Hookah Hot Heads Fly Off the Handle

*CORRECTION: THE INITIAL REPORT LISTED THE HOOKAH LOUNGE AS “ESSENCE HOOKAH LOUNGE” BUT, IT WAS NOT. THIS ACTUALLY TOOK PLACE AT SULTAN HOOKAH LOUNGE. SORRY TO ESSENCE, CHECK THEM OUT ON FACEBOOK. DON’T SMOKE THE MESSENGER.

Oh, Hookah Lounges, how quickly you have become a part of our communities. But, see, there are different types of these smokey dives. You have the seriously laid back Hookah Turka on the north side of Bethlehem, and you have the not so laid back Essence Hookah Lounge on the south side.

I tried hookah for awhile and totally dug it, but, maybe not enough to keep going week in and week out. However, it’s always still an option on a late weekend night depending on the situation and.. such.

However, as much as I want to mix my hookah smoking with NYC inspired night club bullshit, I am not going to be walking into Essence anytime soon. 

Exhibit A…

Bethlehem police said a dispute over a bill for bowls of tobacco at the South Side’s hookah lounge led to a tussle with a clerk, who was punched in the face.

The clerk, Simon Sidhom, 20, was not seriously injured in the dispute that happened around 3:48 a.m. at Essence Hookah Lounge, 3 E. Third St., police said. SULTAN HOOKAH LOUNGE.

While police said three men were involved in the alleged assault, Sidhom was not able to provide many details. Police are still investigating.

According to police:

Sidhom said the group of three men and two women disputed a $23 bill, claiming they had only smoked one bowl of tobacco, not two.

As the men argued with Sidhom, a hookah pipe was knocked off the table and damaged.

Police said one of the men punched Sidhom in the face and then left the shop. The two women paid the $23 bill before leaving.

Police could provide no details about Sidhom’s injuries or a damage estimate for the broken pipe. Source

PUNCH the employee? Leave it to your women friends to pick up the tab?

SULTAN LOUNGE? Johnny come lately….

Hookah is on a slippery edge…. but it’s still a somewhat positive cultural influence. Let’s see how the next few months progress.

Also, I like popsicles in the shape of handguns. Just sayin.