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Narghile Nights: Hookah, line and sinker |
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Written by Glenn BurnSilver
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Thursday, 26 April 2007 |
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 Tired of the mundane convenience of meeting friends for coffee or a drink?
How about smoking a bowl down at Narghile Nights?
Tobacco. We’re talking about tobacco here — flavored tobacco, or shisha, smoked in traditional hookahs (glass bottomed water pipes) just as it has been done in Arabic countries for centuries.
With an atmosphere that combines the comforts of that coffee shop with the welcoming warm colors, low lighting, plush pillows and Persian carpets (let’s not mention the baklava) of a sultan’s tent, Narghile Nights Hookah Lounge brings a slice of traditional Middle Eastern culture to Fort Collins.
“I knew after Sept. 11, people needed to see another side of Middle Eastern culture,” Narghile Nights co-owner Aria Khosravi explained. Khosravi, who is of Iranian descent, grew up with a hookah, also called a narghile, in his home. “And, it’s a unique way to go out and meet people without having to go to a bar and deal with all the noise.”
The only noise heard at Narghile Nights is the sound of traditional Middle Eastern music (sometimes performed live by his Saudi Arabian customers) and the continuous bubbling of hookahs.
 Here’s how it works: The hookah has multiple stems, or smoking tubes (traditionally, a hookah has only one tube, but for the sake of community, Khosravi’s hookahs have up to six tubes), and a large bowl situated on top. Each customer is given a sterile mouthpiece to fit over the end of the hookah tube. The bowl is then filled with a choice of hand-blended, flavored tobaccos — jasmine, mango, apple, banana split, chocolate mint, pomegranate, as well as more traditional Arabic tobaccos — and covered with perforated tin foil. Small special charcoals (not the kind you barbecue with) are placed on top of the foil. The smoker is only left to breathe deeply. If done properly, the water in the hookah bubbles, smoke fills the glass and the smoker tastes their exotic tobacco mixture.
For many, especially college students, Khosravi said curiosity initially brought them in the door. But, he cautioned, it’s certainly not what many expected to find.
 “I want to break the impression that we’re smoking opium in here. We’re not. Do you think the city would allow that? Depending on the era you grew up in, the hookah you know had a very different purpose, but right now, it is about smoking tobacco,” he explained, adding that the police made regular visits during the first month until “they figured it out, too.”
Khosravi is proud of his Saudi Arabian clientele, who drive in from Laramie, Denver and Greeley on Friday and Saturday nights. This not only adds credibility to his establishment but also lends to the authentic feel of a Middle Eastern hookah lounge.
He used to employ a belly dancer on weekend nights; now the Saudis provide the entertainment, singing, playing guitar and dancing, often luring Americans to experience the culture firsthand.
“I think this is the first time since they are in the U.S. that many of them feel at home,” Khosravi said with a broad smile. “They are really comfortable. We play music and they all dance and teach the Americans about their lifestyle. It’s a family atmosphere, a big cultural melting pot. … I couldn’t have asked for anything better.”
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TO GO
Narghile Nights Hookah Lounge
621 S. College Ave., Fort Collins
484.2530
Sunday-Wednesday 7 p.m.-1 a.m.
Thursday-Saturday 7 p.m.-3 a.m.
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www.narghilenights.com
www.hookahculture.com
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