Smoking Ban? What Smoking Ban?

If you told your roommate that you’d just tasted a scent, she would probably subtly direct you to University Health Services. But at a smoky little hideaway in Charlestown, this experience is a part of everyday business. Pay a visit to Tangierino’s hookah bar and the adjacent Moroccan restaurant, and both you and your incredulous roommate can enjoy the utter coolness of taking a breath that tastes like apple.

Tangierino’s has a rotating menu of six to seven flavors of shisha—the type of tobacco used in hookahs, personally selected by manager Samad Namad. He chooses the flavors based on both their popularity with customers, and on how well they complement the Moroccan delicacies served nightly next door. “It’s part of the Moroccan concept,” Namad explains. “The music, the lights, the food, the hookah…it all works together to create a unique experience.”

A fully-functional hookah bar is certainly a unique experience in Boston, where a smoking ban has been in effect since the spring of 2003. Now that Mantra’s hookah bar is out of the competition (although the hyper-modern chrome and steel restaurant itself continues to thrive), Tangierino’s is the only establishment of its sort. Be sure to arrive early, because by around 10 p.m., all the seats in the cramped, low-lit lounge will be filled. Scantily-clad waitresses continually rush through the densely packed area delivering drinks, pipes and the occasional expert demonstration of belly dancing.

If the scene in the lounge area is a lychee martini—sexy and achingly hip, then the ambience of the restaurant next door is a glass of red wine—laid back and romantic. The walls and ceiling are draped in lush purple and red fabrics, and the long rectangular room is softly lit with gold and silver lanterns, no two exactly alike.

But despite the trendiness of the interior design—or rather, because of it—the Tangierino’s restaurant seems to lack cultural authenticity in both food and atmosphere. For better or worse, Tangierino’s tries to give its diners the exoticized, eroticized version of North African style and cuisine. It’s the Urban Outfitters of Moroccan restaurants; everything looks great, and seems tantalizing, but there’s no substance or story behind the first impression.

And it’s very expensive. Entrees are upwards of $20, and appetizers and desserts price in the teens. Nevertheless, if you need a strong jolt to nudge you out of your dining hall doldrums, be sure to try the tuna tartare appetizer—the fish is served on a green and amber-hued tower of cucumber salad and honeyed mango ($13). For entrees, the cous cous royale with seven vegetables ($24) is served in a traditional tanjine style, which ensures tender vegetables and meat since a funnel-like ceramic lid keeps cooking vapors trapped in the dish until the meal is served.

For the true traditionalist, however, Namad recommends choosing a meal that matches well with the flavor of shisha to be smoked after dinner. “Moroccan cooking involves lots of cinnamon, almonds and walnuts [and] fruit shishas go well with these flavors.” He personally recommends pairing the walnut-crusted halibut ($25) with apple shisha ($25).

At the end of the meal, it is near impossible to leave the warmth of Tangierino’s. Despite the sense of constructed coolness, this Moroccan restaurant still charms. It seems that the best way to find a decent Moroccan restaurant in Boston is simply to smoke it out.