Boston - February 21, 2005

Puff Daddies

Hookahs at the Casbah Lounge

A little Boston history: Somewhere between Paul Revere’s ride and today, there was an era of smoking in public. You may not remember it now. But about two years ago, a night out on the town was only as good as how long it took to wash the smoke out of your shirt afterward.

And now you can revisit the past. The sly guys at Charlestown’s Tangierino, a Moroccan restaurant, have made the adjoining Casbah Lounge a separate business, with its own license as a smoke bar. The specialty? Hookahs — Middle Eastern water pipes used to smoke flavored tobacco. The restaurant’s ornate doors lead to a ruby-toned Arabian lair complete with cushions galore and a stash of tobacco in sweet flavors like strawberry, jasmine, rose, mint, apple, and apricot.

Which means customers can puff freely in the well-ventilated room without getting fined or bothering nonsmokers, who are safely out of breathing range.

It’s a scene that harkens all the way back to Boston’s days of yore.

And right smack in the shadow of the Bunker Hill Monument, no less.

The Casbah Lounge at Tangierino, 83 Main Street, at Monument Avenue, Charlestown (617-242-6009 or tangierino.com).