollo (the blonde one) loves to purr and climb ladders; Zeus (the gray tabby) may jump onto your neck unexpectedly." Friendly and sociable, the brothers are active and playful in the mornings and evenings, but in the afternoons they like to sleep in their bed on the front counter. You can read about The Iliad's previous cats, like Zola the "One-Eyed Pirate Kitty" and Charlie "the Silver Bullet," at the bookstore's Pet Gallery.

At Little Lions Social Club in the Arts District, guests book time to hang with the lounge's gang of adoptable cats while enjoying a cup of tea, a good book or some art-making time. Check Little Lions' calendar for special events too. 

Opened in 2014, the Rainforest of the Americas is a state-of-the-art exhibit at the Los Angeles Zoo & Botanical Gardens. Detailed sculptures, educational graphics, and architectural elements create an immersive experience for visitors. Animal highlights include amazing creatures from piranhas and giant otters to harpy eagles and cotton top tamarins.

Built on a hillside at the north end of the Rainforest of the Americas, the jaguar habitat is a 7,100 square-foot exhibit space that includes a waterfall and pool, as well as climbing trees and tall grasses. A legendary symbol of power and strength in ancient cultures like the Maya and Aztec, the jaguar is the largest cat in the Americas and the world’s third largest cat. Jaguars can live in many places but they are most at home in the dense rainforest, where the spotted coat provides camouflage for ambushing its prey. An adjacent 1,800 square-foot holding area provides an off-exhibit retreat. As solitary creatures, jaguars prefer to be alone when they're not courting, mating, or caring for young.

For car buffs, The Vault at the Petersen Automotive Museum is a bucket list experience - an extraordinary collection of more than 250 iconic and rare cars from around the world exhibited in a 60,000 square-foot underground space. One of the highlights of The Vault is Steve McQueen's favorite car, the legendary 1956 Jaguar XKSS that he affectionately nicknamed the "Green Rat." McQueen loved driving this car fast and reportedly received so many speeding tickets his driver’s license was almost suspended twice during his first year of ownership.

The Kitty Bungalow Charm School for Wayward Cats is California's only 100% feral cat rescue and socialization facility. As shelter interventionists, the Kitty Bungalow focuses on the most vulnerable of felines - the ferals. Nearly 80 weekly volunteers use guided socialization techniques and objectives to take these street cats from "hiss to home." Their goal is that these cats never have to see the inside of a shelter and the socialized kittens graduate as "Ivy League lap cats" into lifelong loving homes. More than just finding homes for the homeless kitties, the Kitty Bungalow is working at the root of the problem by providing broad based Trap Neuter Return (TNR) and free spays and neuters to neighborhoods in need within Los Angeles.

Based in the San Fernando Valley since 1946, Galpin Motors is a family-owned, award-winning automotive collective that includes ten dealerships and the Horseless Carriage, "America’s first full-service, in-dealership restaurant." Galpin Motors' renowned in-house customizing and aftermarket center, Galpin Auto Sports (GAS) offers everything from window tinting to complete restorations and coach building - taking the wildest ideas from concept art to reality.

One of LA's best car collections is on view in the GAS showroom, which displays dozens of vehicles, including the outrageous Pink Panthermobile. Originally built in 1969 for $100,000, the bright pink custom limousine was used in the title and credit sequences of "The Pink Panther Show." The Panthermobile was designed by Ed “Newt” Newton and the construction was a collaboration between famed customizers, Dan Woods, Joe Bailon and Bill “The Leadslinger” Hines. Built on a 1960s Oldsmobile Toronado chassis and sculpted out of sheet metal, the Panthermobile is an astounding 23 feet long and six feet wide. A massive 7-liter engine moves the front wheels - the driver’s seat is located outside the vehicle in front of the engine. The clamshell door opens to reveal the "Pleasure Capsule" - a groovy interior with pink shag reclining seats, square-tufted upholstery, faux-fur pillows, a '70s car phone, and a bar. The Pink Panthermobile was bought at auction in 2011 and completely restored by GAS under the supervision of Galpin's Dave Shuten.

A Silver Lake favorite since 1959, the Red Lion Tavern was opened by Ted Mandekic and Edward Pagliano (then-owners of Cole’s Pacific Electric Buffet in Downtown LA) as an “Olde English” pub. New owners took over in 1963 and changed it to a German bar. In 1981, Uwe Backen bought the Lion, remodeled and expanded the bar to three levels, and added the outdoor beer garden in the 90s. The current owners are longtime patrons and friends of the Red Lion, Aidas Mattis and family.

Gather your friends, order boots of beer (2L or 4L available) and nosh on authentic German fare. The Sausage Platter is a must - three whole German sausages (bratwurst, knackwurst, smoked bockwurst) are cut into bite-sized pieces and served with pickles, peppers, and mustard. Another popular starter, the Pretzel Platter features a 14-inch pretzel topped with German sliced ham, salami, landjäger (spiced beef), bierknacker (smoked pork), cheese, pickles, German mustard and obazda. Entrees include the massive Eisbein (boiled pork shank) with sauerkraut, mashed potatoes and gravy, speared with a steak knife; and the Schweinebraten - roast pork loin smothered in gravy, served with red cabbage and mashed potatoes. Veg-friendly options include the Field Roast Veggie Burger in the beer garden; Flammkuchen (traditional German pizza with a white sauce, spinach, onions), and a Vegetarian Bratwurst with mashed potatoes, coleslaw, and German mustard.

There's always something happening at the Lion, from Monday night trivia and Thursday night karaoke to a packed sports schedule. The generous Happy Hour runs Monday through Friday from noon to 5pm.

Serving the communities of Elysian Heights and Great Echo Park, Elysian Heights Elementary Arts Magnet was once the home of one of the most famous cats in the world. One day in 1952, a large gray-striped tabby cat surprised EHS students by wandering into a classroom and staying on campus until the end of lunch. He left as mysteriously as he had appeared. The cat returned for class the next morning, and after a few days of this pattern it became clear that the friendly feline had adopted Elysian Heights Elementary. Although he roamed the halls and slept wherever he pleased, he was named after the classroom where he made his debut: Room 8. When EHS closed for summer vacation, Room 8 vanished. On the first day of school the following September, Room 8 returned, once again showing up every day like clockwork. Room 8 repeated this routine every year for over 15 years and never missed a day. Room 8 also sat front and center in almost every 6th grade class photo from 1953 until 1967.

Word spread about Room 8, and by 1962 he had become an international celebrity. He was featured in countless newspapers and news programs, as well as TIME, Look, Weekly Reader, Art Linkletter's House Party, and a 1968 documentary, Big Cats, Little Cats. Room 8 received over 10,000 fan letters while he lived at EHS - most were answered by EHS students, aka his "secretaries." In 1966, the Room 8 story was told in the classic children's book, A Cat Called Room 8.

Room 8 passed away in 1968 at the ripe old age of 22. His obituary ran in the Los Angeles Times and in papers as far away as Hartford, Connecticut. He is buried at the Los Angeles Pet Memorial Park in Calabasas. Room 8 is immortalized throughout the EHS campus with paintings, photographs and even sketches in cement.

Located in Acton, Shambala Preserve is the high desert home for more than 20 exotic felines confiscated by authorities from roadside zoos and private citizens. Lions, tigers, cougars, leopards, bobcats, and a serval live out their lives at Shambala. The big cat sanctuary was founded by actress Tippi Hedren, who serves as president of the non-profit Roar Foundation and resides at Shambala.

The property is open to the public one weekend a month for Safari Tours, a 2.5-hour planned program that includes a one-hour guided walking tour. Safari Tours are available by advance reservation, for ages 18 and up only.