Babel Lounge & Hookah Bar

Came here on a Saturday night with my sister, cousin, and a friend because we were invited through friends of friends. I don’t smoke at all let alone smoke hookah so I can’t give too much insight on it but from what I saw and witnessed, this place seemed decent at best, ghetto at worst. The people there seemed to have a good time though so I’m just going to assume that they were regulars. If I’m not mistaken they had at least 2 rooms of entertainment. The size of this establishment is quite compact. The music was ok, there were some songs that made me get up. And dance. In front of my seat… but I was sitting in I guess what you would call a VIP section most of the night. My table was constantly being served rounds and drinks and rounds of shisha, or however you would refer to that as… No place I would come back to just because it’s not really my scene. It’s reminiscent of maybe my dads old local bar in a dingy city in Massachusetts, if you get where I’m going with this, although above ground, basement kinda vibes, nothing special going on besides hookah if that’s what you’re into and even with that, I’ve seen much nicer hookah lounges!

Place is incredibly ghetto. I had my backpack and they searched every compartment and patted down both myself and the friend I was with. I have never has this happen outside of an airport so it was fairly concerning. Once I got inside I paid a $ 20 cover for a mediocre DJ. The staff was generally disrespectful and added an automatic «service charge» for my hookah for 2. They refused to allow credit card payment for the hookah (even though the bar let me used my credit card for the $ 12 Corona). They walked away with the cash and didn’t return with any change. They did not return to give us née coals, and the hookah ran out pretty quickly. We had to go to the bar to get out own drinks. Really bad experience

Describe this place in one word: ummm… G-​H-​E-​T-​T-​O! I made a reservation with someone for our very large party and was told we would have no problem getting in. Guess what? We had a problem getting in! As i stood out in the cold trying to rationalize with the girl at the door trying to charge a ridic cover for this place, I noticed the type of people going in there and decided this was an debate I probably didn’t want to win.

Always wanted to check out a nice hookah lounge with good music and a good crowd. Been to one before in the LES (name escaped me, but once I find it I’ll review it as well lol) that had a more Middle Eastern vibe, but Babel/Jolie’s is an awesome spot if you’re looking for a chill, urban environment.
I went last week for my birthday (bday is 1/​28, but I went to Babel on ¹⁄₂₉) with a few friends, and even though the crowd was predominantly a straight one (we’re used to more gay scenes), my friends and I felt VERY comfortable. The music was spot on, with the DJ playing majority Hip Hop/R&B (old school hip hop as well), and my friends and I had no problem dancing and cutting up the floor.
One particular server (I believe her name was Steph) was very sweet and courteous the entire night, even when I was waiting on my friends by myself. Always made sure we were doing good, and even had a bit of time to mingle with us! Someone give her a raise lol.
Product wise, the hookahs lasted SO LONG! While by myself, I had a hookah that lasted for over an hour, and was still running by the time my friends came. Drinks were normal price to me ($ 10+), but they were good regardless.
Only reason this place is missing a star is because they need to update the website, or better promote their new website if they have one. I made a reservation through the old one, and the owner was unaware; HOWEVER, he was also very understanding and courteous, and still treated my situation with the utmost respect.
I would solidly and confidently recommend this spot if you’re looking for a light turn up and don’t feel like going to a club. I would definitely go back another time!

Called to ask if they were open for dinner. Said they were. Ummmm that means you serve food. Looks liked they don’t. How dumb.

Ok here we go. I am a hookah person, however I like the old school Arabic type spots over clubs that just sell hookah. First of all the hookah is terrible, and the drinks are pricey. Also they have this odd table service policy that isn’t explained before you come in, so you may be sitting down for an hour before they tell you to stand up for table service. The service is horrible as the waitress takes forever to bring you your drinks so its already watered down by the time you get them, and god forbid she has to bring it back, you won’t get it for an hour. On top of that in this place money rules all, as the place is inhabited by unsavory characters who openly show their flags (gang colors). The surrounding neighborhood isn’t the best but there is a police station across the street. If you do decide to go here, don’t drive because the parking is terrible.

I have mixed feelings about this spot. Good hookah for a good price $ 30 not bad. The DJ played some good tunes but he couldn’t transition from song to song. We went from biggie to Backstreet Boys to house music lol. Pre game if u can. Drinks are somewhat pricey. Plus I brought a patron margarita for $ 10 from one bartender & the next bartender charged me $ 20 for the same drink so I think they make up prices depending on who makes it. Overall I had a good time the staff was cool. I don’t think I’ll come back though unless they have a real DJ & consistency with drink prices

This place has never let me down. Each time i taught it was going to be a quite nite i walk in totally surprised this place has the best hookah i had in NYC, the drinks are totally worth the money. Atmosphere is great DJ always plays the hit to get the room shacking.

Great place for a small group birthday party.

The bar tender was super nice and friendly and made some decent drinks. The vibe of the place was meh. It seemed more for like college students and clearly nobody cared about the dress code. Everyonr was very dressed down (flip flops, tank tops, etc.) Overall, it was ok. It’s a very small place.

Smh at this place. First they made my group of 8 people pay for bottle service. Then the bartender stole someone in my group credit card and charged up to $ 274. I noticed a few reviews about people cards being used without it being authorized. I would advise Babel’s management to do a better background check on the people they hire. These people are going to bring this place down.

The first, second, and third word that came to mind to describe this place was CORNY.
The drinks are not worth what they charge. They range in execution from «eh» to god awful.
The crowd consists of fedora wearers, and people that still think they look hella cool blowing hookah smoke out of their nose and throwing the middle finger up in any and all Facebook pictures.
As for the DJs, which is the most important part as far as I’m concerned. Yes they play good songs, but they ruin them 90% of the time with shitty song transitions. I feel like these guys learned to dj at the same place that told Iggy Australia she could rap. The Pandora app is a better DJ.
Honestly I’ve gone twice now, and both times i left feeling like I was just at Webster hall. (That’s not a good thing)
But then again if you enjoy webster, yessss come here. There’s a selfie mirror.

Just scheduled my bday party here. The owner is so nice, friendly, and accommodating over the phone. I have a large group. I know we will have a great time!

Visiting NYC is usually for work, so when I was able to go out, Babel was a great choice! Their bootle service is great, very attentive and pricing was rather reasonable for a New York Hookah Bar. The DJ was really good and the hookah flavor was tasty and I felt well taken care of. Overall it was a great time, I would totally visit again!

I came to this lounge for a friend’s 30^th birthday party. At first, my husband and I were a little peeved because we had to walk so far in the rain to get to the lounge. After we got inside and dried off, we enjoyed the atmosphere and ambiance of the lounge. The DJ played awesome music from the 80s and 90s. There was plenty of seating and the hookah was fun! It wasn’t too crowded and had enough room for dancing. I would definitely come back here for another get together.

I have not been here for food but rather for drinks and dancing after 10pm. Good place to go with friends for a birthday celebration. Music is good and the vibe of the place is fun. Good music on both sides of this lounge.
Tends to get crowded like most lounges in NYC but fun place to go.

Would get 5 stars if it wasn’t for the service. Went there for a birthday party and had a space reserved. Weren’t told about the $ 250 minimum until we got there, which was fine. Everyone just had to order through the cocktail waitress. After 15 minutes trying to order a beer, people were going directly to the bar. I don’t know if they were understaffed this particular night, but service was really really slow. The cocktail waitress said she would get us shots because of the lag in time. never did.
All in all everyone had a great time. Beers and cocktail drinks were the cheapest I’ve seen in NYC. The Hookah as well — and it was great. We had every flavor — I really liked the Babelonia and the Caribbean. Music was great. Will be back!

I love Babel Lounge! The music is always amazing with DJ Stoon! I love it there. The drinks are good and the place itself is very easy to get to.
What I like the most about Babel is that it is a chill spot, you could go there just to have some hookah or you could party it up. It works both ways. I always go on a Friday and I always have a good time there!
Give this place a try for sure!

My friend was looking for the perfect place for her birthday. Her criteria was to find a place that she didn’t need a list to get all her friends in yet had a club feel with good dance music/​vibe that didn’t insist on us buying three bottles for an exorbitant amount of money to have the tiny table in the corner. The fact that they serve hookah was a huge plus!
Babel was the perfect solution. We had no problem getting everyone in and the manager even gave the birthday girl free shots. When some of the birthday party got a little too rambunctious dancing on the booth they were very politely asked to get down (no one getting thrown out rashly, etc). At one point a hookah was broken accidentally and they were still super nice about it. I was really really impressed. And it was worth it because I’m pretty sure we spent three times what we expected to because we were having so much fun. THAT’S how you run a business! I would 100% come back and highly recommend it for a night out with friends or a birthday. On another random note I liked how it was a nice combination of lounge and hookah bar. It wasn’t overly themed.

I had my 29^th bday here last year in December and had a blast!!! I was in the main room and the everything was perfect! From the music, service, drinks, hookah and of course my friends and family… I had one of the best times of my life. The music was a mix of everything and I loved the middle eastern mix added into it!!!
I was actually there again recently last month in October for my boyfriends 30^th birthday. We were in the lounge area where they played mostly electric/​dance music which was perfect. The DJ that night killed it. Hands down this is the place to party if you want to listen to great music, dance the night away and enjoy your night. You don’t feel crowded or have to worry about anyone acting a fool. The atmosphere is a laid back, everyone is there to enjoy kinda feel.
I am actually thinking of having my 30^th birthday there as well this December.