Hookahs and Hose

India’s Akbar the Great, ruler of the Mughal Empire from 1556 to 1605, is renowned for his contributions to art, science, and building technologies. No surprise that his reign saw the creation of a smoking implement that marries all three. According to Wikipedia, the physician invented the hookah as an ostensibly less detrimental method of tobacco use. At once ornate, innovative, and functional, the hookah caught fire and began popping up like a weed on every continent. Fast-forward to 2008 and the Ritz-Carlton Miami Beach’s Hookah Lounge Happy Hour, where the classic pastime of puff-puff-pass is suddenly chic again.

Every Thursday and Friday night, lie back in the lush modern-harem environs of a DiLido Beach Club cabana and inhale the water-cooled smoke of superior flavored tobaccos. Exhale. Lean back, royal-highness it up, and drink specialty rum cocktails at the only oceanfront restaurant and lounge on South Beach. Try before you buy, cheapskates — your first drink is on the house. The evening is hosted by hotel chef Jeff McInnis, a featured contestant on Bravo’s Top Chef series, so there’s your built-in celebrity sighting to make the evening on SoBe complete. Blaze it up at the Ritz-Carlton.
Thursdays, 2008