The Irresistible Purr

The relationship between humans and cats is a story nearly 10,000 years old, beginning not with love, but with an economic partnership in the dusty Fertile Crescent. Wild African cats simply followed the food and the rats that flocked to human grain stores to the first settlements. That ancient, useful bond gradually bloomed into deep affection, finding its true global expression by the 1940s in the form of Tom from Tom & Jerry arguably the most loving cat in mankind’s history.

Fast forward to 2024 in Dhaka, and that enduring, affectionate connection continues to shape our urban spaces. This ancient history, paired with a modern passion for pets, inspired the creation of Furryghor a friendly pet hostel and cafe. As co-owner Asif Imtiaz Rahi simply puts it, their mission was to build a place where the animals could be the true hosts.

It was on a foggy winter afternoon in Dhaka, December 2024, that we reached the Furryghor Cafe to meet with Mr. Asif Imtiaz Rahi, co-owner of Project Furryghor.

Stepping Inside the Sanctuary​

The cafe sits quietly at 1 Bir Uttam Mir Shawkat Sarak, near the Gulshan Tejgaon Link Road, opposite the old Aarong building. Stepping inside, the city's noise the honking, the hurried pace fades instantly. On one side of the floor, the cafe hums with the gentle sounds of life: the soft, reassuring hiss of the espresso machine, the delicate clinking of cups, and the low, and muffled laughter of guests over fresh pastries.

Across a transparent glass wall lies the magnetic pull of the cat zone. Bathed in gentle, warm spotlights, this is the main stage. You can't help but pause, drawn in by the sight of pure, unbothered tranquility. A sleek, jet-black cat is meticulously grooming its paw while another, a fluffy ginger, rolls languidly on its back for belly rubs. The playful ones are everywhere a cluster of curious cats stretching, pouncing on toys, or simply gazing at the world with magnificent, unblinking focus.

This is a space that feels designed not for speed or profit, but for unwinding the knots of a stressful week. Children often wander near the glass, pressing their palms against it, their faces lit up by the simple joy of watching a tumbling kitten. A few guests cross the threshold into the cat zone, crouching on the soft floor to exchange a moment of silent, profound connection with the more sociable residents.

It is an unlikely sanctuary an intersection of a cozy cafe, a vibrant playground, and a small, peaceful haven

The Logic Behind the Love​

Behind this atmosphere lies the larger story of Furryghor, the country’s first-ever pet hostel, founded at Mirpur Zoo Road. The team behind it had seen a gap in Bangladesh’s growing love for pets there was no safe, hygienic place for owners to keep their cats or dogs for daycare ornight stays. That small realization grew into a working system of care, routine, and trust. The cafe, they later said, was a natural extension of that “a space where humans could share a bit of what their pets experience daily.”

Running such a hybrid space, where genuine hospitality meets meticulous animal care, demands organization that goes beyond the ordinary. For that, Rahi and his team rely on RestroGreen, a restaurant management system developed by Quickly. They began using it in January 2025, soon after the café’s opening. “We needed something that felt compact but could still handle everything,” Rahi explained.

Operational Efficiency: Powered by RestroGreen

Their setup relies on efficiency and mobility: the staff uses RestroGreen’s Android POS app on tablets, connected via Bluetooth to portable thermal printers for printing both customerbills and Kitchen Order Tickets (KOTs). This mobile system keeps track of daily orders, manages their small but growing inventory, and helps maintain CRM records for regular visitors. For Rahi, who also runs a digital marketing agency, the idea was to have something simple, elegant, and functional, not a system that demands constant supervision.

The user friendly design was what first convinced him. “It’s intuitive. You don’t need a week’s training to understand how it works,” he said. The app’s seamless integration with RestroGreen’s inventory module helps the cafe staff manage stock levels efficiently, while the CRM ensures that every loyal customer or regular visitor with a favorite pastry is remembered.

But even the most reliable system has its limitations. “Sometimes,” Rahi admitted, “the only challenge comes from the internet itself.” As RestroGreen operates fully online, occasional network instability slows things down. Still, for him and his partners, the tradeoff feels worth it. Multiple owners monitor the café’s progress from different places: some through the Backoffice, others through the web-based business portal. One of them lives abroad, and RestroGreen’s cloud dashboard gives him the ability to stay connected in real time, a quiet digital bridge across distance.

The cafe runs smoothly now, and so does the rhythm between the cats, the guests, and the people behind the counter. As dusk falls, the air fills with the soft purring from the cat zone and theclinking of cups from the cafe. The glass barrier between the two sides doesn’t separate them so much as it defines their harmony humans sipping coffee, animals playing freely, and a business quietly built on care.

Somewhere in that balance of warmth and precision, Furryghor Cafe finds its unique charm a modern reflection of an ancient partnership that began ten millennia ago, now thriving again in the heart of Dhaka.