Cairos

by Roger M.

I love this location!  It is has a very homely vibe and the patio is very different from other cafes/hookah lounges.  Seems like the owneer turned an actual house into cafe from the looks of it, haha.  The owner is a cool guy and I believe this place has the best prices for hookah in town.  $8 will get you a hookah that will last for a good 30 mins or so.

by ALE S.

I've passed by here without noticing it all throughout my years in high school, and I read the reviews, so I decided to stop by with a friend. I came here expecting a small little hookah place on the cheap, but instead I walked in to find extrodinarily high prices and an empty room. Hookah prices started at 13.95 and they had very few flavors to choose from. I thought it would be a little diamond in the rough, and was sorely disappointed. We just walked out mumbling something about bringing LOTS of our friends back since the place was deserted.

by Brenda J.

One of my friends who's a regular introduced me to the Cairo Cafe.  I love it, personally.  It's really small, half indoor/outdoor, has decent music {at least something to 1. laugh at or 2. groove to if it's not your fave underground shit} and since I've never really paid I'm guessing it's around 10$ or something?..  Matter of fact he just painted the mural in the new location.. better check that out and give a more useful review..

by jom, heng, brian, fran- Z.

we have been going here for almost 8 years now. we've been here before the place had lights and "hip" music. back then it was dark lights, plastic seats, wooden floors, and one blue light in the back. nasif (the owner) is like a father to the 4 of us...if we wanted to just get away..we always had a place to go. cairos and nasif has been such a big part of our lives...CAIROS is our second home.if you're looking for a place thats trendy and all about getting dolled up and hookin' up..dont got here...go to fumari.-jom

by bryan m.

nasif is the man. posh p sorry but you must not be into a urban atmosphere. anyway this place is cool and relaxing, oh and not your regular hooka joint. and there is very good sheesha here and coals its what you pay for. best hooka joint in my opinion.

by Madison B.

Dear Cairo,I first came upon you, when out on a date.  I remember the patio being busted and covered with trees.  It was packed and we had to talk through a wood post.Now, years later you have transformed into a beautiful back patio with booth like seating and even tables!?  The heat lamps help a bunch too.  And OMG a credit card machine.  I remember the first time we used it, I was so impressed that you stepped up your game, and made my life so much easier.I miss our thursday nights.  I will make sure to come back more often, and soon.

by Jon D.

Great place! I have been going here for 7 years and you cannot beat their hookahs. They always have the best tasting tobacco and its very smooth! If you're looking for alcohol, you're not going to find it here -- no liquor license. Don't you worry, the hookah itself is worth it. I suggest hitting up a few bars in the area and ending your night with a nice mellow hookah. Only downside is their prices. The main appeal of this place before it was renovated were the low prices. It used to cost 7-8 bucks per hookah and it has ballooned to 15-16 bucks. I'm assuming it is to cover the cost of their new environment, but honestly I miss the old setup with the crappy lawn furniture. Oh well. The quality of their product is still the best and the owner is always so cordial. Check it out some time!

by Evan P.

Amazing price for hookah, decent flavor selection, ridiculously good quantities of smoke... but the real reason I love this place? The music.I went here with my girlfriend and we were treated to some decent seats that are sorta booth-style. Not bad by any stretch, but I kinda enjoy the whole loungy sofa with pillows thing that most hookah bars seem to have... at Cairo, you're going to be sitting upright.At first, our mint hookah wasn't drawing well at all. We talked to the guy at the front, and he swapped out our hose and turned an anemic-and-lackluster-at-best experience into a fantastic one. We were given a ridiculous amount of coals for under $10 (we came during their "happy hour") and the smoke aspect was great.Usually I expect Middle Eastern music at a place like this, but instead we were treated to an unbeatable 90s mix featuring the like of Savage Garden and Boyz II Men all night. At first I was turned off by it, but it turns out that nicotine really does gel well with songs you heard at your middle school dance.The only other hit this place takes is the number of people inside... literally, we were the number four and five patrons here, giving it a really, really dead feel. I'm not sure if this is because this is in less "hip" area of Normal Heights or because we came a bit early, but I enjoy it when there are a few more people around.Overall, definitely worth a try.

by Posh P.

I walked in and walked out laughing. The place is smaller than my closet and it's filled with people that wear neon sneakers and big puffy pdiddy jackets! They use really cheap brands of sheesha and toxic coals...... The inside of this place looks like Dennys! It's so tacky.Don't waste the time comming here.

by ruggy j.

What a weird place.So, I'm not necessarily the biggest hookah guy. Sure, I'll wrap my lips around a smokey, apple flavored tube from time-to-time... but if I had 10 great ideas for a way to spend my evening, the hookah would probably come in 8th or 9th. In case you're wondering, idea #10 would be getting a prostate exam, while idea #1 would be riding Shetland unicorn ponies with Macaulay Culkin while drinking chocolate soy milk in a blizzard of Skittles and Lemonheads. Magic!Cairo seems to be an old house that's been transformed into a hookah lounge. Upon entry, I wasn't sure if I was walking into a keg party, or someone's business. Sure enough, it's a fully-functioning place to inhale toxic chemicals with your buddies while rockin' out to the latest top-40 hip hop on a crappy JVC stereo. Personally, I think they should have this music video playing on loop, but that's just me: http://www.youtube.com...The guy working the front room wasn't the friendliest person I've ever encountered, but I didn't really expect much. Got the apple-flavored tobaccy and took a seat in what appeared to be a church pew. The layout of the place is pretty funky, and the sound of cars whizzing by on Adams was a bit strange... but I got lost in the smooth sounds of T-Pain playing in the distance, so I only noticed the street noise for a moment. The hookah itself was pretty good. Loved the flavor and the owner kept coming by with hot coals to ensure that bitch was pumping excessive amounts of carbon monoxide all night long. They have WiFi if you feel like exposing your laptop to second hand smoke (which I hear is a pretty terrible idea), and they have a happy hour of sorts. From 7:00-9:00pm, they give you $4 off your total. Word!