I never thought I'd be able to combine some of my favourite things – tea, cakes and cute kittens – but it has all been made possible with the invention of cat cafes.

Tucked in next to a Caribbean takeaway along Chatham High Street lies Mrs Slocombe's. With a bright blue door and quirky cat-and-mouse knocker, it is hard to miss.

The family-run business opened at the end of January but recently added afternoon tea to its specials board, starting on Easter Sunday (April 20).

I’m always a sucker for the neatly sliced sandwiches and small sweet treats, all washed down with a warm drink.

You have to book a time slot via their website, where you are charged £10 on a weekday or £12 at the weekend for entry.

This is for one hour at the cafe, where you can order drinks and food at an extra cost.

Prices range from around £3.50 for a hot or cold drink, £4 for a cake, £6 for a sandwich and £7 for a wrap.

A children’s menu is also available, with a sandwich and drink combo for £5.

We arrived about 10 minutes early and were greeted by a lady who asked for our booking slot and then said we needed to come back at our allocated time.

This would have been fine if they had given some form of explanation, however, we just found ourselves milling around outside as sadly, nothing much else was open on a Sunday.

After standing around for a little while (luckily it wasn’t raining), we went back and were let inside.

The cafe has two levels, with both rooms featuring funky feline-themed artwork, tree towers and toys.

On the walls in chalk were the names of each moggy, which was a nice touch and helped us identify who was who.

And for those of you who are wondering, the cafe is named after Mrs Slocombe, a character from the 1970s sitcom Are You Being Served, who famously had a cat. The animals are named after many more of the characters including Miss Brahms, Mr Lucas and Mr Humphries.

There have been recent calls for the phasing out of cat cafes, with the RSPCA and Cats Protection both voicing concerns regarding animal welfare.

We had to follow several “house rules”, which are displayed on the website, which said not to feed them, pick them up, trap or chase them.

Children under seven aren’t allowed in the cafe and those aged between eight and 13 have to be accompanied by an adult.

The cats that we did spot (who are all rescues, we were told) and interact with looked to be comfortable in their surroundings and not stressed out.

I really liked the homely feel of the place, including the mix-and-match furniture, soft green walls, high ceilings and wide windows.

After around 10 minutes of sitting down and placing our order, a large pot of tea came out for us to share.

It was followed by a tiered stand with 14 finger sandwiches and three chunks of quiche, along with a selection of small cakes.

We had several servers bring different bits of the afternoon tea out to us – all were quick, friendly and attentive.

Sadly, we weren’t told what each item was and had to figure it out while we ate.

All the sandwiches were freshly made and tasty, especially the salmon and cream cheese, and the quiche was full of flavour.

It would have been nicer if the sweet treats were slightly bigger, but they were yummy nonetheless.

About 15 minutes later, we got our scones. They were fairly big, so one each was the perfect amount, with plenty of jam and clotted cream to pile on top.

We did find a lot of the cats – about half a dozen upstairs – were sleeping in little nooks around the room.

One black kitten, called Mr Grace, was willing to play with me when I found a string toy to tempt him with.

We had booked a 2.15pm slot, so I assume they were tired from the morning. Let’s be honest...cats are going to do whatever they want!

I recommend picking an earlier time if you want more of an interaction with the animals. However, I was just happy to sit and watch instead.

Despite checking my watch, we accidentally went over our allocated time by about 20 minutes as we didn’t realise we had to pay downstairs.

The total cost of the visit was £54. It came to £12 per person to enter and £15 each for the food and drink.

So was this the purrfect lunch and activity? The answer is yes if you are a massive cat fan.

However, I did find the entry slightly steep, especially on top of the price of afternoon tea.

As the owner of a 13-year-old tabby, I completely understand the cost of looking after an animal. You have to consider food, the litter tray, insurance and health check-ups.

I know this has only just been introduced, but it would be nice if there were some deal or incentive to entice customers.

Maybe offering a two-hour window instead, or a reduction of the entry fee would work better with the specials.

I found myself struggling to eat everything, chat with my friend and interact with the cats all in the space of one hour.

Out of five:

Food: A traditional afternoon tea with all the essentials. We had hoped for slightly bigger sweet treats. ****

Drink: You can’t go wrong with a pot of tea! There was also a wide range of other beverages available. *****

Decor: The cat vibe was strong with this one, from the door knocker down to the hilarious pictures in the toilets. Just brilliant. *****

Staff: Everyone was friendly and attentive throughout, except at the end when we were left wondering about the bill. ***

Price: A little bit on the steep side for just one hour. It would be cheaper if you just ordered a cup of tea and a cake. **