Lolita Cros is an independent art curator and art dealer most well known for curating The Salon at The Wing’s eight spaces—and counting. Lolita was born in Paris, moved to Morocco, and now lives in the East Village, Manhattan, with her boyfriend, Charlie Klarsfeld, an international DJ and producer whose clients include Vogue, the CFDA, and Glossier. Together, the creative powerhouse couple adopted a rescue from Social Tees Animal Rescue named Cash, whose only nightlife activity is sleeping.
“We would always fantasize about having a dog, and it took us two years to settle on one that we both like because we have very different tastes in dogs.”
Did either of you grow up with dogs?
Lolita: Both of us. I grew up with a Fox Terrier. His name was Psycho. He was a really good dog—he was crazy, but good crazy. And Charlie grew up with a bunch of dogs!
Charlie: Yeah, I grew up with some kind of a sheepdog. I think it was an Australian Sheepdog, but it was not the ones that everybody has.
Lolita: Not the ones that are everywhere now.
Charlie: It was a mutt. And also, a Jack Russell.
When you started dating, did you realize you were both dog people?
Lolita: Definitely. I have a strong obsession with dogs, and I definitely hog his parents’ dog whenever we go over there.
I definitely knew that [Charlie] liked dogs. He maybe wasn’t as obsessed as I am, but, yeah, we were looking for dogs for forever. We would always fantasize about having a dog, and it took us two years to settle on one that we both like because we have very different tastes in dogs.
Tell us about your different tastes in dogs.
Lolita: I liked pure breeds originally. But then I realized they were hard to find and he didn’t like the same breeds as me. We settled on a mutt because it was the best of both worlds. Charlie likes sausages—funny looking dogs. He’s obsessed with Corgis.
Charlie: She doesn’t like long dogs.
Lolita: Yeah, my number one thing is big floppy ears. I knew hounds were a category of dogs that I liked most because every time I asked someone on the street what [breed] their cute puppy, they always answered hound.
We went to Animal Haven religiously almost every weekend to look at the puppies, but in New York, it’s really hard to find a cute puppies in shelters because they’re always taken first. Charlie, do you want to elaborate?
Charlie: Well yeah, we both like Cash.
How did you know Cash was the one?
Lolita: We were walking around Chinatown, and we saw this woman who was walking this dog. I’m obsessed with dogs, so I went up to her and I was like, “Oh, can I pet your dog?” And she was like, “Yeah, it’s actually not mine. It’s a rescue.” I said, “Well, whose is it?” She was like, “I’m just fostering it. He was injured or something so he wasn’t up on the website for adoption, but you guys should reach out to them because he might be available now and you could see if you could adopt him.” So, I emailed the organization, which was Social Tees, where we had already been pre-approved. I told them that we had ran into this dog and he was perfect according to all our restrictions in terms of size and weight.
Charlie: Well, we wanted to get a smaller dog, actually. We wanted to get a medium dog. He was definitely smaller than this when we got him because he was only six months old, so we knew he was going to grow. We didn’t know how much he was going to grow, but honestly I don’t think he got that much bigger. He just got heavier.
Lolita: 30 pounds was the limit. He’s perfect because he’s a lab-hound mix. He’s got the lab in him without being 100 pounds, which is good. He’s pretty manageable. He’s very calm. He’s playful, but not in a way that you’re feeling guilty for keeping him in the house all day. He goes to the park every day, but we don’t live in huge brownstone with a backyard.
“You’ll never see people letting their dogs kiss them on the mouth in France. It’s so American.”
What’s the funniest thing about Cash?
Lolita: He’s lanky. It takes him two minutes to get on or off the couch. He stretches midway through. He can also be comfy and fall asleep in any position. You know those long pillows that pregnant women put around themselves? He’s like that.
That’s actually very surprising knowing how long he is. I wouldn’t expect him to fit into little spaces.
Lolita: I know. It’s crazy.
How did you come up with name, Cash?
Lolita: Oh boy. Charlie, do you want to talk about that?
Charlie: I googled cowboy names and it was one of the cowboy names.
Lolita: He looks like such a wholesome American southern boy. But yeah, we had a lot of back and forth. I originally wanted a more ridiculous old man name, and Charlie was looking for dog names. We had to settle on Cash, which was human but not any kind of human that you’re going to run into every day.
Tell us about your daily routine with Cash.
Charlie: Cash gets three to four walks a day. If Lolita’s traveling, I’ll do it all, or if I’m traveling, she’ll do it all, obviously. But he gets a walk in the morning and then we have a walker coming in around 2:30pm to take him to the park. He does have a lot of energy, so it’s important for him to go every day and sprint around with his friends at Washington Square Park. Then, we’ll take him on an evening stroll. And on the weekends, we’ll spend the day with him and go to Washington Square Park and wander around the Village or downtown with him.
Lolita: Or Chelsea.
Charlie: We like to eat at Café Mogador and Bar Pitti a lot. Those are two of our favorite restaurants. We’ll sit outside and he’ll hang out underneath the table.
What are your other favorite dog-friendly restaurants?
Charlie: Mermaid Inn. Frankies’ got some outdoor seating. He’s a big hit at restaurants.
Lolita: Oh, I brought him to Atla. He was great. They love him over there and bring him water every time.
What does Cash eat?
Lolita: He eats Purina Pro Plan. He struggles with boutique brands—they gave him stomach problems.
Have you been to Love Thy Beast? It’s in the neighborhood, right?
Charlie: That’s where we buy his bed and jackets—that’s where he gets his fashion. He has expensive taste.
Lolita: Also, the art galleries in Chelsea are pretty dog friendly—except for the Gagosian galleries. A lot of the galleries actually have dogs in them. I interned at Salon 94 when I was younger, and everyone had a dog. It’s perfect because it kills two birds with one stone. It’s one big walk. It’s fun for me. It’s educational. It’s great.
Does Cash even come to work with you, Charlie?
Charlie: Yeah, I have a recording studio in Brooklyn. I’ve had him out for the day a few times.
Do you ever travel with Cash?
Charlie: Yeah, by car. We’ve taken him to the Hamptons and upstate.
Lolita: He gets so gross out in the Hamptons.
What do you groom him with, then?
Lolita: I just bought Kin Organic.
Oh, Alyssa Vingan Klein from Fashionista.com loves that one, too.
Lolita: Yeah, it smells really good.
Can you tell us about the French attitude toward dogs? I have always loved how Paris is dog friendly.
Lolita: In Paris, they’re definitely treated like dogs. They don’t have dog runs over there. They don’t have special services. If you have a dog walker, you’re a psycho. I don’t tell my family that we’re looking into getting insurance for him because they would make fun of me. The fact that I even train him is crazy to them. A dog is a loved animal, but it’s treated like an animal. You’ll never see people letting their dogs kiss them on the mouth in France. It’s so American.
Charlie: Yeah, but what she’s talking about is that you can bring dogs into restaurants.
They’re all off leash in Paris, and I’m so impressed by that.
Lolita: Yeah, they’re very off leash. It’s funny. I was talking to my French friends about it. Here [in New York], it’s very dog friendly in terms of all the amenities, but then it’s really hard to bring your dog into a restaurant. In Paris, it’s the opposite. There’s no amenities [for your dog], but you can basically bring them everywhere you want. There are very few places where they won’t let you bring your dog.
Photo editing by Maggie McKenna