The Hookah Dot Com!

So a couple weeks ago, I decided to buy my own hookah set up. In a typical week we would hit up a Hookah Bar at least once, and one time at a Hookah Bar is going to set you back at least $25. You can see how this can and has already added up.

I enlisted the help of my ol pal JimJesus. He's e-famous for being a badass, and he knows his way around a hookah like no other. All of this means he was the perfect person to ask. We twittered (tweeted?) back and forth over a few days, getting ideas and recommendations for my set up and finally I headed down to TheHookah.com's Wherehouse in Glendale.

I walked in, with just a tiny piece of paper in my hand from JimJesus, and a vauge idea of what I wanted the end result to be. George helped me, and took me into the showroom, and offered so much amazing advice on every hookah they carry. I had no idea really, of what I wanted, I just knew I wanted it to be amazing, cost effective and somewhere in the medium size range.

This is my baby.


That's right. She's pink.

George also got me set up with a really awesome hose, which is also pink.

Next he took me into the other wherehouse where the keep all the coals, accessories and SHISHA! I setttled on 4 different flavors.

Hookah Freak's Smashing Pumpkin and Scooby Snack, both of which are AMAZING and I will be buying again. And HookahHookah's Margarita and Key Lime Pie, which are both very decent as well, but not as good as the others. Kristi has also made some contributions to the shisha collection with some StarBuzz Blue Mist and Tangerine Dream, which are both awesome on their own, or mixed which is what we usually do. I can't wait to go back and get more flavors.


I opted for the Vortex Bowl, which unlike traditional bowls, the air holes are on the side of a piece that comes up from the center, than on the bottom. This is great for me cuz I tend to smoke a lot of "wetter" shisha, and I find that it likes to drip down into the Hookah. This doesn't happen anymore.

For coals I opted for the CocoNara, which came HIGHLY recommended by JimJesus, and I grabbed some Three Kings quicklights for when I am without a stove or burner. George threw in some of the Shishaco Coals for me to try.


They are very similar to the CocoNara, and a bit less expensive. Both use vegetables and coconut husks, instead of trees so the are eco-friendly, and have less ash and waste. PLUS, they taste like almost NOTHING when smoked. The Shishaco ones have a slight taste, where the CocoNara have NO taste, but both were VERY similar.


All in all my whole set up ran me under $130, and the boys down at The Hookah took very good care of me. If you live in the LA area, make sure you visit the wherehouse and if not, they also do internet orders and ship all over. Thanks Guys! I LOVE MY HOOKAH!!

A Night Out in Pacific Beach

Last night I went out with my friend to PB for dinner, drinks and hookah.

We started off at Fred's Mexican Cafe for dinner and margaritas.

I got the house margarita, frozen with light salt, cuz it was on special.



It was so freaking cold outside that something warmer, like Mexican Coffee would probably have better suited me, but how can you eat carne asada tacos without a margarita?!

Which brings me to my meal...



Carne Asada taco plate with rice and black beans, and a side of guacamole. Yummy! I couldn't finish it all, but it was super tasty nonetheless.

We then ventured over to Sinbad's for some Apple Hookah. We got the Sinbad Apple, which is green apple tobacco inside a red apple bowl. We also added ice to the water to make the smoke nice and cool.



The service at Sinbad's is always really excellent. They come by and check coals and the bowls often and regularly so you can enjoy the hookah for almost 2 hours. I also love their presentation!

We then each got a pint of Guinness, and as our nights end cap, we went over to visit my sister at her bar where we got ANOTHER Guinness.



I used to really HATE beer. I mean I totally despised it. Then I lived with Michelle, and she LITERALLY (:P ) made me like it. In fact, we would drink beer as if it were wine, and taste the different hops and notes and flavors and really just enjoy it together. I fancy her, because she makes me more awesome on a daily basis.

Gaby's!!!

I was up in LA this weekend for work and some hang out time with my friends Jordan and Shaun. They met me on the Westside and let me choose the restaurant this time, so I didn't have much choice but to pick Gaby's Mediterranean in Culver City.

Three years ago, I discovered this shining little gem while looking for a place to cater my 25th birthday party. We showed up, ordered one of this and that, and sat in food heaven for a few hours. So I feel like I have an obligation to share my find with everyone I meet.

Gaby's has 3 locations on the Westside, but the Culver City one is my favorite. Parking totally sucks, but they have a great outdoor covered dining patio.

We started off with some pita, and zaatar. I've tried to make my own zaatar, and it didn't turn out so well, so if anyone has a recipe for it, let me know!!


The boys ordered "Mountain Dew" but instead got "Mango Juice". I suppose the term "lost in translation" is fitting here.

Anyway! I've tried a lot of hummus in my life. I'm a bit of a hummus freak, if you will. I even attempted making my own, which wasn't nearly as good as this lil puppy.



Gaby's hummus is so amazing that we had to order two. Seriously. After we ran out of pita bread, Jordan was eating it with a fork, which kinda grossed me out, but it really is that good.

While we waited for our food, we ordered an Apple Hookah. We are HUGE Hookah freaks, and I usually don't smoke hookah unless I am with the boys. The fact that they had hookah made both Jordan and Shaun VERY happy.



For all those hookah lovers out there, the apple hookah had a nice sweet flavor, and a spicy tang at the end with almost a licorice aftertaste. It almost tasted like I was smoking absinthe!

I ordered my favorite thing, Lemon Chicken and I substituted a Greek Salad for the house salad.



Personally, it had a bit too much feta cheese for my liking, but after I picked most of it out, it was really yummy. They have a great Greek dressing.



The Lemon Chicken was a total cheat on my whole "eating healthier" thing, but OMG isn't this so worth it?! The chicken was uber tender and the rice is so yummy with the sauce on it. I didn't inhale too much of that sauce so I still think I am pretty ok.

Shaun got the beef kabobs, with rice and house salad.



And Jordan got the Salmon kabobs with rice and house salad.



Everyone pretty much finished their plates. We sat around for about another hour finishing the hookah, paid the check and headed home. We were all stuffed and the whole meal, drinks, hookah AND tip was only around $25 each. I love that Gaby's has such great filling meals but not too much out of pocket.