This week, feline lovers in New York City got the chance to pet and snuggle with cute cats while enjoying a complimentary cup of coffee at the new pop-up Cat Café in Manhattan.

Located in Manhattan's Lower East Side, hundreds of people lined up to get inside of the Cat Café on Thursday to meet the 16 cats roaming the restaurant and drink special "cat'achino" cappuccinos. Organized by pet food brand Purina ONE, the goal of the feline-friendly pop-up shop is to spread awareness about cat health awareness and adoption.

"The goal of what we're doing here is try to start a conversation about cat health. What better place to do that then over a cup of coffee with some friends in a café? We thought if people are going to be talking about cat health, you should be among your subjects and have cats all around you," Niky Roberts of Purina ONE said to CNN.

Roberts added that the pop-up shop, which will last until Sunday, served cappuccinos with cat faces drawn in the foam and offered guests toys like flicked furry and feathered balls attached to sticks to intrigue the animals. It also featured a "Cat Chat" speaker series with discussions led by a cat behaviorist, a veterinarian and feline experts.

"It's a great thing because dogs are very publicly social — you can take your dog out and go for a walk, talk to people at the dog park — but that's not a luxury most cat owners have, so this is a place you can talk with like-minded people about cat health and be among cats," said Roberts.

Because the shop received such a wide reception on Thursday, hundreds of people were turned away but were then granted an exclusive Cat Cafe VIP Pass to avoid the long lines on Friday, reports the Gothamist.

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