Hookah Lounges in Wichita

Wichita is the one Kansas city where hookah is a real night out rather than a thing you do at home. Six venues are listed here, more than the rest of the state combined, and they are spread rather than clustered: North Hillside by Wichita State, Rock Road on the east side, two sites on 21st Street North, West 13th Street, Maize Road to the north-west and South Seneca. There is no single hookah street, so the choice is usually about which side of town you are already on. The defining feature is the hours. King Coal Hookah Lounge and Bar, the best rated in the state at 4.7, opens at 4 PM and runs to 7 AM. Heat Lounge opens at 8 PM and closes at 6 AM, Elisabeth's Lounge runs 7 PM to 7 AM, and Wichita Hookah Cafe does not open until 10 PM. The Bean Scene on West 13th is the exception, opening at 2 PM for anyone wanting a daytime session. Pricing sits at $10 to $30 a head almost everywhere; Elisabeth's is the outlier with a $20 to $70 band.

Wichita venues run classical clay bowls rather than the phunnel and vortex setups you see on the coasts, so ask if you have a preference. Mint, watermelon mint and double apple are the safe openers and the flavours reviewers name most often. Because most lounges open in the evening and trade until dawn, the room fills late: arriving at 9 PM at a venue that closes at 6 AM means an empty floor, and midnight onward is when Rock Road and 21st Street North get busy. Table service is the norm and the server manages your coals through the session, so tip as you would at a bar. Several venues also pour alcohol, which puts the whole room at 21+.