new york store

[bolofobia]

Hi, this is my first post in this forums, i got introduced to smoking
shisha in a trip i made to the beach. A friend bougth a hookah and the
rest is history, i live in the Dominican Republic, and im going to New
York City in a week and i want to buy a pipe, tobacco and the
Charcoles, but i dont know any stores that i can go in the Manhattan
area. Can some one give me an adress and price information.

[cypress]

Although I dont know where in new york you might be able to get some, I could help out on what to look for when buying.

Best bet for coals are going to be Golden Quicklight or  Nour
Fingers. The cost between 10-13 bucks a box or bag. Goldens come in 100
tablets and Nour come in a 1 kg bag.  Keep in mind that Nour take
longer to light since they are natural.

A descent hookak will cost between 75 and 110. Depending on size, type
(ie modern, Syrian, Egyptian), and accesories that it comes with. 
Main thing to check is that your hose is air tight, your stem of the
hookah is air tight. and that the grommets fit on the hookah properly.
The other thing to check is the air release valve. It has a BB like
ball that prevents the air from coming in while smokeing and allows to
blow back stale smoke. Try to get one that in good shape and not rusty.
If you really dont have a choice then go by a hardware store and get a
bearing that size or maybe a BB might work as well.

Tobacco 250 grams: Al Fakher or Romman are pretty much the top of the
line. AF runs about 13 bucks and Romman runs about 18.  As far as
the flavors you might have do some reading on some of the members
reviews. Just do a search on the brands and just read around. Other
brands that are less expensive and good depending on who you ask will
be Al Amir, Nakhla and Al Waha. These will run you from 5 bucks to 10
bucks.

Good Luck.

[bolofobia]

thanx for your help, im pretty clear on the coal and the tobacco. I
dont want to buy a pipe over the net, cause the shipping is spensive to
the D.R. besides, im going to new york and i want to visit a store, so
i can see what else (accsesories) i can buy. 

[mushrat]

I found this mention in an article:
The sale of hookah pipes soared in recent years, both online and in New York City smoke shops. Mario Shebly, a salesman at Shisha International, a smoke shop on West 4th Street, said hookah sales peaked in late 2002. "We would sell an average of one or two hookahs a day," Shebly said. "Five years ago, we would only sell one or two a week."
 
I'll look for more later....
 

[Highpockets]

There are hookah stores all over NYC. Best deals are to be had on
Steinway Street in Astoria, Queens. If you walk around the Village
you'll find a bunch of hookah places, but you'll end up paying too
much. Go to Queens.

[mushrat]

Highpockets: Thats right, send a guy from the Carribean on a road trip to Queens...
(Found myself in Queens once...read the map wrong, right street address, wrong burrough...midnight....quite the adventure....)
Not to be putting you down Bolo....
 

[bolofobia]

non taken, i was born in new york, but i live in the DR since i was a child. Im not planning on going to queens.

[Mathazar]

bolo......once upon a time I was married to this unbelievably
attractive woman from Montreal.  We got married in
Vancouver,  British Columbia.  But,  before we could get
married I had to buy her an engagement ring.  So my father knows
this guy in the United States who is the TOP dealer of Jewelery in the
Midwest.  To make a long story short,  my father purchased a
$5,000 diamond ring that he got on sale for $2500.  He took the
ring to FedEx and they shipped it to a FedEx location just on the
Washington State & British Columbia border.  My wife and I
drove down to the Washington FedEx office and picked-up the ring.

My suggestion to you,  if you get this message before you leave
for N.Y.,  is that you go online to a hookah dealer such as
www.Hookah-Shisha.com and order what you want and have it Overnight or
2nd Day Air Shipped to the location you're going to in N.Y.  That
way you won't have to go hunting all over N.Y. and take the chance of
getting charged too much,  and you'll have the stuff sitting there
waiting for you when you arrive to your New York destination.  Is
there any possibility of you being able to do that?  Will the
people you're visiting accept this package and hold it for you? 
Having the package Overnighted from Hookah-Shisha will cost you an
extra $62 in shipping charges,  but I think it would be worth it
in your situation.  That way you won't have to waste two days of
your trip hunting around New York for decently-priced hookah
shops.  It's hard enough finding a shop that has EXACTLY what
you're looking for.  But in New York,  that's only half the
problem,  you also have to maneuver your way around unfamiliar
territory in N.Y. and THAT could be a MAJOR problem.

Food For Thought 

[mushrat]

Bolo: funny that, I was born in NY as well, ended up on St. Thomas when i was 13...
I'd check out the Village and Sisha International there on W 4th street.You will of course have to tell us how it works out.

[bolofobia]

Mathazar thanks for de advice, its a good idea, cause on line shops give yo a tobacco sample y the coal.

Mushart, ill let you know

[HookahCulture]

There's also some stores in NW Brooklyn on Atlantic Ave I think it is,
in the Brooklyn Heights area off Court St. One has hookahs in the
window, and there's another larger store a few doors down that doesn't
display hookahs in the window but they have them.
There's a middle eastern community there, and there's another community
in west Brooklyn they call the West Bank.  Not sure of the streets.

[bolofobia]

Well. got back from the states to the DR and came back with my precius
Hookah. Got it in a arab store in 179 st, Manhattan. also got the coal
and tobacco for less then 100 bucks, so now all thats left is blow
smoke.

[studioall]

TRY THIS STORE: NATIONAL SMOKE SHOP 106 MacDougal Street New York,NY 10012 TEL: 646 602 0346

[Highpockets]

For all you NYC people, there is a great cafe (called "Hookah Cafe") on
60th between 1st and 2nd in Manhattan. They make their own tobacco, and
all the flavors are excellent (I especially recommend cantaloupe). Best
cafe in Manhattan.