The Difference?

[Johnny_D]

OK Chaps...

So I treated myself to an hour in the shisha bar the other afternoon
(It's the one opposite the Queensway Tube station)

And dear sweet jesus did it re-kindle my love affair with the nargile!

But one thing struck me like a brick inna nuts. How the hell
does the bar get a bowl going like WOW! So nice.

It was (as best as i can figure Al Fakhir or Al Waha or Al something) Cherry.
But this was about 45,224,245 Miles from what i can prepare at home.

So is there some super techique? Or is it, as i suspect, that it's like
cooking steak at home -vs- eating out.

Eating out allmost allways wins!

Let me know your thoughts.

JD

PS :- £8 for a bowl and the guy came round and replaced the natural coals at least once - No problems!

[Erica]

Hahaha I think it has alot to do with packing somany bowls allthe time.

Butother than that... Whoknows.. I have beento alot of lkounges and the hookah wasnotv ery good atall.....



Sorry busted keybooard

[Zerodynamic]

Well they probably go the extra mile in the bars... but like erica said, I have been to a few crappy ones in my time.

80% its the bowl prep... how hard its packed in, acclimation, juicyness, and heat management.

the other 20% is all on the hookah itself and the user.

[web250]

Definately it is all about how you pack, acclimate, poke holes, etc.

[Guest LondonShisha]

I think the main differences to their setup is the 'freshness' of the tobacco and the coals they use. The busy hookah bars (like the ones in Central London) go through a lot of tobacco every day, hence they go through each tub very quickly - especially with the popular flavours. Also, the natural coals they use tend to spread the heat very evenly, and the bowl lasts a very long time..

I don't get bad results at home to be honest - all depends on what i'm smoking. By the way, if you're coming up to central london next time, let me know - i might just join you for a sheesha!

[samildanach]

In my local cafe, they have separate hookahs for different flavours.
maybe that may be a reason why the flavour is nicer, it is uncontaminated by other flavours?

[xpimpitox]

at every hookah bar i have been to, the sessions have been whatever. i mainly go just to have something to do out of the norm, my sessions are much more preferred at home where im prepping the bowl and keeping my hookah clean for a higher quality smoke. i find that when i pack a bowl i have a better session vs. if someone else does.

[DL15]

yeah i have noticed that too which brings me to ask is there anything special that the lounges do to enhance the taste? i mean, everytime my friends and i go to the lounge we all notice there is such a strong defined taste. My girlfriend could tell the diff right away. When i pack my own tobacco it doesn't quite have that strong taste that i can say oh its this flavor right away. I remember reading a long time ago on one of the posts that the lounges sometimes put some kind of thing in their stems which makes the taste that stronger... i can't quite remember, it was something like anise or something

[ASUSEAN1]

i agree with is the idea that hookah lounges usually get it straight from the supplier and you are getting it from another source and it sits on the shelf longer. I mean tobacco isnt like wine, its not gonna taste better sittin on a shelf for 10 years so Im going with jus the freshness of the tobacco. also everyone has their own technique to packin a bowl, mayb take off the foil after your done and check it out

[Cornellius]

Well, its bowl design, shisha and coal quality. Small and many coals is better than same volume big coals, natural coal is always 1-0 ahead. Good shisha is a must be, place the dry shisha at the bottom and more juicy part at the top so when juice flows down it will stick on dryer bottom and increase the overall smoking quality as well as time greatly. Bowl design is something very important, shallow bowls offer very effective smoking but lasts less, V type bowls offer longer sessions and average effectiveness and U type bowls offer longer sessions as effectiveness is greatly decreased.

[EvansLight]

All things all people said. In the end its down to you. Over time youll get better, and if you smoke as much as me, and are as into it as some, youll get to the point where the bars cant touch ya ;-)

[Sonthert]

I hear the same things, from time to time, with Tangiers tobacco. It may be the equipment being used, the hoses, the hookah, the bowl. You may for instance love the Mya QT and over time the pipe begins to smoke worse and worse, but you don't notice it, since its gradual. Try duplicating their hookah exactly and then seeing what makes the biggest difference. My customers find that the biggest difference is in the hose. Leather hoses rock. Thats what I use at the lounge.

[Johnny_D]

Thanks Sonthert and nice to see you posting!

And thanks everyone else.

I am beginning to think that natural coals may be the way forward
as i experimented at the weekend and there was definitely a difference in taste.

And yes i think the hoses have a huge impact. I used a new hose and
again the taste difference was there. [Going to try and mod my own hose, but have ordered new washable from hookahcompany]

JD

[levinmiester]

err i make better steak at home then out!!!

yeah sorry my response isn't gonna help much, just would like to throw it out there that im a master steak griller

[camelflage]

I think going out is really hit or miss. I got into hookah in Asheville, NC at a bar called Hookah Joe's. That place rocked like no other, the smoke was always full and distinct. Now i am in the DC area, and most of the places i have been have a lot lower quality smoke. Knowledge of how different brands and flavors mix together and their respective burn rates and strengths is what enables a lot of bars to put out really high quality smoke. The guy i apprenticed under in Asheville came from Peymon's Lounge in Las Vegas, and he knew more about hookah and shisha than anyone i have ever met, down to which brands should be mixed together when combined versus just sectioning them in the bowl and which spices were added to different brands that created the flavors. It also depends on how busy the bar is at any given time, if they are using natural coal or quick-lites, and how clean their equipment is.

At home i try to follow the same standards as i did in the bar, i pay close attention to what i am mixing and how it should be combined to get the maximum flavor and smoke. I use two small pieces of natural coal in a "combo bowl," as hookah-shisha calls it, and get at least an hour long session on maybe 7-8g of shisha.

In Asheville i was at the bar almost all the time, but here in Fairfax i rarely go out because it just isnt worth it compared to smoking at home.

[cohlineman]

In my local cafe, they have separate hookahs for different flavours.
maybe that may be a reason why the flavour is nicer, it is uncontaminated by other flavours?

Yes , many will agree with this theory and my acquaintances practice this method. The hoses, the bowls even the stems season to each flavor over time. Even after washings.
Hard to do at home unless you are like some of the folks here who have serious collections....I envy them!

[Donkeema]

i was in queensway on wednesday taking my girl to Khans restaurant and i dont recall any shisha shop opposite the station, then again i wasnt really paying attention, next time im around ill have to check it out!

[Johnny_D]

i was in queensway on wednesday taking my girl to Khans restaurant and i dont recall any shisha shop opposite the station, then again i wasnt really paying attention, next time im around ill have to check it out!

Hey Don..

It kinda depends on which way you come out of queensway...

When you come out of the lifts keep left and exit using the left hand set of ticket machines..
then it's opposite. if you go out towards the right side then you'd miss it!

JD

[entrailsgalore]

Hahaha I think it has alot to do with packing somany bowls allthe time.

Butother than that... Whoknows.. I have beento alot of lkounges and the hookah wasnotv ery good atall.....



Sorry busted keybooard

lol I rememebr when I had a jank keyboard, it did the same shit.

I think one reason why most hookah bar's smoke is always good, they ALWAYS clean their hookahs and bowls. And the hookah bar I used to go to in riverside ( havent gone in awhile) seemed to always use new hoses, so that might be why.