What is a fruit hookah?

5 min read · Updated 21 September 2026

Short answer: it is a hookah where the clay bowl on top has been replaced by a real piece of fruit, hollowed out and packed by hand. Longer answer, including whether it is actually worth $65, below.

How it is actually made

Nothing about it is quick, which is most of why it costs what it costs.

1. The fruit is cut and hollowed by hand, leaving walls thick enough to hold their shape under heat for a couple of hours.
2. Holes are made in the base so smoke can draw through into the stem.
3. It is packed with shisha, then covered with foil, punched, and the coals go on top.
4. The coals get tended through the session, the same as any other bowl.

A clay bowl takes a minute to pack. A pineapple takes considerably longer, and if the walls are cut too thin it collapses halfway through and the session is over.

Does it actually smoke differently?

Yes, and not for mystical reasons. Two things are going on:

• Moisture. Fruit holds water. Clay does not. That moisture keeps the shisha from drying out and scorching as quickly, which is why a fruit bowl is more forgiving late in a session.
• Heat distribution. Fruit walls conduct heat less aggressively than clay, so the tobacco cooks more gently. The smoke comes out noticeably cooler.

You do get a faint sweetness from the fruit itself, but anyone telling you a pineapple bowl tastes strongly of pineapple is overselling it. The flavour still comes mostly from the shisha. What you really notice is the temperature and the smoothness.

It is not a different flavour so much as a different texture. Cooler, softer, and it holds up longer before it turns harsh.

Which fruit should you pick?

If you have not had one before, start with pineapple. It is the most forgiving and it lasts.

Is it worth $65?

Honestly, it depends what you are buying it for.

It is worth it if there are three or four of you, you are staying a while, and you want the table to have something at the centre of it. Split four ways it is roughly the price of a regular hookah each, it runs longer than a clay bowl, and it is the thing people photograph.

It is not worth it if you are on your own or passing through for forty minutes. Order a regular hookah at $20 and spend the difference on tea. We would rather tell you that than sell you a pineapple you do not need.

Practical things worth knowing

• It takes longer to come out. Fifteen to twenty minutes on a busy night. Order it when you sit down, not at the end.
• It runs long — comfortably longer than a clay bowl before it needs attention.
• The premium base is a separate thing. Swapping the water for Red Bull, Snapple or milk is $10 extra and works with a fruit hookah, though the fruit is already doing a lot of the work.
• No, you should not eat it afterwards. It has had burning coals on it for two hours.

Where to get one in Fremont

We carve them to order at 37381 Fremont Blvd, in Centerville. $65, choose your fruit when you order, and you can set it up from your phone at the table. We are 21+ with valid ID, open till 1 AM on weeknights and 2 AM Friday to Sunday.