Ali Mama Cafe

One of my favorite Hookah places in LA. Hole in a wall so perfect setting for enjoy my Double apple with friends

This is a great chill spot. Eclectic, black light hookah lounge with decks of cards at your disposal. They also have a great outdoor area. The staff is friendly and inviting.
The Arabic jasmine coffee is sooooo good!

Knowledge. Kindness. Courtesy. These people HAVE IT ALL.
This is a no frills hookah spot for the late night enthusiast. It seems to be a hot spot for the older gentlemen in the community who enjoy a good hookah and a game of backgammon. Get nestled upstairs in the black-​lit loft area with complimentary board/​card games, and EXTENSIVE sheesha menu, complete with milk or ice to add in, bubble blowing accoutrements and your own batch of hot coals.
Service is top notch! Coals are always hot, the hookah is never harsh, and the music remote is always on the move.
Kristofer’s Rip of the Day:
Ask for the music remote and dictate your own vibe. Get creative with the combos… I went with cappuccino x vanilla, add milk.

Ali mama is my favorite hookah lounge the place is very unique and amin the owner is a very friendly man easy parking .the best hookah great customer service and good prices comparing to other spots I have been to

Worst hookah experience ever. If I could give no stars, I would. Place is run by inexperienced workers who try to up charge you for every single thing they can. Never specified what flavors were more expensive than the others. Then try to charge me $ 12 more for a particular brand (even though their menu says nothing on what flavors are what brand). Tried up charging me for a glass of ice. Made our party get three hookahs even though it was extremely unnecessary. Never. Going. Back.

Want to do hookah at the pro-​level? This is the spot. Friendly service and the only place I know that has serves jurak.

Hmmmmmmmm all I can say is I didnt hate this place. The service wasn’t bad. However in terms of hookah, I felt it just never got going like other spots. It didnt last very long either. Glow in the dark feature was kinda cool, but I probably wont be coming back here.

I have been to many a hookah lounge. Ali Mama Café, right in the heart of Echo Park, is no different than the rest; this place, like many others I’ve been to, have been great experiences all around.
I was in the area with my long time bro looking for a place to indulge our hookah needs! I Unilocaled up this place, which had an average of 4 stars. I can see why. The service was very impeccable. From the outside, it looks like a tiny room with only 2 tables. Inside, they have a darkened room as well as an outdoor patio where you can smoke. We decided to smoke outdoors. I chose the Irish Peach flavor, which was amazing. They do charge for a 1 drink minimum or a $ 3 cover charge per person I believe. The only downside is their cheap coals– they burn out too quick! Guys, use Titanium or Cocoa Nara coals!
Street parking only, as it is with other establishments in the area. If I am in the area, I’ll be sure to drop by. Loved it here already!!!

Great service. at first I thought we walked in the wrong place because there’s no chairs or anything of the sort. Then the host took us to the back to show us where the lounge was actually at.
Since we were the first ones there, he gave us control of the music which was awesome.
They gave us playing cards and the water bottle (the ones that are cut to make smoked filled bubbles) and kept checking up on us making sure we were having a good time. I will definitely be back. Loved this little whole in the wall.

Great place for hookah and some great time with friends!

Good service, and food prices (1 drink minimum per person).
I feel like I am intruding in an Armenian mob meeting but everyone is very friendly!
Very exclusive, hole in the wall kind of vibe.
The prices for hookah are definitely the cheapest I found in LA and is pretty decent quality too. At times, the hookah may be a little harsh, but the servers always come around to change your charcoal.
We got the watermelon single hose with milk ($ 3 extra for a more smooth experience) and the earl grey with ice ($ 3 extra, this is just for it to be more smokey, I don’t recommend).
I always have a great time here with friends. Its never overcrowded and feels exclusive as if you are hanging out in a private lounge with friends.
Ambiance (⁴⁄₅)
Hookah (⁴⁄₅)
Service (⁵⁄₅)
Pricing (⁵⁄₅).
Overall, I give it 4 ½ stars! I would recommend to everyone who just wants a «chill» kind of night.

This place is awesome. I love coming here!!! There’s a downstairs where the OGs hangout, and an upstairs where all the young crowd hangs. Great service and prices. The cleanest hookahs ever!!! And I speak from experience

Look here people, all jokes aside. Five stars across the board .this can be one of your finest hookah smoke experiences aly mama’s has hookahs made from khalil maamoon if you don’t know what I am talking about you must then visit Egypt, Kairo, with that said, if you are a beginner or smoke hookah regularly try this place know change your hookah spot to this authentic American, Arabian spot. plane and simple the other places are a joke. This place gives your table unlimited cols for your hookahs also lots to do while your lounging, like bord games. Just to name a few Batgamil, Dominos, playing cards. chess, o and also free wifi. Look here people its a must try place once in your life. So if you are headed to a expensive hookah bar right know tern the car around you fool, and hit up aly mama’s spot your friends will thank
the way if you don’t know what to order I am about to drop you a line CODE 69 with SEXON THE BEACH, made in the U.S.A STARBUZZ know that’s what’s
name is YACOUB and I give you my word.P.S. ignore the street level sitting area and go to the second level patio enter threw the front door. When I go to an Indian restaurant I expect to have Indians pre pair my meal .when I visit a Russian café I am expecting to have a good Russian experience .know journey to aly mama’s wher you will experience authentic Egyptian hookah prepared by Egypt shins. What can be better than that you can even nick name aly mama’s as Egypt in silver Lake. Good by and in joy.

Overall: unimpressed. This place is generally lacking in ambiance. I found the upstairs lounge area to be kind of creepy with its blacklights and green laser beams. The music selection, wasn’t bad, but I think it would have been more desirable, just to sit at one of the tables out front of their shop to smoke hookah on a warm evening. It was also frustrating/​disappointing that they told us they were no longer allowed to serve hot drinks at their «café,» so the only drink options you really had were bottled water or canned juice/​soda. On the bright side, they do serve hookah, and it is pretty cheap, but i feel like there have to be better options around LA.

Extremely intimidated by this place when I first moved into the area. Everytime I walked by the business there would be tons of older men outside smoking hookah and speaking in a different language. When I got the courage to go in I was shocked to find a blacklight rave den patio in the back.
In an odd mood I got a mocha. It was one of the best I’ve ever had. There were marshmallows, chocolate chips, and whipped cream like it was a dessert. Now this is one of my favorite off the beaten path places to go to in Sliverlake.
What a win I hope this place exists forever!

Good service, and food prices.
I like the mob café feel you get when you first walk in.
Feels kind of exclusive.
I def would recommend this, if you’re looking for something low key.
Parking is annoying but that’s everywhere in silver lake

This place is hands down one of my favorite placesthe staff, the hookah, the drinks and the atmosphere is in my opinion perfect

I always walked by this place, but never knew it was more than just the front part of the café. Walked in and saw they had a lot of seating inside and also a «backyard» part. Ali Mama Café is a low-​key, hole in the wall kind of place.
Try their hot chocolate! It comes with whipped cream, chocolate syrup, and cinnamon, yum!

Found this place here on Unilocal while in Hollywood looking for a hooka place to smoke with my sister in laws.
The atmosphere is great, Very friendly staff and the prices were very reasonable. They even allow you to bring food from outside. Love the place and I would definitely go there again.

I’ve been living in the neighborhood for 8 years and I have always enjoyed a visit to Ali Mama Café. The staff is like a Persian «Cheers», «where everybody knows your name, and they’re always glad you came». Seriously, you have the «regulars» whom you always see in the front of the café playing cards. If they know you, they greet you every time they see you. It’s like family :)
The back part is where I like to chill and is probably the only space available to chill. It has definitely upgraded since I was last there which was a few years ago. I’m glad to see that business has improved for them because the back part used to be an open patio which was nice then with the open air. Now it’s covered, they play music, and they’ve put some additions to the place adding to the comfort of the place. They have plenty of card decks around so you can just ask your waiter to be provided with a deck of cards that will help you relax and just enjoy yourself.
Now to the hookah… there are a generous amount of selections to choose from so choose at your heart’s desire. I personally like to order the house tea, which is a persian tea that they serve you with fresh mint. You have a choice of adding sugar or honey to it if you like it on the sweeter side. I like the hookah with ice which makes the hits a lot smoother. You can stay as long as you want and the staff is super hospitable and friendly.
It may seem intimidating to a stranger or first-​timer, but once you step in and soak the atmosphere in, it’ll feel like another great atmosphere to just chill with friends or that special someone.