
Highs and lows of Lowell Cafe, America’s first cannabis cafe - Thevet
https://www.scmp.com/lifestyle/food-drink/article/3037576/highs-and-lows-lowell-cafe-americas-first-cannabis-cafe-where
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say_it_as_it_is
The author of this article describes a room full of introspective patrons
staring off into their own worlds. One reason for this is that the pot is just
too damn strong for anyone other than habitual consumers. Instead, cafes need
to offer 2:1 (cbd:thc) strains with no more than 5% thc for casual consumers.
Also, certain types of strains are more introspective than others. They're
consuming sativa strains known for psychedelic properties. Further, patrons
have chosen a social setting to experience cannabis culture together and yet
aren't engaged to share the experience. Live, engaging entertainment could be
a huge win. Staff who float around the room engaging those who have drifted,
as a shaman or therapist in a clinical setting does, may also help.

~~~
grenoire
Americans in general seem to be quite engaged in these _very_ high THC strains
that give you the zoned out kind of high, as opposed to the more sociable (as
you described) low THC and high CBD strains. For a coffeeshop setting, I would
have liked it very much if our Dutch coffeeshops had a sense of community, as
opposed to being drop-offs for tourists looking to get a quick high in the
city.

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malvosenior
I wonder how much of this has to do with US infrastructure and lifestyle in
general. In the majority of the US (and definitely California) you have to
drive long distances to do pretty much anything. While it's not as bad as
drinking I don't think it's safe or recommended to drive while high.

People in the US also generally have large screen TVs, lots of channels on
cable satellite, large living rooms., large refrigerators.. all of which are
fairly conducive to using high powered weed and zoning out on your couch.

~~~
say_it_as_it_is
I replied this in another comment but think it is worth repeating here:

We're experiencing a product made by the underground cannabis community for
that community -- habitual consumers. The tolerance level of a habitual
consumer is really high. So, for decades, breeders chose to continue growing
the strongest strain, every time, for years and years. Then, when commercial
players entered the market, they took those high-thc strains and put them
through even greater quality controls, making strains even more potent.

So, while people in the US do want everything bigger and "better", this
doesn't apply to casual alcohol consumption. Americans aren't hammering down
shots of grain alcohol. For casual drug use, though, there's a wider
preference. The cannabis product that growers and breeders are making was
crafted for the OG cannabis community. As they make their own strains with
mass appeal, those strains will be far friendlier to casual consumption.

~~~
malvosenior
I agree, although I think it's not _just_ tolerance level. Until recently,
smoking was the most popular way to ingest marijuana. Smoking kind of sucks
though, so it's best to smoke as little as possible to get the desired
effects. Ironically, the strongest strains are in a way the healthiest for you
as you can do a very small amount vs smoking a large quantity of plant
material.

~~~
geebee
That's a good point, though we may be dealing with small amounts regardless.
For instance, I read that for one study of tobacco lung cancer, a "moderate"
smoker starts at 10 cigarettes a day. (woah). So let's say someone smokes 10
cigarettes a day, every day, and let's say a single cigarette takes 10
moderate drags (I'm getting this by googling and using the first reddit thread
I find, I don't smoke).

Ok, so 10 _30_ 10 = 3000 drags a month for a light/moderate smoker.

Now, imagine a casual (2x a month) cannabis user who actually smokes most of a
smallish preroll, 6 drags (though they may be deeper). So we're looking 12
drags a month vs 3000.

I have no idea if the extra 8-10 drags from weaker cannabis make a difference
vs 1-2 on something stronger, but we're talking about an extremely low dose,
either way, compared to any kind of cigarette smoking, maybe low enough that
the difference isn't measurable.

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lostgame
Toronto has had phenomenal weed cafes in the city for at least a decade - well
before legalization.

Heck, there’s one (Vapour Central) that’s smack dab in the middle of Yonge and
Bloor - about as central as they could get.

These are BOYC - bring your own cannabis - places - they provide bongs for
rent and vaporizers like the Volcano, as well as live music and comedy. I
recall performing there several times.

The smoking laws in Ontario are _strict_. I don’t know if we will see the
likes of these outside of the grey market here in Toronto - but the grey
market ones are great for what they are. Again - nothing special, especially
now that it’s legal. It’s a bar but with weed. I mean; what are you really
expecting? But if you enjoy it, they’re good, and are definitely a cool
cultural experience.

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ksaj
Stand up comedy in front of a bunch of stoned Terrawna folk would be so good
for the improv ego. Laughs all around. Never a bad joke.

Don't forget how long Hot Box has been around in Kensington Market. I don't
know when they opened shop, but it was definitely before legalization was on
the visible horizon.

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trenning
I've been talking about this concept with my girlfriend a lot lately. Why
aren't there any dispensaries in WA where you can buy a preroll and just sit
and chill at the store like a coffee shop?

It must be regulations preventing it I assume?

I thought it was illegal to smoke inside a business in pretty much every state
now.

I was thinking some kind of covered patio with those outdoor heaters for
winter would be a way around it but now I'm more curious about how they're
able to sell food and allow people to smoke inside.

At any rate I hope this becomes more popular just at price ranges that aren't
so hipster LA

~~~
somehnguy
I'm not sure on the details but just throwing out what I've seen in NY. Smoke
shops around here seem to allow smoking indoors, I assume there are special
provisions for that type of business.

There is also a bar around here that has a separate smoking room. They have a
large air filtration system hanging from the ceiling in there, not sure if
thats why they can get away with it. There is even a little door in the wall
where they can serve drinks to you while you're in there.

~~~
GhettoMaestro
I believe a separate room (sealed with automatic closing door) and an air
extractor/scrubber is required for indoors usage. Where I live, you can offer
a smoking section outdoors, but honestly, the air extractors are pretty cheap
and help avoid adjacent non-smoking patrons from being bothered. They should
be used both indoors and outdoors in my view.

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dadarepublic
Choice quote for the article:

>Mostly, what Lowell Cafe taught me is that I am getting old. I can’t tell you
how long we stayed at the cafe, though I doubt we came near to reaching our
allotted 90 minutes.

A guy that used to smoke copious amounts of weed before he was 21, once again
dives into the culture, with an inept guide, and quickly succumbs to the
potency of modern strains.

It would be nice to have a counter-take from his friend who was supposed to be
his guide (and did a terrible job from what I could see).

And I totally agree with the commenter who said the cafe should offer strains
of lesser potency - and also have a staff knowledgable enough to guide people
towards strains suited to their background and needs/wants. It does sound like
the cafe has work to do in this regard and I would say this aspect would be a
good take-away review, but instead the author just focused on his own negative
reaction to super-strong weed his friend suggested.

Bummer.

~~~
proc0
Your ability to handle weed has nothing to do with age, not to mention smoking
before 21 is probably very bad in the long run. Your body gets used to copious
amounts of THC if you just keep smoking every day for some time, probably 6
months to a year. Everyone can do it, imho, but nobody even considers it
because of the social taboo. Everyone is ok with drinking caffeine till the
point you get headaches if you stop, but smoking a joint a day is still seen
under negative light.

~~~
dadarepublic
I agree and it was what I was trying to point out. I wasn't focused on the age
of the smoker at all but the length of time it had been for him as a 'regular'
smoker. He obviously needed more curation and guidance.

I was probably a bit too snarky in my comment which made it come off as being
focused on his age - hope this helps clear the air on that point.

~~~
proc0
I see, I may have misread it np. Yeah dosage is always the key.

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appleflaxen
The author states that the food isn't very good, and reaches the conclusion
that:

    
    
      > the experience just didn’t feel that special.
    

interesting review; I'm glad he went and shared the experience.

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dillonmckay
Any better URLs for this story?

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tyingq
Different article, same topic, from the NYT:
[https://outline.com/WngSrf](https://outline.com/WngSrf)

Or try the SCMP's "print" link. It has less heavy javascript, no scroll
jacking, and no "read the whole article" nonsense:

[https://www.scmp.com/print/lifestyle/food-
drink/article/3037...](https://www.scmp.com/print/lifestyle/food-
drink/article/3037576/highs-and-lows-lowell-cafe-americas-first-cannabis-cafe-
where) (I'd argue for changing the linked story to this)

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WilliamEdward
first? hardly

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human
I hate when people refer to the United States as “America”. Very misleading.

