Abunawas Cafe & Hookah Bar

Best place in town! you can’t beat there quality hookahs or their staff. I’ve been coming here for years and now they have happy hours specials how can you not love that. most of the time it’s full with college kids which is just the perfect crowd

Edit: For the owners comment. I was here just this past Saturday.
Good place to chill and hang out. They are chill about the food policy, since they don’t sell any.
I’ve been several times and it was always good until recently. LOTS of cigarette smoking. My throat hurt for days after and I reeked so badly, I had to go home, change and take a shower. It was bad.

I like coming here to study in the daytime or to hang out with friends. The service is prompt, and the staff leave you alone for hours at a time, and I find this a great feature. Prices are excellent, and they have specials for groups (2 hookah and 2 drinks). Strong wifi and many tables.

This place is the best thing about Fairfax. Completely relaxed, unpretentious, not clubby. Owner /​employees are super accommodating, the other night they let my friends and I pick music to put on. It’s like an office for smoking hookah, I love it.

For those who haven’t had hookah before I would say this is perfect for you. A great and easy going atmosphere as well as simple ordering. The hookah is always of good quality and the employees are nice and recognize regulars. The music is good and they have wifi. This place is good for all ages (those over 18) but bring your firends!

Came here after hotspot. I liked it. The gummy was really good. I’m sure I’ll be coming here again. There were some reserved seats. Not sure who they are for, but you can’t sit there. Doesn’t matter though, I would come back again to hookah here

Consistently good shisha and service. Cost is about $ 15, depending on the tobacco brand you want to smoke. Also, they use the disposable single-​use hoses for $ 1 extra, which I like.
This is a great place to meet friends or bring your laptop and headphones to do some homework. It can get pretty crowded/​smoky in the evenings, so I like to go more during the day when it’s a bit quieter. No food on the menu, but you can bring in any food you want to eat. Drinks are self-​serve and must be bought in the café. Parking can be hard to come by, as there is another shisha café and a Bön Chon in the same shopping center.
Definitely check out this spot if you’re looking for a chill, no-​frills spot.

The service is amazing, I am a Hookah guy and I can tell who the real hookah tastes. I give it 4 stars because it needs air system!

Hookah was complete shit. Only good thing was that it was cheapish. Will never come again

not impressed at all. we came in and left. Isis in Herndon and Alf Laylah in Chantilly are much cleaner and have air ventilation. this place did not serve food but offered a take out Italian menu that we could order from… we passed. May be great for a college kid but not for someone looking for something with a nice ambience.

Their grapefruit mint is amazing, as are the other flavors. Idk if they pack it well or use a better supplier than most places but the hookah flavors here are more refined and crisp. In the sense that everything doesn’t taste like something with a hint of Bluemist. I’m sure this is because they thoroughly clean the hookahs and the ice in the base helps as well.

Fast and great service! Staff is very friendly here and cater to any of the customers needs fast! The hookahs are packed great and they give you your own coals so you don’t have to wave down any of the employees for them to change it.
One of the best hookah places in the area with a relaxing vibe and with the music not too overwhelming. I like how it’s affordable and chill vibe where you’re able to do your homework or just to hang with friends!

This place definitely the best hookah lounge in Virginia so far. I’m talking about the hookah itself and the flavor. They’re very specialized in hookah flavors.

Favorite hookah bar, it’s like my second home. I’m here almost every day and it’s a good place to relax and talk with friends. Recent additions of sandwiches and ice cream are also nice and very adorable. Over all for the quality of the hookah you get and the price it’s at, you can’t beat it anywhere else. Try blue mist/​white peach or double Apple/​mint you won’t regret it

15 – 20 bucks (tip included) will be your total expenditure depending on the hookah you get
I really enjoy this place, as they have appropriately priced hookah, they are packed well, and they have a multitude of flavors. I like the fact that you don’t need to wait for coals, you can just do it yourself as they provide the tongs with the hookah.
The only con I know of is that they have a 3.99 charge if you have more than 2 people per hookah, so the «loophole» is to just get a drink instead.
That being said, I visit Abunawas fairly frequently, and will continue to do so!

This has to be one of the best if not the best hookah establishment in the area. Hookahs are always clean and well made, the selections is varied and the staff is attentive and friendly. The place is always full of friendly people who will engage is friendly conversation. They do not serve food, but their tea is exceptional and always comes out well. Come here for a chill time with great people.

I have been here many time, i like the iced hookah with best test. Also they have big range of drinks. I recommend this place.

This place is the best.
It’s chill laid-​back and non-​pretentious. The staff here don’t try to milk you for every dime you have. They are realistic with prices and still friendly and calm. They don’t slack with the service and go the extra mile.
Inside can get a bit cramped so summer is definitely my favorite time to frequent this establishment. Also if I lived closer would Abu would probably be my usual hang out spot.

By far my FAVORITE hookah bar! Some people can argue that the atmosphere is a little run down, but i care more about the quality of the hookah and i have never been disappointed with them.
First of all, the staff is amazing. The people that work here are so polite and well mannered. They really know how to cater to your needs and their all just so laid back. They have a great selection of flavor and they bring out the hookah within minutes of ordering. I like how they use a disposable pipe which they throw out after you’ve finished using it.
I love how they always leave a couple new coals with a pair of tongs on your hookah tray. Now that may sound a little silly, but a lot of these new hookah bars don’t give you a pair of tongs so you have to get up and ask them to move the coal for you and you have to wait for the «coal boy» to come around and give you a new coal, which at times, can take forever. So having access to tongs and coals are very convenient
You are welcome to bring your own food and drinks which is great because my friend and i like to get chipotle and enjoy our dinner while smoking hookah. They have a fridge full of drinks which you can help yourself to and they have a laptop hooked up to the speakers where people can play their choice of music.
Pros:
–Great Hookah
–Clean
–Disposable pipes
–Big parking lot
–Friendly Staff
–Cheap prices
–Food and drinks are allowed
Cons:
–None ;)

The seating here is comfortable and the regulars are very friendly. The lighting is also easy on the eyes. Their hookahs are very well made and they use a new hose every time. They even let you take the hoses home!
Very comfortable atmosphere for a relaxing hookah session.

I love this place! Right next to Ishtar is Abu Nawas, and both these places are by far the best places in Northern Virginia for hookah. It’s a nice casual atmosphere where there is always a crowd. They always serve the best hookah, I have never been disappointed.
Not only is the place amazing, but the people that work there are also amazing. I’ve noticed at some Arab owned hookah bars the owners are sometimes a little stuck up, but I love these people! Every time I go there, they’re all so sweet, and so helpful. They always have a smile on their face, and are so polite.
I love to go to Abu Nawas, it’s my go-​to place for hookah.

This is the place to go to for a nice Hookah. The new management did an awesome job with cleaning this place and making it more presentable. The staff is friendly and hip. They make you feel comfortable, no pressure to buy stuff. They only got hot and cold beverages, yet they will let you bring your own food or they will be happy to order you food from somewhere else.
The new management now serves fresh fruit hookah (an apple stuffed with the tobacco) to keep it cold. They put ice in the wanter of your hookah to keep it cold and nice. You also have the option of asking for natural charcoal, which is much better than the nasty rounded stuff they use in other place is out of convenience.
In short, nice and cool place to sit, chat and relax. And the best hookah you can have in the DMV area. Try the Sahleb (creamy hot milk drink with pistachio and cinnamon on top) on cold winter nights. I drive all the way from Maryland to have it.

I have been to a handful of hookah places– Alf’s, TZ, Fuzion, Dream, Moe’s, Ishtar, Mint, etc. Abu Nawas beats them all. Atmosphere, price, quality, service.
The atmosphere is different from most other hookah places, in that I don’t feel like I’m at a nightclub or a seedy basement. In my opinion, hookah lounges should be comfortable and relaxing. I shouldn’t see people loudly partying like they think they’re Drake or fear what might be in my shisha. The main smoking area is well lit, with a few TV’s spread out along the walls. The music is never overbearing so my ability to have an actual conversation with my friends isn’t compromised (plus you can play your own music, if peer judgement isn’t a concern of yours). They have chess boards and a couple other games you can play at your table. The place is ventilated enough that you aren’t sitting in a fog, but not so much that your smoke is whisked away instantly. The seating can’t quite accommodate everyone comfortably, though I suppose being super busy is a nice sign.
The price is very reasonable. About $ 13 for a hookah. For the most part, the staff doesn’t seem to care what you order, but they have, on a few occasions, asked my group to order more than one hookah. Of course, this is when there are about 6+ of us and from a business owner’s perspective, I find their request reasonable. If I have a large group, we usually do their 2 hookahs & 2 drinks special, which is a pretty good deal. Apparently, you can also bring your own food, though I haven’t done this yet, nor do I see people often doing that.
The quality of the hookah itself (probably the most important aspect of the whole establishment) is consistently satisfying. Always pulls nicely, sizable output, nice taste. They don’t use disposable hoses and that’s a plus. I never worry about the quality of what I order because they always pack it with care.
The service is fine, no one there is rude, and while they won’t come and change the coals or check on you, they are always present and attentive. If I ever needed something, there wasn’t an issue with hailing one of them down or going to the counter.
Overall, this is the place I take my friends for a good hookah session, and they agree it’s the best out of everywhere we’ve gone so far.

I FOUND MY NEW FAVORITE HOOKAH BAR! SUCCESS!
Abu Nawas must have read all my reviews because they have fixed EVERYTHING that annoys me about hookah bars.
Here are my most hated issues with hookah bars and how Abu Nawas has fixed them:
$ 3 bottled water only. You can bring your own!
«You MUST order drink» You can bring your own!
90’s Techo blasting! Sound is conversation level
Rude service. One table had an issue and
FOUR concerned
employees tried to fix it.
Harsh Hookah It wasn’t cigarette grade

I can go on but those are my big ones. This place is a far drive for me but it’s ABSOLUTELY worth it. They aren’t RUDE, they DON’T make you order things, they DON’T charge $ 3 for water bottle (only Disney World can do that), and they AREN’T cold to NON Middle Eastern people like the OTHER hookah bar I’ve boycotted in the same shopping center that will remain nameless.
This place rocks! Please try it out!