9 Smokey Shisha Lounges in Winnipeg
Arabic food and alcohol taste so much better with some berry-flavored mist. Shishas are relaxing too, even if you just found out you’re being cheated on.
Whether you’re looking to blow off some steam, bond with friends, or chase that strawberry-flavored nicotine hit, Winnipeg’s always got something for you. These are our 9 favorite shishas in Winnipeg.
1. Habibiz Cafe
Who says time travel hasn’t been invented yet? The Habibiz shishas will leave you so relaxed that time will seem to slow down.
The hookah flavors here are pretty standard, but the house special mix is definitely worth a try. The vibrant ambiance makes it a great place for both alone time and small gatherings.
Are you a salesman trying to land a deal with a client? Trust us, the shishas are enough to loosen them up.
This place is even better for casual stuff and will leave you with tons of great memories. Order the chicken mashawi skewer wrap while you smoke for an otherworldly flavor experience.
2. Winnipeg Hookah
Winnipeg Hookah is both a hookah supplier and lounge, where you get to try before you buy anything. Everything from premium flavors and coal to unbreakable glass hookahs can be found here.
It’s impossible to make anything taste bad through these things. Even though most of the flavors offered are pretty standard, they must be made from diamonds because the taste is far from average.
Airflow is great and there aren’t any bad chokepoints in any of these bad boys, so we bought one on the spot. We still use it today and it’s one of our team’s greatest decisions.
3. Seven8nine Hookah Lounge
Seven8nine is a hookah lounge first and bar second, offering the best of both at very affordable prices. This joint offers a normal and premium hookah experience, but we’d say whether or not it’s worth it depends on if you like tobacco.
The normal hookah at 20 bucks has all the standard fruity and minty flavors like gum and, our favorite, blueberry mint. The premium one though, offers tobacco and a higher quality hookah so it’s kinda worth trying even if you’re not a tobacco person.
If you have money, a glass of moët chandon goes very well with tobacco. It also works with the standard minty flavors, but I’d stay away from the coconut for this drink.
4. Karibu K Cafe & Hookah Lounge
The Karibu K Cafe & Hookah Lounge is a cozy little treasure trove of shisha delights. It’s one of the only hookah lounges in Winnipeg that offers in-house crafted shisha blends.
We have to warn you though, that the place can get pretty smokey and the flavors can get mixed with the food. Although, it probably won’t matter too much when you get that high from just walking through the door.
Speaking of food, the beef wrap and tibis firfir are to die for. Each order during our visit was made fresh despite there being almost no other customers, which surprised and delighted us.
Basically, if you’re sick of the usual hookah flavors, this place is for you.
5. Smokin Aces
The other hookah lounges in Winnipeg aren’t necessarily dirty, but we’d say Smokin Aces has the cleanest one of them all. You won’t find a speck of mold or dust on any of the walls or floors, making the experience ten times better than anywhere else.
People who come here usually eat first and then finish the meal with a hookah session. We suggest trying the heart attack burger, but any burger really is at least an 8/10 in our books.
If you’re craving sugar, order the waffles first. The Ferrero waffle is the greatest thing that’s ever graced our tongues, and it goes really well with Smokin Aces’ signature smokin’ ace cocktail.
The hookah is the star of the night, the belle of the ball. The coconut coals are on point and really help to create that tasty mist.
If you really want to take advantage of these coals, skip the usual Al Fakher flavors and get the Starbuzz lounge. Our go-to is the blue mist, but everything else tastes exactly like your favorite Starbucks drinks.
6. Bar Red Sea
Bar Red Sea is one of the more special hookah lounges in Winnipeg, largely because of the African cuisine and very friendly staff. Literally, once you raise your hand, you’ll have ordered and received your order within five minutes.
The hookah flavors aren’t really anything special, but the equipment is top-notch. You can tell everything’s made from high-quality stuff, plus the performance of the pipes is great!
Even the usual double apple tastes amazing. Most hookahs will have a very tight airflow and will mute the flavor, while the ones in Bar Red Sea let everything loose.
You may be surprised at first at the amount of vapor though, so try not to cough into your mouthpiece.
7. Zaytoon
Zaytoon is one of the more modern-looking hookah lounges, kinda reminiscent of a chill cafe. As such, chill is the only thing you’ll feel through its pipes.
The only downsides we saw in this place were how there weren’t any private hookah lounges and there were only the usual Al Fakher flavors, so the smoke from other customers can sort of mess with the taste of your own.
Regardless, if you’re not into the nightclub aesthetic like in the other spots on our list, then this is the lounge for you.
8. Arabesque Hookah Cafe & Restaurant
The Arabesque Hookah Cafe is Winnipeg’s most popular hookah lounge by far and for very good reason. Not only does it have one of the most extensive shisha flavor menus, but the staff also makes sure you never run out.
We usually have the staff switch us between multiple flavors, and we’ve never had to wait longer than five minutes. And before you grill us for mixing too many, you can’t blame us—everything tastes great and we crave all of them.
The most interesting flavor we tried was the paan, which tasted pretty weird but oddly good. We wouldn’t smoke it again though, but if you’re into it then why not?
We highly recommend you stuff yourself with some shawarma poutine and cheese manakeesh before you blow clouds. The greasiness of it all adds a certain kick to the minty hookah flavors.
9. Ibex Sports Bar and Hookah Lounge
The Ibex Sports Lounge and Hookah Bar is the place to be for nights out with your friends. Everything about this bar is fun: the games, the staff, the TVs, and the strong hookahs.
Ibex has the usual bar games like pool and foosball, which we all know are ten times more fun when drunk. It’s also usually loaded with people, making it the perfect place for you extroverts.
The staff is pretty entertaining too, and the bartender really knows how to bartend. Every spin and twirl with his glass will leave your drunk friends smiling like creeps.
The hookahs, though, can’t be beaten. You really have to fight your inner demons after every puff so you don’t get tempted to inhale every three seconds.
The shishas are real kickers too. I don’t know if it’s an in-house blend they used, but the nicotine rush we got was stronger than any cigar, vape, and shisha we smoked.