Snoopy won’t hear the dreaded “No dogs allowed” refrain at this East Village cafe.
Opening next week, Boris & Horton is the city’s first truly dog-friendly cafe. Although other eateries claim to be “dog friendly,” they haven’t officially been given the paw’s up by the city’s Board of Health. Here, co-owners Logan Mikhly and her father Coppy Holzman worked directly with officials to design the space.
And they followed the example of the pooch’s sworn enemy.
“Because cat cafes came before us, the Board of Health said, ‘I understand your concept and here’s what you have to do,’” says Mikhly.
The father-daughter duo essentially built two separate spaces, both of which can be accessed through a vestibule. People with dogs can order food and drinks from a pickup window and then enter the dog side, which features tables, chairs, a retail store and a colorful booth for owners and pooches to make GIFs of themselves.
The humans-only side also has tables and chairs and access to the counter. Staff either work in the dog or non-canine designated areas, and there are no servers.
“Part of the deal with the Health Department is no waitress service because they say if a staff member left the coffee bar and went into the dog side, they are contaminated by dog and can’t go back,” says Mikhly.
The partition between the two areas is glass, so it feels like one space.
Mikhly and Holzman decided to open Boris & Horton two years ago when they were at a cafe and weren’t allowed to bring their best friends inside.
“We left our dogs outside and said, ‘Why don’t we come up with something?’” says Holzman, who also founded and sold auction fund-raising site Charity Buzz. The corner canteen — which is a short walk from Tompkins Square Park — is named after their own pups: Boris, a 7-year-old furry pit bull mix, and Horton, a 2-year-old Chihuahua-terrier mix.
Good chow is a priority.
Doggy treats from Maison de Pawz — such as “Paw-reos” and bacon-topped cupcakes — were tested by Boris who has a sensitive stomach.
“We were looking for something with high-quality, human-grade ingredients that weren’t too rich,” explains Mikhly.
The food for humans is just as refined. The coffee shop has pastries from Balthazar, stinky stuff from Murray’s Cheese and quiches from Ceci-Cela. Coffee is from City of Saints (a Bushwick roaster), and craft beer and wine are also available.
In the evening, Holzman hopes it’ll be a meeting spot for friends and even Tinder dates. “Dogs are a big ice-breaker. I figured it would be a great place to meet people. You work all day and you can’t bring your dog to work. Here, you don’t have to leave your dog home.”
On the weekends they will host rescue events for the community to come in and interact with hounds up for adoption.
Though it’s a friendly space, there are strict rules.
No cats are allowed, for starters. Dogs must be on leash, each person can bring in no more than two pups and, most importantly, quips Mikhly, “No humping.”
