Excalibur Hookah Lounge

It’s an awesome place. It’s so chill at night. There hookah is always on point. There time changed they are always open on and after midnight

I’m giving one start just because I cannot give zero stars! The place is cool, but the waiters are kind lazy and the hookah finished after just 20min.
Plus, I had a 5 $ off coupon through Unilocal,but they would not accept it on weekends and below 45 $ of consumption.
I wouldn’t recommend this place to anyone.

Nice laid back place. Owner was very respectful of me and cool. Unfortunately their prices are not worth the visit. For the price their charging you can purchase you’re own hookah lol.

Hole in the wall hookah bar. Our server barelly spoke English. Charged us $ 2,00 extra as «taxes» when it wasn’t even written in the receipt, and since when taxes are a rounded number? The water in the hookah wasn’t clean when we got it, plus it tasted awful and was super harsh. She did not even bring us any glasses for the sodas we ordered (which came in a dirty can). Unilocal coupon useless as the minimum purchase is $ 35.

A low-​key hookah lounge that boasts a wide range of flavors, cigars and features belly dancers on weekend nights. This is one of my favorite lounges to come to not only because of its convenient location, but also because it’s a well-​kept secret and its chill ambience. It’s decorated like an Arabic palace and plays middle eastern music or calm ethereal music that puts you in a chill mood. It’s a perfect setting for smoking hookah. The workers here are attentive and change the coals often so it doesn’t get harsh and are accommodating. The pricing is about average for your hookah lounge, and sometimes they have specials. If you come during the week or early during the weekend it is rarely crowded which is awesome. Lastly, the belly dancing is so much fun and adds to the authenticity of the place.
As for preferences, try mixing more than one flavor or some of their pre-​mixed flavors. Putting wine or coconut milk are really good mixed in with the hookah, as well as ice. I have yet to try a fruit bowl, but I’ve only heard good things. If you want an authentic hookah place, come here!

Best hookah I’ve ever tried!!! I tried the mermaid its with watermelon, peach and mint l, it was delicious! And the servers are super cool and kind definitely I will go back soon

Huge selection of cigars! Great place to just hang out with the boys, have a stoggie and a few drinks. They’re coffee actually isn’t bad either with a cigar.

I just moved to Hillcrest and this has become one of my favorite places to hang out. They have a great selection of beers and the hookah is prime. The staff is more than willing to make anything you’re looking for happen, whether it’s playing your own music or mixing up one of the house hookah bowls, they’re always willing to help out. I have a blast everytime I come in, one of my favorite places to stop any night of the week. Ask for Nayera or Pamela, they’re not only so much fun to hang out with but they make sure you have a good time. For example, tonight they ran out of blue moon (because I drank most of them) and the boss went to pick up more within 10 minutes. The experience is personalized and all focused on making sure you have fun, hit it up!

Best smoothie hookah great place and service. I usually come with a friend or alone. Many varieties of hookas ;)

Im pretty sure this place is now called royal hookah and lounge.
I highly don’t recommend this place to anyone. Service was horrible. And this place is in need of an upgrade. I went here with a group of people and it started off okay. But all in all, it was a bad experience.
First of all the music was not poppin. The straight up played arabian or some kind of Indian music. The choices of hookah were not bad but it was pretty expensive. The coal did not last very long and was kind of cheap. Flavors weren’t bad just not as good as I thought it would be.
Worst of all, the service was not there at all. The people here barely understood english. And had major attitude. I don’t remember our server’s name but she was horrible. She was tall and kind of thick with black hair. She was smoking hookah while on the the job, changed our coals until it was literally ash. Like really? Cater to your customers and have more courtesy. Don’t get me started with her attitude. It’s bad enough that she didn’t understand English very well.
Oh and by the way, using their bathroom, you can’t flush the toilet paper in the toilet. HA. What is that all about? This place is dirt.
Seriously, don’t come here. Worst service and this place looked like crap. Never coming back again.

The hookah was good. It was open late which is a plus. Mya the waitress was sweet. Place is a little muggy and that’s the reason for a 3. If u want to come and have a kick back feel. This is the place

Sadly we didn’t get the delicious organic flavors we were hoping for. The lounge room is cool but not air conditioned.

The best hookah I have had in San Diego. This place is great, they are always willing to suggest something great, and will even mix flavors if requested. My friends and I got Lemon mixed with something called Pink, and it tasted like pink lemonade. Heavy flavors here are good too, especially with some wine in the base. And it’s a real lounge, the long couch with pillows is so awesome. I particularly like sitting in the corners. If you come when no one is there, and the owner is just hanging out, he usually has some indian music playing, which just adds to the vibe, although when it’s busier they play club music, but the hookah is worth the annoying music. Just grab a beer, or a glass of wine, or even some turkish coffee, it makes the whole experience even more amazing.

Came to check this place out with my cousin. It’s in a really weird like back alley. Place was pretty dirty and there were lots of rips and tears in their upholstery. The hookah was alright but they upcharged for ice which was weird. Also they have no AC which was slightly unpleasant. The reason we were attracted to this was their Unilocal reviews and five dollars off for a hookah. When I mentioned that deal the woman said it was only for hookahs over 30 dollars which wasn’t stated in the Unilocal add. The people who give this place 5 stars are probably really drunk or blazed. I don’t even know how this place could stay in business.

The hookah is alright, the server was nice, and the ambience was okay. But one thing that is truly annoying is the fact that they have a Unilocal discount that simply is not honored. They have a hidden clause that requires you to spend 35 dollars in order to take advantage of the deal. I’m sorry, but that’s just fraudulent. 2 stars because we still managed to have a good time but left with a bad taste in our mouths about the discount. Either add the details to the discount, take it off Unilocal completely, or honor it as is. But the way they are using it to drive business is wrong.

Great service, delicious hookah. Needs a facelift, but that says nothing about how perfect our experience was — would HIGHLY recommend it!

This is my favorite hookah bar right now! It is definitely a hidden gem.
PROS:
* Venue
* Hookah prices
* Weekend night life
* Cigar selection
CONS:
* Parking
* Food selection/​prices
ADVICE:
* Park at the garage just down the street!
* Eat before you get there
* Dance with the belly dancer or you’ll regret it :)
The venue is very bohemian, dark and home-​y. They went all out with decorating this place. The hookah flavors are great and never get harsh too quick. If you want to just relax and smoke, come on a weekday. Weekends aren’t annoyingly busy but there are definitely more people there. And there’s a belly dancer that comes on weekends too which make the experience all more the fun.
I don’t smoke cigars but there’s also what seems to be a great selection of cigars at the front desk.

I’m pretty sure this place calls itself «royal hookah and cigar» now.
They took a solid 30 minutes to get the hookah prepared from the time we ordered it. We ordered a regular code 69 with ice. Nothing fancy. And there was only 3 total groups of people in the entire place. Not busy at all.
They used the cheap easy light style coals and placed them center bowl. Any legit lounge knows charcoal is one of the most important ingredients in a good hookah set up and you always burn from outside it.
They had 4 fans running above us, so good luck to anyone who likes to blow smoke «O“s.
The thing that pissed me off was paying.
The guy says «$ 16 for hookah, $ 1 for and $ 2 for bottle water, with taxes that’ll be $ 26 dollars»
I told them there’s no way it’s $ 7 in tax and the guy stares at me like he’d been caught redhanded, he said «hold on» and comes back to tell us «oh, we have a $ 2 cover charge on nights like this».
Total bullshit and this place is dirty with dirty people working there.

Far too many hookah lounges try to be a damn nightclub, with super load music. When I want to go smoke hookah I want to relax and enjoy the experience. Also I would like to be able to talk to my friends without having to yell. At this lounge I’m able to enjoy myself and talk to my friends.
They have great flavor combinations, a decent selection of beer, and great service. I highly recommend Excalibur!

Had a $ 5 off bill for Unilocal «check in» and it was not honored bc they said it had to be a bill of $ 35 or more during weekdays only. Annoyed by that. Other than that, it’s just a typical over priced hookah lounge. Also had no parking. Meh

I had fun but the service was kinda slow. It was just ok… The server was friendly though

This place is a great hang out place!!! They have everything hookah, cigar, wine, bar, vape pens… Prices are a bit expensive but well worth it… They also have a belly dancer at a certain time. Customer service is great!!! The staff is great always checking up on u making sure the hookah is prepped… I love this place :)

Used to be visit this place a lot when i was younger and had lots of fun. Tried their hookah recently on a Monday night and it fell short of my expectations.
The hookah was not smooth at all. Sorry. maybe better luck next time

This is a nice chill spot for a group of people! My husband had a cigar with the fellas and all of the ladies hung out with wine and hookahs! The customer service was great and the owner was amazing and very welcoming! We will be returning!

It’s always a good experience coming here — I come here more than I should… Reasonably priced and good hookah. Sal is a good «mixologist,» and can whip up anything if you ask him. I love coming here and relaxing while they’re playing Arabic music. Makes me feel like I’m in the Middle East :).
Weeknights tend to be a little slower so if you’re wanting to chill out and not be around a lot of people, that’s a good time to go. Weekends tend to get busier, and sometimes there is a belly dancer on Friday or Saturday nights, which is great to watch!
Hillcrest parking is what you’d expect…

This place is nothing more than a hole in the wall – Literally! (and not the good kind either!)
First and foremost, the location is quite literally «off the beaten path» and is ultimately a bit tricky to find. And from the outside, it looks like I’d be entering a broke down red light district. Conversely however, the inside décor manages to mask any potential «shadiness» that is perceived from the outside.
My main complaint about this place is just about what is offered. While the variety of hookahs and alcoholic beverages are plentiful, the prices are (in my opinion) unjustified. For example, a cranberry vodka here is the equivalent to the price of the hookah rental and comes in a child-​sized cup. Talk about proportion issues.
Secondly, places like this are all about the ambiance. I get it. The feng shui is unique and so are the hookahs that you provide. But for the love of all that is holy, please re-​vamp your music playlist. Something about the background music played in this location made me want to bang my head against the wall. Fiercely and repeatedly. In the end I felt extremely uncomfortable and couldn’t wait to leave.
While the service was fantastic and the OVERALL ambience was calm, I’m quite certain that I will not be visiting this place ever again. There are so many other options of places that serve Hookah that are better suited to my needs.