For nearly seven years, Boris & Horton drew dog lovers to the corner of 12th Street and Avenue A as New York City’s first canine-friendly cafe. The spot became an East Village staple, hosting trivia nights, adoption opportunities and dog meetups — however, it was forced to shut its doors on Saturday after failing to garner the revenue needed to maintain its practices.
“I’m going to miss it so much,” Valerie Cortes, who has been a regular customer at the cafe for four years, said in an interview with WSN. “The owners are fantastic, the staff is wonderful. I’m sad to see it go so soon.”
In an Instagram post announcing the cafe’s closure, the owners, Logan Mikhly and her father Coppy Holzman, said they had seen a “significant drop” in patrons to their monthly dog treat subscription and a decline in sales over the past year. They also said they had spent months meeting with potential buyers but needed to close a deal before Nov. 30 in order to revive the cafe.
Boris & Horton opened in February 2018 as the first spot to adhere to all of the Department of Health’s requirements for a functional dog cafe. However, the requirements mandate higher insurance premiums and other additional costs, such as disposable silverware and additional staff to clean dog hair and accidents. The cafe effectively provided services as a pet care and coworking space, for the price of a cup of coffee. In May 2023, the owners opened an additional location in Williamsburg.
Tisch senior Lindsey Asmussen said that the cafe has served as one of her main study spots since stumbling upon it three years ago and that the opportunity to interact with others’ dogs has helped her cope with missing her own.
“It’s nice to have a place that’s not Bobst to study,” Asmussen told WSN. “And they’re a good little study break, if they come up and say hi. It feels like a cute little community here, so I’ve always enjoyed that.”
When Mikhly and Holzman initially announced that they planned to close due to financial challenges Feb. 15, the cafe’s patrons immediately raised thousands through an independent fundraiser. One week later, the owners started a subscription service and launched a crowdfunding campaign to keep both their locations open, garnering $250,000 by the end of the month.
Mikhly and Holzman closed the Williamsburg spot in May after a year in business, but upheld efforts to keep their East Village location open until their lease expired Nov. 30. They said they had planned to use the fundraiser money to reinforce leadership and improve events, but it was not enough to support the cafe.
The owners reported receiving death threats and antisemitic comments after they closed their Williamsburg location, and dozens requested financial transparency regarding donation money on the Instagram post announcing the closure of their East Village flagship. The cafe said the money was used for structural repairs, paying staff while the shops were closed and replenishing merchandise, among other regular expenses.
The cafe recently held an adoption event in collaboration with the nonprofit organization Hearts & Bones Rescue and has hosted dog talent shows, comedy nights and weddings for their customers. Olivia Baker, who has been a regular at Boris & Horton for the past year, said that the cafe’s poodle party — where New Yorkers brought their poodles for a comedic showcase — was one of her favorite memories.
“It’s probably my favorite place in New York City,” Baker told WSN. “I come here so frequently, and it just makes me so happy to be here, to be in this community where people are so nice and so generous about spending time with dogs.”
Justice Chukwuma said in an interview that as a customer, the cafe is a reminder to enjoy the small things in life. He said he hopes that Boris & Horton will be remembered as a “past relic of this neighborhood.”
“Sometimes you just want to sit somewhere and play with some dogs and relax and that’s what this cafe afforded me,” Chukwuma said. “Hopefully this will inspire other people to come up with a similar concept.”
Contact Mariana Arboleda at [email protected].
