Not only gluten-friendly and vegan-friendly, Sabrina, in her attempt to open COOKONA’s doors to as many as possible, has made her establishment animal-friendly. Not only for the pleasure of humans, the animal kingdom now has a welcome place within COOKONA’s realm of sweet treats.
After always being an animal lover, on her world travels Sabrina decided to use trustedhousesitters.com as a form of accommodation. The organisation connects animal lovers and offers housesitting for pet owners whilst they are away on holiday. Sabrina explains ‘as trusted house sitters, I was travelling and living rent-free in someone else’s home whilst taking care of their pets’. She added ‘following this experience, I decided that I wanted to come back to Spain and open COOKONA with the intention of it being animal-friendly’.
But how does a food establishment accommodate animals? Sabrina did her research, recognising the health and safety implications of animals being near the food. She constructed a food counter covered with glass panels so the cookies are protected. Not only for the sake of humans but also for animals, particularly dogs, as for them chocolate poses a major health risk. She also has water bowls at the cafe entrance so pets can enjoy a drink outside while their owners are inside.
While researching, Sabrina stumbled across Señora Perro, founded by Micaela de la Pazza. Srperro.com is on a mission to seek out all of the dog-friendly establishments in Spain. Micaela travels across the country to discover dog lovers and their business and features pictures of her own little white dog posing in each dog-friendly establishment on the SrPerro website.
With the intention of opening up and making accessible more of the cities to dog-lovers and owners, Micaela also supports organisations and charities such as the La Asociación Nacional Amigos de los Animales (ANAA) which aim to protect animals. COOKONA has since secured itself a spot on Senora Perro’s website.Sabrina loves welcoming all animals to the cafe and recalls one particular story. ‘A man was passing one afternoon with his dog and decided to come in for an ice cream sandwich. There were a group of five young children in the cafe who cuddled and played with the dog for some time while the owner enjoyed his food. I love to see both people and animals happy in COOKONA’.
Stop by for a sweet treat and say hello next time you’re walking your dog. Sabrina would love to meet you both!