A much-anticipated cat cafe is opening its doors: Called Whiskers and Soda Cat Café, it'll be a sanctuary in East Dallas for cat lovers to grab a coffee, and it's celebrating its grand opening on March 25, at 10320 Garland Rd.

The location also includes Griffin Rock Cat Retreat, a luxurious cat boarding facility open for up to 12 cats/cat families.

Both are owned by Lake Highlands residents Caroline and Rob Stovall, as a way to support their work in cat rescue with A Voice for All Paws (AVAP), a nonprofit cat rescue organization.

According to a release, their goal with Whiskers and Soda Cat Café is to provide a place for potential adopters to connect with cats. The cats will also be provided with veterinary care.

The café will feature the following amenities:

• visiting area with beverages and pastries by local Leila Bakery
• a one-of-a-kind sofa just for cats
• shelves for cats to wander
• more cat related areas
• a kitten room for people specifically focused on kittens
• a visiting room for those wanting to spend time with cats before adoption

You have to pay to visit the Cat Café - this is a charitable endeavor - with choice of a monthly membership or payment for a single visit, subject to availability. They're offering an opening promotion of $10-$12.50 a month.

Anyone who adopts a cat gets the hourly fee deducted, and other benefits will be provided.

Adjoining the cafe is the Griffin Rock Cat Retreat, the boarding facility which offers each cat or cat family its own private room, with space to run, toys, ramps, TV, and interactive camera/audio device.

As the release notes, Stovall is originally from the UK, and was shocked at the horrendous animal welfare laws in Texas.

"I've worked in a number of rescues in Dallas, but I finally decided that it was time to take the next step," she says. "Our team, along with volunteers, will run the cat café, cat retreat and adoption center. We will run it like a business with a coffee shop where people can work. We see these businesses as a means of funding our non-for-profit organization, too.”

When cats are found and don’t have homes, A Voice for All Paws covers spay/neuter, microchipped, deworming, medications, baths, vet exams, shots, and check for parasites. Getting kittens and cats socialized around people and other animals eases adoptions.

"Having a place where people can visit cats ready for adoption will be a huge benefit to AVAP," Stovall says.