If you read a lot of tourist information on Munich, and I did before coming over, almost everyone talks about the traditional foods. The snitzel come up, the bratwurst and the pork shanks. For someone who prefers less meat in my diet, I did some research to find some vegetarian friendly placed to eat. It turns out almost every place in Munich, including the beer gardens and the street vendors have non-meat options. However, I’m very glad I didn’t know this before I came over because I would have missed Cafe Katzentempel.

I found a description of this almost vegan cafe on line and I told Bob we had to go one day. My only regret is that we didn’t fit it in earlier in our trip so we could have gone more than once.

The cafe is located in the University section of Munich, so it is a little out of your general tourist area. It is right on a main street and close to several public transportation stops. As soon as we got there, everyone, including a particularly cute cat, made us feel very welcomed and at home. We didn’t even need my very basic German as the (I’m assuming owner) immediately switched to English and talked through the menu with us and told us about the cats.

The important things first – the cats. There are six cats who live at the cafe. They are all rescues, including one former street cat who lost a leg. They all have a private area in the back and can come and go as they please. If they don’t want to interact with people, they don’t have to. All of the cats have decided to stay at the cafe and all of them are fairly social. The two Siamese were particularly playful as they seemed the youngest of the group.

The food. The food was quite simply fantastic. It’s not fancy but there is a ton of flavor packed into those dishes. I had the summer bowl with hummus and Bob had a sandwich and salad. The ingredients are clearly fresh and high quality, which makes a huge difference in the overall meal.

I really wish we could go back, but it was our last full day in Europe and we head back to the states tomorrow morning. If you do get to Munich and even kind of like cats, make the trip for brunch or dinner. You will smile the entire time you are there, and it will be one of the most memorable things you do.  And definitely the most unique.