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Exhale Hookah Lounge and Kabob Grill (136 Wyoming Avenue, Scranton).

Info: exhale-hookah@hotmail.com, 570.955.0250

Brothers Mohammad and Shoaib Tajak have always wanted to open their own hookah lounge. That wish finally came true for the Afghani brothers this month when Exhale Hookah Lounge and Kabob Grill opened its doors for the first time.

“It is a unique experience that you won’t find anywhere else in the city,” Shoaib explains while sitting in a dimly lit corner, reflecting upon his new business venture. “While in here we want you to let go of everything.”

Letting go of everything is easy to do in this place. to the sound of contemporary Middle Eastern music and a faint hint of fruit and spices lingering in the air, Mohammad and Shoaib sat down with the Weekender to talk about their new business, their lives as refuges and their hopes for the future.

Born in Kandahar, Afghanistan, Mohammad, 32, and brother Shoaib, 24, graduates of Penn State and Temple universities, were born in wartorn Afghanistan in the 1980s at a time of soviet occupation. before settling in their current Clarks Summit residence, the brothers lived as refugees in Pakistan. with the help of a relative, they came to the United States in the early 1990s and adapted to their new homes, bringing with them the traditions and customs of their homeland.

Mohammad recalls when he was a child and his mother and aunts smoked hookah — a tobacco water-pipe that has been popular in the Middle East for centuries — while at social events and family gatherings. “It brought people together for a good conversation,” he says. the memories left an indelible impression on the young Afghani, and would later be the inspiration for his lounge.

The brothers adhere to “melmastia,” a Pashto word meaning “hospitality,” and try to integrate their beliefs about courtesy into their business.

“If you go around to some of these different restaurants, you will notice that there is no human interaction,” Shoaib explains. “But our culture and our heritage are built upon hospitality.”

In recent years, hookah bars and lounges have been gaining popularity in the United States. However, the custom dates back to 16th century India, when European travelers and tradesman introduced tobacco into the country. it did not take long for the smoking custom to spread throughout the Middle East, while morphing into the more familiar practice which is popular today.

Smoking hookah is a simple way to relax and interact with other people, but the process of how the hookah pipes work is far more complex than how the average cigarette functions. the bowl is filled with tobacco and covered with a small screen. a piece of burning coal is placed on top of the screen. when the smoker inhales, a fruit paste purifies the smoke and adds additional flavors. the smoke travels through water, which purifies it again, before the reaching the mouthpiece at the other end. Smokers receive their own individualized mouthpiece.

The result is a complex taste which adds texture and flavor to the smoker’s palate. as the smoke travels through the throat and mouth, it leaves a subtle fruity aftertaste, which feels lighter than a tobacco pipe, cigar or cigarette. the burning coal can take up to an hour to burn out, leaving plenty of time to sip tea or talk to friends in the meantime.

Exhale Hookah Lounge and Kabob Grill offers a full catering service, call-ins and a buffet. Patrons can chose between a plethora of authentic Middle Eastern cuisine, vegetarian, meat dishes or desserts.

“Nothing is frozen, and everything is made fresh,” Shoaib says. “When you taste the food you can taste the difference.”

The interior and dcor have all been handmade by relatives of Mohammad and Shoaib. the pillows that line the seats are hand-stitched, while the scenic watercolor paintings that hang on the wall were created by a chef who works at the lounge. all of the employees seem to contribute equally, as they try to make their new business a success. the idea, as articulated by Mohammad, is to “get the people in here and show them what we have.”

Starting a business in the midst of a difficult economic climate is not easy, but for a family who has survived war and displacement, the prospect may not be as hard as it seems.

For Mohammad and Shoaib, opening a hookah lounge in downtown Scranton is just another way for them to share their traditions with friends and patrons alike, while providing a unique dining experience for those hungry to try something new.

“There are a lot of economic factors we have to keep in mind,” Shoaib says, “but profit isn’t the only motive. There is so much more. We’ve got to bring something different to this area which people never experienced before.”

Hookah lounge opens in Scranton

Every artist has a favorite.

Scattered throughout our nation’s small towns and cities, in between the arena and the amphitheater, there are hundreds of tiny artistic venues with enough energy to light up a football field.

Chronic Town owners Jeff Van Fossan and Jesse Ruegg are trying to bring that kind of aesthetic haven to State College with the reopening and remodeling of their space — a music venue and hookah lounge that has been closed since a December 2008 fire.

Chronic Town will reopen its doors Thursday for the first time in more than a year. Musicians will play once again the following day, with folk rock band Folklore and indie-pop group the Spinto Band taking the stage starting at 9 p.m. Friday.

Both owners agreed that though the venue has completely transformed, the heart of Chronic Town and their initial intentions for it remain.

“I went to Penn State, and it’s been good to me,” Ruegg said. “But it’s so white, so Christian, so conservative, so mainstream. We’d like to offer an alternative to that culture, mix in a little subversion, rebellion, outsider art, experimental music and alternative lifestyles.”

Chronic Town’s doors are open to anyone regardless of appearances, Ruegg said.

“It is a haven,” Ruegg said. “You can walk into some bars with a mohawk or a girl with a shaved head can walk in — you’re going to get the stink eye. here, you’re not going to get that. You’re going to be accepted and taken at face value — not for how you look or dress.”

A blessing in disguise, the fire opened up the opportunity for Ruegg and Van Fossan to finally match the look and feel of Chronic Town with its ethos, Ruegg said.

Chronic Town — which began as Van Fossan’s MFA thesis — was designed as a piece of relational art and owes its name to R.E.M.’s first album.

Post-fire, with the help of Erich Breimhurst and two Penn State alumni — Norman Fetter, who acted as the lead designer and interior artisan, and Ryan Deemer, Class of 1999, who designed and a mural — Van Fossan said Chronic Town has been reborn.

Fetter is also known for his work in other well-known venues, taking new spaces and aging them by years, Van Fossan said. Deemer contributed by designing a mural for Chronic Town based on scenic photos of Cappadocia, Turkey.

“My initial vision was very open ended,” Van Fossan said. “It turned out better than I expected. It really creates a space like none other. Not only in State College, but in all of Central Pennsylvania.”

The visual art isn’t the only thing that’s changed

Chronic Town has a new multidirectional sound system that really widens the spread of the music that comes from the stage. the system is also notably smaller, giving more space to the band and the audience. Van Fossan said he is also excited about the new lighting addition. the ceiling was gutted and more than 80 LED lights were put in.

“They are all controlled by one keyboard,” Van Fossan said. “It’s kind of like stage lighting for an entire venue. we wanted to be able to play the lighting like a musical instrument. the lighting designer becomes part of the art of the space.”

Now that the renovation is complete, both owners said they hope the venue will inspire bigger touring acts and support local music at the same time.

Roustabout!, a booking agency Ruegg promotes for, set the bar high for the bands that come through Chronic Town, Van Fossan said. Ruegg said Roustabout! is working with local bands like the Surgical Staff, the Kalob Griffin Band and the Threadbare Orchestra.

“We don’t want to only book bands that are top-notch,” Ruegg said. “Any band that is working hard on original music — that kind of effort and ethos and approach to art resonates with what we do.”

The Spinto Band is an example of a hard-working band, starting out playing basements and eventually going on tour with the Arctic Monkeys, Ruegg said. the Spinto Band was the first act to play Chronic Town when it first opened, and Van Fossan said it was only fitting to bring them back for reopening.

“Above all, the thing that makes the best venue is the staff,” said Nick Krill, frontman for the Spinto Band. “It doesn’t have to be the fanciest stage or sound system — Jesse and Jeff are really great guys, and they always make me feel right at home.”

Another example of the powerful allure of Chronic Town is the return of Jimmy Hughes. Hughes performed with Elf Power at Chronic Town in the past and will return with his newest project, Folklore. Van Fossan said Folklore has a much more psychedelic sound compared to that of the Spinto Band.

And come summer, Van Fossan wants Chronic Town to sell food.

“It’s going to be a vegan and vegetarian menu,” Van Fossan said. “We want to offer a menu that tastes like it’s bad for you but actually it’s good for you.”

Keeping with the back-to-earth theme, Chronic Town will no longer sell bottled water because of the plastic waste.

“We bought this crazy big huge water filter,” Van Fossan said. “We want to be an environmentally conscious venue.”

Talk of the Town

Krill said he’s only seen the changes through cell phone pictures, but from the looks of it, Chronic Town looks less like a basement and more like a music venue.

And he isn’t the only one who has been anticipating the reopening. Ruegg said the question he’s heard more than any other is “When is Chronic Town reopening?” — not only from customers, but from bands and booking agents too.

Ruegg and Van Fossan both said they are very happy with the final product.

Chronic Town is an alternative, Ruegg said, a venue unlike any other, both for its patrons and visiting bands.

“Bands will book a tour — 25 bars and one all-ages hookah lounge,” Ruegg said.

“Chronic Town 2.0,” as the owners like to call it, is much greater than the sum of its parts, Van Fossan said. And even when it gets tough with all the work, calls and inquiries, he couldn’t be happier.

“It’s always overwhelming, but it’s exciting,” Van Fossan said. “I can’t wait for everyone to experience it. I think it will be a tremendous success — in my mind, it’s already a tremendous success. we accomplished what we set out to do in that regard. I feel the way a musician feels when they record a record or an artist feels when they sculpt a piece of art.”

Chronic Town to reopen, host Folklore and The Spinto Band

As hookah smokers know the atmosphere is big in smoking. I am going to get my first hookah and I would like some suggestions as to what kind of music would go good with the hookah atmosphere. of course there is stuff like Pink Floyd and the Doors, but I am curious about more world music/middle eastern/indian music that would go well in such a setting. Any song suggestions would be great.

Hookah Music?