Written by: Rourke Blignaut

Date Written: 3/22/25

Cats and Crystals located in Oceanside on 510 N Coast Hwy is now open to the public with the ribbon cutting taking place last Saturday at 2 PM. This is a cat lounge/cafe where you get to meet and play with adorable little cats. The cafe started as a small Etsy shop in 2019 by Britney Ortiz after her mom and rescue partner died due to cancer. They had adopted and rescued cats together and after her mom's death, she decided to continue her mission. I spoke to Ortiz about her new store and she told me “We hope to gain adoptions, we want exposure for the cats.” The lounge partners with a rescue company called TTF (Today, Tomorrow, Forever) to get the cats inside the lounge. All the cats are adoptable so if you like one, you can adopt it! If you want to go to the cat cafe, you can reserve a spot on the Cats and Crystals website for 50 minutes costing you $20 on a weekday and $25 on the weekends. The store is open from 10 AM-5 PM Monday-Thursday and 10 AM-6 PM from Friday-Sunday.