New
Huka shop opens at NIU
By. JENI LODOLCE
Bill Harb is the owner of a new hookah
cafe, Huka Corner. The cafe will open
next week and will feature a hookah
bar with flavored tobacco, pool tables,
video games, cappuccino, desserts and sandwiches.
Huka
Corner, 811 W. Lincoln Highway, Suite B, will
open on the fringe of the NIU campus in the
University City plaza.
“I am
hoping that we can open up next week because we’re almost
done,” owner Bill Harb said. It all depends on the city and
completion of their inspections. Remodeling work continued in the
building on Wednesday.
NIU
makes DeKalb the ideal location for our store,
Harb said.
“It has
become very popular here in the U.S., especially in Illinois. I
have seen a lot of new cafes around the universities . . . so we
thought we’d give it a shot here in DeKalb.”
Huka
Corner will specialize in a type of tobacco
called shisha or
simply 'huka tobacco', which is made to be
smoked through a water pipe called a “hookah.”
They will have the water pipes for sale,
Harb said.
It's
interesting to note that the tobacco is not
ignited by a flame or lighter, but rather
a hot charcoal is used.
When
a hookah is smoked, the hot charcoal
essentially boils the molasses and creates
a steam vapor. This thick cloud of steam/smoke
instantly dissipates when the smoker exhales.
Although water
pipes are usually related to drugs, the DeKalb police do not assume
they are for illegal purposes.
“Water
pipes - they can sell as long as there is no intent to be used for
cannabis or any type of drug,” said Lt. Dan Gerace. “They
have to sell them with legitimate intent.”
The shop has
an upper and lower level. The lower level will contain a pool table,
video games and a small reading area, Harb said. There will be an
espresso machine on the upper level.
Hours have not
been set, but Harb speculated the store would open at 11 a.m. and
close around midnight, depending on business.
The term “hookah”
describes not only the water pipe, but also a type of light tobacco,
which comes in many flavors, made to be smoked through the
hookah.
“It’s
an old tradition. It’s been created for years in the Middle
East, especially in Egypt,” Harb said. The store will sell
the tobacco and also sell packaged cigarettes and refreshments.
“In the
future, we’re going to be serving light food of different
tastes, Mexican tastes and Middle Eastern tastes,” Harb said.
Huka
Corner’s nearest competitor,
Smoker’s
World, had no comment.
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