Cat and coffee lovers pounced on the opportunity to celebrate “Meowdi Gras” at Gibson’s Cat Café, which passed out beads, masks, temporary tattoos and headbands with every kitty lounge pass Feb. 13. 

Whoever found the lucky baby in the king cake received a 30-minute pass.

Owner Shelby Blacksmith said, “My parents actually came up with the idea to do some kind of giveaway involving the prize baby. I just kind of built onto the idea by adding things like king cake and beads with every kitty lounge pass.”

Blacksmith’s husband, Drew Blacksmith, said, “She [Shelby] is the brains behind this. I just tell her, whatever you want to do, just tell me, and I’ll make it happen.”

The owners also hid a gold baby inside a cup sleeve, and the winner received an all-day pass. 

The event brought the cafe 237 transactions.

Shelby said her favorite moment was seeing a customer cut into the king cake and discover the baby.

“We’re all about bringing joy to people, so it was fun to see the joy on her face,” she said. 

Anthony Holmes, the winner of the all-day pass, said, “This is my fifth visit, and I was just here yesterday.”

He witnessed a cat snatch a bite of cake from the woman who found the baby in the cake.

“I saw one of the cats — it was an orange one over there — eating another person’s cake,” Holmes said. 

He said he likes to touch each cat’s nose to see if it’s wet. 

Shayla West, who comes to the cafe four times a week, said her favorite part of the masquerade was “just cuddling with the cats. “

“Whenever I’m stressed, this is where I come,” she said, petting the gray cat on her lap. 

Erica, a new customer who did not provide her last name, said, “All of these cats are so friendly. They’re so cute.”

She said she didn’t know a cat cafe was nearby.

“I called because I’m trying to adopt a cat,” she said. “I saw on their website that they had one here that I was interested in, but it’s actually getting adopted.”

Customers Nate and Madison, who did not provide their last names, said they “used to come here a lot” before they moved from Conway to Little Rock.

Nate said, “I’ve got a cat named Ragu. She hates everything and everyone.”

Madison said, “My cat’s name is Lily. She likes to chew up cardboard.”

She said her old roommate adopted the 100th cat from the cafe, a three-legged tortoiseshell named Poppy.

They both said Enzo, a black cat, was their favorite cat. 

“Or Charming,” Nate said. “Charming’s just a chill guy… One of my favorites before was Java. He got adopted. He had three feet — four legs, three feet.”

Drew said every Saturday is “Caturday,” and “if you come in wearing cat-themed stuff, you get 10% off your visit.”

He said, “If you purchase one of our merch cups, it comes with a free drink in it. And then if you bring it back, you’ll get 10% off your coffee just for bringing the Gibson’s cup.”

Every Friday night, the cafe hosts a special event, such as bingo, trivia and yoga.