Koullshi was the first place I went to, outside of the surgeon's office, after one of my more recent knee surgeries;Yes, I've had multiple knee surgeries. Almost makes you feel bad enough to buy me cocktails, huh? Unlike my first post knee surgery outing at the Fat Cat the staff at Koullshi were above and beyond friendly and willing to make special accommodations for me.
I came gimping in with one of my closets friends who came to Boston to help me after my surgery. I've been working my charms in hopes of her moving here, but thus far she is pretty soured on the Bostonians. I thought a night out of fun might sway her opinion. The host immediately offered the elevator for our use. We had to wait a couple of minutes while he got the key, but the staff we encountered were more than happy to save me the trip down the stairs. Perhaps they were trying to save themselves from a potential lawsuit, but I'll take it.
Seeing as I couldn't bend one of my knees and was on crutches I requested a corner area so that I'd have more room to stretch out. I was prepared for a bit of a battle/explanation for extra space, but there wasn't an issue. The waitress came over right away to help us. The place was rather dead though for 8pm and I felt that was the reason for the friendliness. We ordered a couple of drinks and the waitress helped me choose a cigar. I'm horribly asthmatic and allergic so a cigar is a once a year treat that I so look forward to.
I'm lounging with cigar in hand with one of my besties that I rarely see. Life is good. Too bad I didn't have a real drink. It turns out that Koullshi only has a cordial license and is therefore unable to sell hard liquor. Having never encountered a "cordial license" outside of Boston I was rather annoyed that I had to skip the bourbon portion of my evening. Such is life. On a positive note the Morroccan-Sicilian Eggplant Tagine was delicious. The food is out of my regular dining out price range, but given how delicious this dish was it's worth coming back for the occasional dinner.
9:30 rolls around and suddenly there are signs of life. The music was turned up and it instantly felt like the type of place I wanted to be. People were trickling in and the belly dancer, Â the oh so flirty belly dancer, was shaking her hips. I suspect she might have played for my team. Perhaps she was just flirting for extra tips. Either way a sexy woman dancing and flirting with me equals a happy Jen.
End of the night rolls around and it was time to bounce, er gimp, to a bar with real alcohol. The manager promptly came back, despite how busy the place was, and unlocked the elevator for me. All-in-all it was a good night. If they lounge is able to get a full liquor license then I'll definitely go back when my lungs, eyes, and sinuses need to be taught a lesson by Mistress Tobacco.
I may not ever get my friend to move here, but she actually left Koullshi thinking that not everyone in the Bean was the epitome of a Masshole.
FUN. Â We came down here after eating at Tangierino and it was cool, fun, casual. Â The only downside was the really bright flat screen TV playing a hockey game on the corner ... Â something about ice-white skating rink glow over the soft smoky embers from a line of hookahs is a bit of a mood-suck. Â Other than that though, it was fun, and we had a good time. Â I think if you're a shisha purist you could argue the $30 price is stupid, but the hostesses were fast and attentive, and we stayed there for a pretty long time on our $30 tab. Â Places like this catapult Charlestown, MA into the realm of "hipster."
Review Source:I came here last night for a drink, possibly to eat. When we walked in the bouncer was acting just to cool, didnt speak to us, checked our ids, looked like he didnt want to give me my id back..(its me, im 22, sorry man). He seemed overall like reluctant to even open the door for us. Ohwell. We get downstairs and its pretty empty...a few people sitting by the Hookah's...
The host was so uninviting. She gave us this blank stare and was just like Hookah? We werent sure....I really just wanted to eat..at first we said yeah..then I said nevermind can we just sit at the bar...she gave us this dirty look like we offended her. EXCUSE ME. I've never been here before! I don't know what I want! ( I was a host for years, this type of behavior is a no-no, especially in a place that charges this much for food/hookah/drink.).
We sat at the bar, the Bartender was GREAT. I think her name was like..Ralista? something Russian maybe? She was really sweet and made up for the whole rude host/weird doorman thing. I got a margarita ($13, short glass, ouchhh) and my boyfriend got a vodka soda ($11, small glass...) The marg was good...but it was not amazing...the only place I want to pay that much for a marg is Lolita because they are perfect.
The menu was sort of small....but very pricey...we were surprised even. Steaks around 30-40...apps around 13-20....I was stuck between the calamari and the short rib...the Bartender recommended the ribs..but then added they had eggplant..ahh Im allergic to eggplant! She was super nice about it and asked if I had any other allergies and told me to just go with the calamari to be safe. She even wrote a note to the kitchen about the eggplant anyway.
The calamari was seriously some of the best I have had....it had some balsamic sauce and parm. cheese ...and this orange dipping sauce...it was very good. The portion was big. I was glad because it was 14 dollars. It filled me up and my boyfriend picked at it too. Â We enjoyed the atmosphere and we really liked the bartender. We will probably be back to the bar, I dont think i will be dishing out that much money for the Hookah though. Def worth a shot!
Overrated as hell. Â What kind of business are these guys running here?
I only have two good things to say, and I'll start by addressing those. Â The first is that this is the only hookah lounge I can think of in Boston that serves alcohol. Â That's a plus. Â The second is insanely hot waitresses. Â I don't know what type of milk these girls were drinking as a child, but I'd like to give my future wife some.
Ok, now for the ugly. Â Prices are unbelievably high here. Â $10-$15 for a drink, $30 for a hookah. Â Which wouldn't be bad, if they didn't charge $10 for extra charcoals. Â All in all, you're looking at a pretty expensive night. Â I also peeked the menu (absolutely nothing looked remotely appetizing, not offense Moroccan cuisine), and that was up there. Â
Because this place is very Middle Eastern in atmosphere AND 21+, it attracts a lot of annoying and creepy guys. Â God forbid you sit next to one of these 50 somethings and you're with some girls in your group (already brushed my shoulders off). Â They start talking about money, money, money, and they even throw in a conversation topic about money. Â And to my surprise, none of the girls took the bait. Â How shocking.
And the hookah itself has very plain flavors. Â Just your basic stuff- apple, grape, blueberry, mint. Â They have no recommendations for blending, and even if you do blend, they charge you an extra 10 bucks. Â Are you kidding me? Â I'm so sorry for the labor intensive task Koullshi. Â
What Boullsh*t (yeah, I went there) needs to realize is that their prices and atmosphere does not justify the overall poor experience you'll have waiting for 2 hours just to grab a table and having a poor time. Â Hookah sessions should be about relaxation and pregaming, and this place wants customers to make a night out of it, which I don't really care to ever do again. Â
I'd recommend asking a friend who's name you can't pronounce about a good recommendation on where to buy a hookah, and have your friends swing by. Â Much cheaper, much more enjoyable, and you don't have to deal with creepy Arab guys eyeballing your girlfriend.
I have been meaning to try out Tangierino for the Morrocan cuisine, hookah, belly dancing and sexy ambiance. There was hesitation on my side because of its reputation of being expensive and a difficult location to reach by the T. Tangierino is a Morroccan chophouse restaurant and downstairs is the Koullshi Hookah bar in the residential area of Charlestown. Taking the public transportation is a challenge and a taxi is the best route to get to the restaurant/bar.
We had one Hookah with mint flavor and then ordered an appetizer.
Braised tender short ribs, roasted prunes and sesame, asparagus $14. The braised short rib appetizer was tender, flavorful and I could eat much more.
I went to Koullshi AKA Tangierino and unfortunately, it was a big letdown with their terrible dining experience/service. They have rude staff and managers and an owner that has a stuck-up attitude. My girlfriends and I (party of 6) ordered food and hookah's along with drinks, food and hookah took a long time to come out, Finally food and hookah came out together, as if you wanna eat and smoke the hookah at the same time, keep in mind there is barely enough room for your own plates! My drink came out dirty (had fruit labels in it), and my plate was broken from the edge, so classy, right!
They rushed the check in while we were still eating and started cleaning the tables while still sitting and snacking on our food. The waiter came to take away our hookahs (that we paid for $30 each) since they have an hourly rental fee ($30-$40) for each hookah, outrageous! Otherwise, you MUST pay $30-$40 for another hour. Oh ya and be careful, you get 2 charcoals for free, after that each charcoal is an additional $10, absolutely ridiculous!! With no surprise, the waiter will come so frequent to change your damn charcoal to make more money in a sneaky way! So your hookah order could cost you anywhere between $40-$100, with their outrageous charges/fees. Our bill came out to a little less than $300, which is fine, but the service you get in return, is not worth a penny, you get kicked-out after finishing your food.
Overall: do not expect fine dining experience but do expect fine dining prices. If I were only rating the food, I would have given Tangierino four stars. However, the service was unnerving and prices were insanely high.
Great ambiance with the worst management and ownership! both the owner and the manager look like they woke up on the wrong side of their beds everyday.
Extremly expensive for this kind of service and attitude, I don't mind spending my money on a better place, which I will.
I went there a couple of time and they managed to piss me and my guests off a couple of times! They had a bartender who was forcefull with her suggestions! The manager was rude one time because I told him that someone else checked my ID upstairs already but he still wanted to check it again. The last time I went there, the staff kept staring at us wanting us to leave! and they started cleaning our table as we were putting on our jackets, plain RUDE!!
Food taste is deteriorating. I had a pizza two months ago that was amazing, it was EH when I had it just a week ago.
Very loud music which will force people to yell rather than talk, smoking and yelling are not a good combination.
They have the nicest bouncer ever :-) He always listens to our complaints while waiting for our cars, thank you, you're the best :-)
I would have rated it 0 if I can.
In a nutshell this place won't last because the owner is so cocky and doesn't treat customers right. On a girls night out. We were informed when we walked in that the COAL for the $30 Hukkah is now $10 each! I made a funny comment and said can I bring my own, its so much cheaper! SO if you smoke Hukkah as it should be smoked you might end up spending $50+ just to smoke and thats in the SALON not the VIP because by just moving to the VIP lounge the SAME hukkah instantly goes $10 more! so $40 Hukkah + $10/ extra coal! Yeah right... Seating isn't very comfortable. Nice decor okay, but seating not so much I went there several times and each time I walk out with pain in my knees! except if you sit in the cave which is a nice one time experience.
Now on a busy weekend.. they also tell you that the hukkah is an hour rental.. so you are basically paying all that money for one hour and if you decide to stay more the waitress will tell you that she wants the hukkah back.. doesn't matter if you are spending $200+ or not they will still demand that hukkah because supposedly they don't have enough. Well, this place has been open for a while and they should know their demand and supply rules...
FUNNY: they even charge you $10 to smoke a cigar, even if you bought it else where.. its on the menu (fine print) check it.
BTW all of this happened while the manager and the OWNER is standing and no one did anything, even the cleaning boy came and started cleaning the table out while we were still putting on our coats...
SERIOUSLY! THE OWNER needs to consider some customer service lessons.. and thats why I'm writting this review.. change your ways or bad reviews will keep popping up.
and if you want a good hukkah place in Boston for less money go to Habibi and I"m sure there are many other places that won't treat you like that or over charge you..
Peace!
wow. this is a great update to the older hookah lounge at tangierino. many more people can be accommodated, no more 2 hour wait for a hookah, still the hot and exotic waitresses!
they did raise the hookah price to $40, which is sucky, but honestly i go with at least 3 people so it's never a lot when you split.
this is a super chill lounge. they play great arabic music, and the food is AWESOME. i love to get the arabic tea with the hookah, it is really good and adds to a great nightcap.
the ornate tables and doors are pure eye candy, and so pretty. and the hookahs are GORGEOUS. and hit so smoothly. ahhhh.
if you can afford it, you should sit in the cave (which seems like an old brick oven, now converted to a "hookah cave"). it has a minimum price to be spent in there (don't remember what tho) but it's worth it. it's private and uber chill.
if you like hookah and you haven't been here yet, you are LAME! ha. this is the best hookah in the area. love the apple shisha, too.
I never went to Tangierino pre-makeover, but they've done an exquisite job creating a warm, Moroccan vibe. The furniture is gorgeous, the hammered bronze fittings on the doors are unbelievable, and the atmosphere is very red and sultry. The bathrooms are immaculate, the argilehs are clean, and there's plenty of room for a party of any size. There's an intimate little niche to sit Arabic style, a bar, or your pick of several booths or couches. And even though I knew this place was on the pricey side, I know understand WHY their bathrooms have granite countertops and their ability to remodel so wonderfully was furnished. $10 for a replacement coal is utterly unnacceptable. An entire CARTON of rolls/bags of coal at RETAIL price costs less! "Handmade" mint tea (what part what handmade, not sure) came out in 5 seconds flat and was $7. The peach margarita was $12, and thankfully worth every penny. The actual argileh was a whopping $30, for one flavor, and one pipe. I would have loved to try some of the appetizers, or even some dessert. But the fact that one session of hookah, tea and a drink set me back $60 with tip was just too much of a turnoff to continue enjoying this slightly-orgasmic little lounge. We sat right next to the hostess table, and the walkie-talkie was going off all night. The stairs leading down into the smoking room are hollow, and anyone going up or down sounds like a horse race. The service was fine. Someone took a dump in one of the bathrooms, and the heavenly aroma filtered all the way to our table for the greater part of the evening. I was even more pissed off when, as we were leaving our table, the bellydancer came in. We weren't told there was a performance, no promotion visible anywhere. I would have stayed, and likely paid for another round of drinks/hookah had I known. Cute for people who want to try out a hookah for the first time, for a first/special date, or for a group of friends so that they can split the ridiculous bill. Next time I will be making my own tea and drinks, enjoying my sexy décor, and having several rounds on my argileh for the ever-enticing price of FREE!
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