Behind the scenes bar stories: Permits? Who needs permits?
Has anybody been to the new VIP Hookah Bar & Cafe in Little Italy?
Wait -- maybe I should rephrase that: Did anybody go to the hookah bar in Little Italy?
It might be closed already.
I'm not sure when this place opened. But apparently, the owner thought it was a good idea to bring a hookah bar to the heart of Little Italy without doing his homework -- or even meeting his neighbors.
Here are the details, courtesy of this article by Peter Hermann ...
I love it!
As for those non-existent belly dancers -- VIP Hookah Bar's Web site advertises live belly dancing on Friday and Saturday nights:
We Always Have Something Different Every Weekend Such As Belly Dancing And Different Artists Performing.
Not the brightest bulb, I see.
I'm all for hookah bars, and have written about them extensively in the past. But if you're going to open any business in this city, you've got to make sure all the paperwork is in line. And it's a common courtesy to at least shake hands with your neighbors -- especially in Little Italy.
(Baltimore Sun photo by Gene Sweeney Jr.)
Erik Maza is a features reporter at the Baltimore Sun. He writes for several sections of the Sun paper and contributes weekly columns on music and nightlife. He also writes and edits the Midnight Sun blog. He often covers entertainment, business, and the business of entertainment. Occasionally, he writes about Four Loko, The Block, the liquor board, and those who practice "
Comments
The only hookah bar I'm going to is the one in my basement, with the doors locked and the incense lit.
Oh, and the Allman Brothers will be on the turntable.
Posted by: Chw | October 23, 2009 12:33 PM
One of the pics on the home page looks like a bedroom.
Posted by: Jay Trucker | October 23, 2009 1:59 PM
"But if you're going to open any business in this city, you've got to make sure all the paperwork is in line"
Haha, good one Sam...
Posted by: Scurvy Emu | October 23, 2009 3:22 PM
LQTM
Posted by: Owl Meat Gravy | October 23, 2009 5:54 PM
"But if you're going to open any business in this city, you've got to make sure all the paperwork is in line"
That's what I always say...unless it applies to my Cafe Hon.
SIGNED
Denise Whiting
Posted by: AVC | October 24, 2009 8:53 AM