Translation from English

Saturday, November 16, 2013

Karizma- Midtown East

Eccentric looking places gets mixed reviews. I could tell right away this would be the case,
so I would think this is the kind of place you might put on a list as " experimenting."

Karizma

3.0 star rating
21 reviews Rating Details
244 E 51st St
(between 3rd Ave & 2nd Ave)
New York, NY 10022
Neighborhood: Midtown East
(212) 605-9988
Make a Reservation
Nearest Transit Station:
Lexington Ave./53 St. (E, M)
51 St. (4, 6, 6X)
5 Ave./53 St. (E, M)
Hours:
Mon-Sun 3 pm - 2 am
Good for Kids:
No
Accepts Credit Cards:
Yes
Parking:
Street
Attire:
Casual
Good for Groups:
Yes
Price Range:
$$
Takes Reservations:
Yes
Delivery:
No
Take-out:
Yes
Waiter Service:
Yes
Outdoor Seating:
Yes
Wi-Fi:
Free
Good For:
Dinner, Late Night
Music:
DJ, Background
Best Nights:
Fri, Sat, Sun
Happy Hour:
Yes
Alcohol:
Full Bar
Smoking:
No
Coat Check:
No
Noise Level:
Average
Good For Dancing:
Yes
Ambience:
Trendy
Has TV:
Yes
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21 reviews in English

  • Review from

    • 0 friends
    • 15 reviews
    Brooklyn, NY
    10/16/2013 Seated via OpenTable
    I took my boyfriend here for his birthday. We ordered calamari (which was pretty good) and a few drinks. The hookah was good, pretty good flavors, but I give it 3 stars because there is NO air flow (or air conditioning it seems) and the seating is pretty uncomfortable.

    It's fine if you're looking for a hookah spot midtown, but otherwise there's no real draw.
  • Review from

    Flushing, NY
    10/8/2013 1 check-in here
    Came here with a group of about 5 others. Overall it's a place to relax and spread out with friends, but there's no real reason to come here.

    The layout sucks.  On a hot day there's no airflow which will leave you sweating.

    We kept having to move to find a spot that could accommodate all 6 of us. The staff was not happy, and not the least bit accommodating.  Shame on them.

    Once we finally got situated we ordered our hookah and food.  It took way too long for our food to come out - then it was super dry and not very tasty. I asked for some white sauce for my Mediterranean wrap and the offered me bleu cheese. WAT?

    We asked for hot sauce and that took about 30 minutes to come out after several excuses from the wait staff.

    Overall:
    Hookah wasn't great, but wasn't bad: 3/5
    Service was atrocious: 1/5
    Way too hot: 1/5
    Food was not good: 2/5

    Yeah, overall a 2/5 sums it up.  Not horrible, but there's so much better out there.
  • Review from

    • 14 friends
    • 10 reviews
    Corona, CA
    11/5/2013
    Food was nasty. Hookah was ok, but not worth $30. Overall, paid $155 for a couple of hookahs and a couple of nasty wraps. Not worth it. The place has a nice layout and the staff was friendly.
  • Review from

    • 1 friend
    • 202 reviews
    Beechhurst, NY
    10/5/2013
    Dark ambiance with flower petals and big chairs. Nice hookah selection for $20 and they keep refilling until u say otherwise. Outdoor seating disappointed- 2 small tables on the balcony at the front of the restaurant. Many tables were reserved for a Saturday.
  • Review from

    Manhattan, NY
    3/25/2013 2 check-ins here
    came here twice. 1st time we ordered food and the cheesecake we order was still frozen and service was horrific. I then realized that it's because they have a mandatory 18% service charge.

    2nd time was a similar experience. The waiter got our hookah order and drinks and was no where to be found for the next 1.5 hours while were smoking and hanging out. My friends had to go to the bars themselves every single time to get their drinks. The one thing I'll give them props for is the coal man - he's comes frequently and makes sure that you have hot coal on your hookah when you need it.

    With my bad hookah experience I think it's just easier and (cheaper) at this point to buy my own hookah.
  • Review from

    • 6 friends
    • 26 reviews
    Silver Spring, MD
    7/1/2013 1 check-in here
    Great hookah and the best spring rolls that I've ever had. I like the ambiance...my only problem was that the waitresses seemed to rush us out even though the place was pretty empty. But I'll still definitely go back. :)
  • Review from

    • 3 friends
    • 20 reviews
    New York, NY
    11/13/2012
    Five of us walked into Karizma on Friday night at about 1:30 AM on a whim.  Ordered a round of drinks and two hookahs (apple & chocolate).

    First strike, the hookahs were not strong and we couldn't get a decent pull.  OK, not a big deal...

    Second strike, the waitress could of had the courtesy to tell us before we ordered that they were closing in 30 minutes...we ask politely if something can be done with the bill, since we wouldn't have ordered 2 hookahs if we knew the place was closing in 30 minutes.  Waitress takes the bill back and says that she'll she what she can do.  Nothing was done.  We payed the full bill.

    Third strike, 30 minutes later, the manager walks over to us and says to start packing up and leave or he's going to remove the hookahs from the table.

    Call me angry and unreasonable, but I will not be coming back to Karizma again.
  • Review from

    • 4 friends
    • 18 reviews
    Williamsburg, NY
    6/7/2013
    Karizma's got Charisma. Okay, so now that I have embarrassed myself with the corny pun I'll get to the review. Hookahs are not pricey considering its in the city that's for sure and every time I've been there they have GREAT and a live DJ on Fridays as well.The Hookah there is SMOOTH. I don't know why all the other reviews have negative comments on the Hookah, but I guess they have improved it since then. I recommend the Lemon Mint and Blue Mist! There are two floors and a full bar as well. According to my friend, their Mojito was CRAZY GOOD so if you drink, try that out!  Love this place!
  • Review from

    • 4 friends
    • 27 reviews
    ASTORIA, NY
    10/26/2012
    I went on a weekday night - and it wasn't too busy.  The outside doesn't look like much, but walking in it definitely shows an eclectic side.

    The decor is mixed old-style kitsch with Middle-Eastern elements.  The seating is mixed variety from bar-side seating, deep-seated armchairs, or balcony seats upstairs.  It's comfortable, surprisingly not claustrophobic, and carried a wide selection on hookah.  The drink list wasn't as developed as most of the places I'd been to, but it was satisfactory.  The music wasn't too loud, but I can't say otherwise for the weekends.

    A chill place to get reasonably priced hookah in the area - it carries comfort and good selection.
  • Review from

    • 18 friends
    • 50 reviews
    Manhattan, NY
    1/3/2013 1 check-in here
    Visited here a few weeks ago after Yelping for a hookah bar (my friend was craving a little hookah in her life). It is a very interesting place. There are flowers roped around the molding and velour everywhere! A strange combination of pub and opulent decor. I stuck to my trusty Stella and didn't really poke around the menu, but the bartender was pretty attentive and quick to fill our glasses.
    I don't really have the creds to judge if it is a good hookah place or not but everyone else seemed to be enjoying it!
  • Review from

    Houston, TX
    10/1/2012 1 check-in here
    Dear Karizma... You had me at Efes.

    I dropped by with a few friends for drinks. We loved the place so much, one round quickly turned into two, then three... and eventually we found ourselves smoking a hookah, dancing... and ordering more rounds.

    The ambiance is pure opulance.  Gorgeous chandeliers, Arabic art, and velvet-high backed chairs will make anyone feel like royalty.

    There is just one thing that would make the experience better: Arabic music.  The DJ kept switching back to hip hop and reggaeton, pulling us out of our Turkish oasis.
  • Review from

    • 63 friends
    • 6 reviews
    Chestnut Ridge, NY
    6/5/2013 1 check-in here
    After drinking happy hour at Turtle Bay, my friends and I decided we wanted to do some hookah. Karizma was nearby and it had two floors, including an outdoors balcony you could sit at. We decided to sit inside since the outside was pretty busy. It took awhile for someone to serve us. The inside was nicely decorated with furniture, a huge flat screen television and other aesthetic interiors. My friend was hungry and ordered some appetizers -- nachos and calamari. The calamari was delish, made fresh out of the kitchen! It was nice and crispy! The nachos were just alright. Two hookahs were also ordered; peach and sex on the beach. I loved peach, it wasn't too strong and the scent was lovely. I thought sex on the beach was a bit too harsh for my liking. Overall, it was a nice place to go to after drinking but the service wasn't too great.
  • Review from

    • 2 friends
    • 4 reviews
    Brooklyn, NY
    4/29/2013
    I came here on a Tuesday afternoon during happy hour.  We headed to the second floor (bad idea) because we sat for 30 minutes without seeing any waitstaff, although there was a party of 6 right by us..  We decided to go downstairs and sit at the bar so someone would make something happen.  Our bartender was great, the happy hour was decent...$6 for cocktails made with house lquors.  We got the standard hookah for $20.  Our coal was changed frequently, but as the place got more crowded towards 8-9pm, we waited a good amount of time to get our coal changed.  For a place that size, I think they should have more than one coal guy because unless you're chasing them down, you'll be left there to die with harsh hookah.  Overall a nice place for happy hour and hookah on a weekday.
  • Review from

    • 2 friends
    • 11 reviews
    Manhattan, NY
    6/15/2013
    Most unwelcoming, cocky staff I've ever come across... And this is for a hole in the wall place--unbelievable. Will never be back.
  • Review from

    • 11 friends
    • 1 review
    Brooklyn, NY
    3/5/2013 3 check-ins here
    I love this place this was actually mu first time. There were a little discrepancy with my hookah. I wanted to long for.assistance but I got 2 free house shots. I was hype. LOL!!!!. THE employees there treated us.nice.
  • Review from

    Brooklyn, NY
    7/7/2012
    It's a tough venue to hold down.

    I worked here when it was Haven and from what i hear, this beautiful room has been through many other iterations over the years.

    Despite being in one of the busiest bar areas around, it still cant make it happen.

    Good luck to the current owners, but this room is just like a pretty woman with nothing else going for her.
  • Review from

    • 14 friends
    • 41 reviews
    Manhattan, NY
    11/13/2012 1 check-in here
    Good prices for the hookah, only problem is some were hard or weak. Also be sure to ask and confirm the happy hour specials and times. I had a waitress trying to charge me full price even though I was there during happy hour. The setting is big and is great for gathering more than 5 people but be sure to make a reservation. Also they need to keep some lights on and not make it too dark...I dont know about you but i like to look at people's faces when I am talking to them; not feel like im in a closet. I will come again though, drinks were stiff and service was friendly (besides the trying to charge me for non happy hour beers)
  • Review from

    • 1 friend
    • 7 reviews
    New York, NY
    6/18/2012 First to Review
    I might as well say that Karizma is a two story castle. This hookah lounge is two floors filled with great seating and decor. There are even balconies you can sit on to enjoy your hookah while enjoying the nice breeze. The seating is very comfotable and spacious. The decor is beautiful and captivating. You can tell that the owner put a lot of time into his establisment. For all those who know Kazuza, the service here is great. Hookah is re-filled throughout the night. A must try is the TROPICAL EXPLOSION. My friends and I ordered it on a whim and boy was it worth it. We also got grape mint, which had a smooth taste. You won't be disappointed. The food is also amazing. Dishes vary from traditional Middle Eastern to American.  A lot of different choices filled wit great taste. The hummus is spectacular and if you get the munchies definitely try the cheese smothered nachos. Along with that, a must try are the DRINKS. Karizma has so many different types of drinks from beer, to cocktails such as the carmasutra, to many different shots. Skittle bombs are a must try!

    Overall, I was very impressed. I cannot wait to go back with my friends. So if you are looking for a fun day or night out at a hookah lounge definitely stop by Karizma!

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