Their little round eyes, big snouts and reputation for being Earth’s friendliest creatures… everything about capybaras are absolutely adorable! And what could be more entertaining for animal lovers (or rather, capybara lovers) than the chance to sip some coffee alongside these giant rodents? Well, that’s exactly what you can do at one of two capybara cafés in Florida.
Animal cafés aren’t exactly a rarity around the globe, with plenty of spots having cats or dogs lounging around while you sip your drinks. Cafés simply focused on capybaras are much more uncommon, as you’ll mainly find a couple in Japan. But there’s two Florida locations that stand above the rest as the only ones in the country! And these unique animal encounters help out a great cause too, so we thought we’d put it on your radar.
Where are Florida’s capybara cafés located?
Aptly named The Capybara Café, the original location can be found in St. Augustine at 105 S Ponce de Leon Blvd. It’s widely recognized as the first dedicated capybara café of its kind in the U.S.
Their second facility, which opened very recently, is all the way in St. Petersburg at 4703 N Park St. From Miami, you’re looking at about a four-to-five-hour drive, but it’s not every day you get to see a capy up close!
What to expect at The Capybara Café
For starters, you can expect to find Mocha and Latte…. We’re not talking about orders — they’re the names of the capys! Mocha and Latte join other animals like lemurs, wallabies, armadillos and tortoises at the cafés. Co-founded by Stephanie Angel, the concept blends the cozy charm of a coffee shop with the mission of promoting conservation.
“You give them lots of scratches and love,” Angel told AP News. “A lot of times they’ll climb on your lap because they’re very used to people, and if you’re really good at giving scratches, they’ll actually fall over. So that’s always our goal to get them so comfortable that they fall over.”
She’s also a director for Noah’s Ark Sanctuary, a nonprofit based in Hastings that houses and rehabilitates exotic animals while educating the public about them. Proceeds from the cafés go towards the sanctuary’s care of rescued animals.
Guests are able to pet, feed and bond with the cute critters during their visit, while café employees stick around to supervise and teach them about the rodents native to South America. These encounters last for about 25 to 30 minutes and are typically booked in advance, as they have gone quite viral. In fact, Angel told The Washington Post that the café brings in around 100 customers a day!
For more information about the St. Augustine café, visit their website. The newly-opened St. Pete location has its own page, which you can check out here.