Newport's First Hookah Lounge Opens This Weekend

After several months, a venue change and some opposition from the city council, Genie's Hookah Lounge will open to the public this weekend. The lounge and restaurant will be one of a kind in Newport, as the first restaurant in the city to offer the hookah.

Genie's will entertain an invitation-only ribbon cutting Friday afternoon, a soft opening on Saturday and the official grand opening on Sunday.

Farahnaz Shobeiri and her son Sina have been in full-force since September trying to secure a venue, installing filtration systems to combat the smoke emitted from each hookah and designing the inside themselves.

Although some councilors had voted against licensing Genie’s hookah citing anti-smoking beliefs, Shobeiri said unlike hookah, cigarettes play host to a "shopping list of toxins and carcinogens," while the hookah they offer consists of “tobacco, a little bit of nicotine, molasses, and flavoring.” Hookah flavors they offer include types like french vanilla, watermelon, grape and apple.

They have also put in place two filtration systems that filter the entire room in 3.6 minutes, as opposed to the required 12 minutes. For customers who like to stay away from tobacco altogether, Genie's will also offer tobacco-free options.

“You know what you’re getting,” Sina Shobeiri said.

The Shobeiris moved to Newport this past fall from Connecticut and said they have been vacationing in Newport for more than 20 years. Farahnaz Shobeiri said a trip to Spain inspired her to start a traditional middle eastern tea house, and she said adding the hookah was a natural progression to the vision.

“They have the fun of using the hookah, and it comes with the tea,” Shobeiri said.

For sanitary purposes, Genie’s will offer disposable tips to attach to the hose, so no one will use the same mouthpiece twice. Each hookah is a two-person unit to ensure proper filtration.

Since hookah includes tobacco, people under the age 18 will not be allowed to participate.

For more information on Genie's and a talk with the owners, view our video to the right.