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    Cafe Mawal

    3.7 (193 reviews)
    Open 11:00 am - 12:00 AM (Next day)
    Updated over 3 months ago

    Order Cafe Mawal Takeout or Delivery

    Cafe Mawal Photos

    Business Info

    CAFE MAWAL ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Casual
    Good for groups
    Good for kids

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    Recommended Reviews - Cafe Mawal

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    Mixed grill

    We love Cafe Mawal, from the friendly staff, the freshness of the food, to the vibe and decor of the restaurant. Even though we don't partake, the hookah does not bother us, we find that it's a nice smell and not offensive at all, so don't let that deter you.

    If you want an authentic middle eastern experience with nice music, decent hookah, and good food, then come here. I love the lamb Shank and the chai is the best chai I've had in this area.

    Chicken & beef Kabob Great tasting tabulih Grape leaves tasty and very hot sauce.
    Jose Alfonso S.

    Good options and very reasonable, can also Hookah if you'd like. Very traditional food options, open late.

    Turkish coffee
    Tracie B.

    My first time at Cafe Mawal was really good! I could actually do without the hookah smell, though. Im really not a fan of that at all. the decor is just weird too, like someone of it just doesn't belong. It a bunch of mixed matched tables and decor. I tried Turkish coffee here for the first time and it was so good. I am such a big fan of coffee, I cant believe I hadn't gotten their Turkish coffee before then. Its super thick and has great coffee flavor. beware for the end of it, though, you'll end up chewing your coffee. The Mint lemonade is just amazing. super refreshing, not too sweet, and packed with minty goodness. I almost asked for one to take home with me, it was just that good. Im kinda mad I had to share mine. ;) The food was good too, I got the veggie plate with eggplant, falafel, cauliflower, and rice. The eggplant was a little greasy but it still tasted pretty good. The falafel was super crunchy and you could really taste the chick peas in it. some places mask that flavor with spices. being that is deep fried, Im always worried that it will be greasy but it wasn't! One thing I would skip the next time is the baklava. It tasted like the fridge. It just wasn't good at all. Like they get it shipped to them and keep it in the fridge until it all sales. I wished I hadn't wasted, well, i wish my date hadn't wasted his money on that.

    Mawal appetizer sampler
    Juncel A.

    I have been to another Cafe Mawal in Houston, and I expected the same out of this one. In a nutshell, this place is a Miditerranean cafe that opens until late where you can smoke hookah and hang out until your lungs give out. I used to hookah a lot, but I haven't been recently so I skipped the hookah this time. I sat down with my buddy just for the food and the feels. This place has been open for a while now. It is in a spot that has been the home of several other failed restaurants in the past. You actually see it easily from the road while driving on Bay Area blvd.They have a side patio and a front patio area that would be nice to hang out at when the weather gets warmer. The inside of the place feels welcoming and clean, and you can see some hookah's on display. Overall the decor inside is simple, and it's actually not smoky for hookah place that allows hookah smoking inside (they have a smoking and non-smoking section). Now on to the food, I ordered the Cafe Mawal appetizer sampler that included 2 falafels (i love falafels!), 2 dolmas (grape leaves with stuff in it), hummus, a salad, something else and pita bread. The appetizer was great and was actually very filling even for 2 people. I was afraid I was going to not have enough room for my main mea,but i didl. I got the gyro, which had a lot of lamb and chicken in it and tasted pretty good. The service was also great, the server took a lot of time talking to us and just explaining some menu items to us. Overall the food, service and feels were great! They open late, so next time I get hungry late I might stop by again. The waiter said they see the crowd more at night time, so I'm gonna see how it is and maybe I'll smoke a puff or two while munching on some falafels!

    Beef cheese burger burned inside and out

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    3 years ago

    Loved their food! It's very affordable and they had fast and friendly service. Can't wait to go back to try their hookahs

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    2 years ago

    Nice for hookah in Clearlake. The Ming lemonade is delicious. It's not byob like cafe layal

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    3 years ago

    I enjoyed the Arabian Shawarma with hummus as my side. The food was excellent and the service was even better. Will definitely return.

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    3 years ago

    Music is too loud!!! The place is nice but the music make it imposible to talk with others in the table!

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    Ask the Community - Cafe Mawal

    How is the hookah? Are there a lot of options for flavors and do they have shared hookahs and how much does it cost?

    Hookah has over 50 flavors. Price starts at $12.99, during happy hour is $9.99.

    View All 2 Questions

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    Urban Smoke - They offer hookah

    Urban Smoke

    4.4(62 reviews)
    22.8 miGreenway
    $$

    This cigar lounge was awesome. My girlfriend and I wanted to enjoy a cigar and we headed to Urban…read moreSmoke. As soon as we entered, we were greeted with a smile. The cigar selection was great and this place is kind of deceptive--it's like a Speak Easy. Our server (Gene) was amazing! BTW, she helped create most of the drinks on the menu. The lounge was chill, the bartenders were great, and....they had live DJs playing awesome music! The hookah was great too! We did have some food: catfish. It was amazing! Crispy. Full of flavor. Delicious! The beans and rice were tasty too! We also had the cheese curds--yum! We felt welcomed. We were happy. We enjoyed the evening immensley!! I'd go back in a heartbeat!

    Decent parking in their private lot yet the space is small so come early if you want a place to sit…read moreor a table. Otherwise you'll be standing. The bartenders are friendly and quick with a strong pour. It was too crowded for me as it was hard to walk from one side to the other. I do appreciate the security yet the lines for the bathroom were annoying as they're are only 2. The dj was cool kept the vibe going all night. Decent pricing for drinks and Decent hookah for the city at $25. If I come back I'll be sure to use the bathroom ahead of time to avoid the line and obnoxious knocks on the door and arrive early to avoid being seated in the walkway.

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    Urban Smoke
    Urban Smoke - Notice!

    Notice!

    Urban Smoke - He snatched the chair from under me causing me to fall. You can tell he hates women.

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    Lost & Found - Shrimp, Mac & Cheese and green beans

    Lost & Found

    3.8(1k reviews)
    20.8 miFourth Ward, Midtown, Montrose
    $$

    First time and definitely not our last time. Once seated and our waiter, Tyson, introduced himself,…read morehe made the experience quite welcoming. He seems like he enjoys what he does bcz he was such a pleasure. He could tell it was our first time and was very patient and took time to explain everything on the menu. Tyson's suggestions were spot on for both eats and drinks. He didn't make us feel rushed at any time, and instead made us feel like taking our time was preferred, which helps patrons enjoy every single detail of the work chefs and bartenders put into their crafts. Whenever I return, I'll definitely request Tyson as our waiter.

    We came on Monday for HH around 7:30 pm, we know HH was almost over, we live 5 mins away and wanted…read morea quick bite and drink. The valet charges $20 or $40 on a week day and its not even that busy. We walked in and nobody was at the front so we asked the first person we saw " do we sit ourselves" , and she said just wait by the entry door and the host will seat you. Well the host came and said "go to the front & I can help you there". Cool. We get seated and given a menu. The menu was dirty, sticky, and over all filthy. We moved inside to the bar and asked a waitress "can you let the bartender know we are here, we think she went to the back for something". The waitress looked at us and said " oh, she know y'all here. She gone come". Instead of letting her know we moved to the bar. Anywho, Bunny took great care us. She literally made our experience go from 1 to a high 8. Ask for Bunnnyyy at the bar!!! Nice music playing. Minus the bugs on the patio (love bug season in tx) and long wait on the patio, the ambiance wouldve been great outside..... Service needs a bit of tweaking, food was good, Bunny was amazing. Well be back in some time. Thank you Bunnyyy!

    Photos
    Lost & Found - Hookah bar

    Hookah bar

    Lost & Found - Jerk Lamb Chops

    Jerk Lamb Chops

    Lost & Found - NA Colada

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    Sky Hookah Lounge - Hookah with the ice tip

    Sky Hookah Lounge

    3.9(124 reviews)
    33.8 miWest Oaks
    $$

    Pros Ambience Hookah…read moreVariety Music Selection Cons Asthma Risk Patron Mixture Risk The Hookah lounge was comfortable however I'm not a big hookah smoker because it makes me dizzy after a while. This night I went with one of my close sorority sisters and ended up smoking hookah with her. This location was dark and very easy on the eyes. It showcased a heavy middle eastern influence since hookah is heavy there. The variety of options are given in a menu style and allow you to pick whatever fits your needs at the time. You are also able to freely smoke as long as you would like with the occasional waiter coming to replace the coals on your hookah. They also hire their DJs every night, so the music can change and control the mood depending on what is played. The do played a variety of music from hip hop to r&b and pop, there was no shortage on the tunes just know that they will change. The downside of this place is the smoke, if you're asthmatic or have trouble seeing this place might pose a couple of risk to you. You might have trouble breathing or being able to see the ground as you walk into the puff clouds of other patrons. There is also a mixture of patrons, some there to enjoy themselves and others to have parties and fun, if you're set on a flat consistent vibe then this may not be a place, there was someone on a couch enjoying their entire life while we were there, luckily we didn't care how they did anything it didn't interfere with us. Risk was also a major thing to be mindful of, the coals can be extremely hot and give damaging burns, people can also get sick from the hookah so be careful of the health risk and also use caution around the hookah to avoid coals! Overall a good place, if you're in Houston definitely stop by and have a good time.

    if I could start off by giving this I would. I went there to have a good time every 5 to 10…read moreminutes. A waitress approached me trying to get me to buy a bottle. After I already bought the as well as a a waiter ended up walking up to me and telling me even though you bought the section. You're holding it up because there's other people that wants to buy bottles. Which made no sense to me since I've already would not recommend going here. Not only is the service bag, but waitresses are pushy like sales people one out of 10 would not recommend.

    Photos
    Sky Hookah Lounge - Chillin wit bae

    Chillin wit bae

    Sky Hookah Lounge - Ordered a glass hookah- Orange head, paan ras, and grape. Not a big fan of very strong hookah so this one was good.

    Ordered a glass hookah- Orange head, paan ras, and grape. Not a big fan of very strong hookah so this one was good.

    Sky Hookah Lounge - Tried out the chocolate mousse cake today. SO GOOD!  Next up is the red velvet one!

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    Tried out the chocolate mousse cake today. SO GOOD! Next up is the red velvet one!

    The Cave Hookah Lounge - OUR BEST HOOKAH

    The Cave Hookah Lounge

    4.3(28 reviews)
    40.7 mi
    $$

    Love this place! But just a heads-up, they don't have a sign in the plaza where the hookah lounge…read moreis located, so it's a little tricky to find. But it's so worth it! Aly the manager is so kind and opens his place until the last customers leaves and never acts pushy or rude. He also lets you test out different flavors and if you have a problem with your hookah or you just don't like the flavor, he'll switch it out for you no problem! They've also done some renovating to the place and it looks pretty nice now. New couches and tv's at every corner of the lounge, plus they've added some nice decor to the walls. Only complaint I have is the music they play. Aly lets this amateur DJ come in every once in a while to play and test out his music, but it's just so loud and overbearing sometimes. It's hard to have conversations when the DJ is there... But besides that, I would highly recommend!

    First off, the actual customer service was great. The seating, ambience was very cool. The dj…read morecould use a little fine tuning but he was cool. I'm just not ok with a dj who is being paid by the owner, telling folks or allowing the MC to tell folks in order to request a song, you gotta pay. If I chose to tip him, so be it, but being forced ain't cool. My biggest complaint was the price of everything. Now I'm a country chick and realize that prices are more expensive in the city. I was approached by the manager and I told her I needed a set up. She asked me what chasers I wanted and I said water and coke. I was charged separately for the water and coke that was supposed to be included in my set up.... so all together for a set up and a hookah, I paid over $60. I've never paid, IN HOUSTON, more than $10 for a set up and $35 for a hookah. Then they have small 4 oz paper cups to get the ice out with. After all this she attempted to charge me a bottle fee for each bottle I brought in. I sincerely think the young lady wasn't sure about what she was doing. Again she maintained her professionalism but she looked overwhelmed. Let's move on to those hookahs, the flavor lasted maybe 10-15 minutes and then the other lady who was helping refresh the coals was firmly pressing them down on the foil. I called her to the side and advised her that she was going to burn the shisha like that and sure enough my next puff was nothing but burnt shisha. They did replace it for free so I can't say much about that but overall....... The employees need training, I think they were overwhelmed and I think y'all were understaffed to serve the amount of people that accompanied this party... Great establishment Great employees Refine their skills and you'll be open a long time.

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    The Cave Hookah Lounge - The cave
Best flavor
Best hookah

    The cave Best flavor Best hookah

    The Cave Hookah Lounge
    The Cave Hookah Lounge - New look

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    New look

    Cafe Mawal - hookah_bars - Updated May 2026

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