MANAYUNK

Blog post by Manayunk Development Corporation Spring Intern, Meghan Gatti

Konstantinos “Kosta” Fotiadis moved from Indiana for a career in software engineering. While working in King of Prussia, he found that Manayunk had diverse groups of people, and bonded with new friends over cigars on the weekend. "Cigars are different from  grabbing coffee with a new person--you have to sit down with someone for an hour and really get to know them."  says Kosta of SMoKE Manayunk - Cigar and Hookah Lounge. After working for years in a cubicle, Kosta finally  decided to go into business for himself and began the search for his own cigar lounge space. He took a week off work to ride his motorcycle around Philadelphia. He did not have to look far--on day two he saw the space on the Main Street for sale. Now SMoKE Manayunk - Cigar and Hookah Lounge offers a hookah bar, BYOB bar, big comfortable leather couches and over 300 cigars to choose from.

SMoKE Manayunk - Cigar and Hookah Lounge has specials almost every day. Tuesday nights are game nights and movie nights on a huge flat screen TV. Wednesdays are hookah nights, for only ten dollars per person you can smoke unlimited hookah for three hours. Thursday nights are ladies nights, with discounts for girls only! Members receive discounts on everything--from events like the upcoming Mayweather vs. Pacquiao boxing match or the SMoKE Manayunk anniversary party.

Kosta's team comes up with weekly flavors. One of the best flavors combines Cucumber Margarita hookah with Carnival Nights for an interesting cluster of flavors. Cucumber margarita has a hint of lime, while carnival nights is a cardamom spice with mint. Combined they have a delicious effect for the Cucarnival blend! SMoKE Manayunk - Cigar and Hookah Lounge rotates seasonal flavors like Sum-sum-summertime and Pumpkin Spice.

Kosta can guarantee he will eventually find a cigar for everyone. If you come in and try a cigar, Kosta will give you a checklist to note your preferences. If you do this five times in a row, he will be able to choose one customized to your taste! With over 300 cigars in an airtight storage room he built himself, there are endless possibilities. SMoKE Manayunk - Cigar and Hookah Lounge offers every shape, size, strength and flavor imaginable. A unique cigar found at SMoKE Manayunk is a blend Kosta and his friends created on a trip to Honduras! Kosta and his friends also made everything from the bar to the air tight cigar room.

Hookah bars and cigar lounges are generally not intertwined, and Kosta wondered "Why not?" He blended the two together, and found that it created an entirely new social scene. Friends, couples and regulars come in and have a variety of options to choose from

For Kosta, Manayunk was the perfect place for people from out of town to meet people. He found Manayunk after seeing the bridge, and eventually painted it on the wall of SMoKE Manayunk - Cigar and  Hookah Lounge. He moved around several times, before he finally rented (and eventually bought) here. He found hiking was perfect in places like the Wissahickon trail. He felt close enough to center city, where he could bike into town. Since Manayunk is such a dog-friendly town, he loved bringing his pup to Pretzel Park. Kosta has made lifelong friends over smoking cigars here. He also found that people who are not even from Philadelphia or the East Coast always end up loving to live in Manayunk.