This Watermelon Shisha is Off the Hook-ah

If it isn't on the list already, I'd like to put forth watermelon as an official indicator that summer has arrived, sort of like a groundhog in fruit form. Solstice may still be a few weeks off, but at least you can kick summer off early with a hookah built from a watermelon base.

Apparently people have been building watermelon water pipes for years now, but Cedar's, a Lebanese café in Sanlitun, is the first place I've seen that has them in Beijing. If watermelon isn't your thing, they can also make a Korean melon hookah and are working on a pineapple version.

The whole outfit, called fruit shisha on the menu, costs RMB 80, an RMB 30 premium over their normal hookahs. You'll want to call ahead at least a day in advance so they have time to get things ready for you.

Admittedly, I'm not an expert on the subtleties of hookah smoking, so I can't vouch for the difference in flavor. As you might expect, the natural pairing is with watermelon-flavored tobacco. As such, it's hard to tell how much of that fruity taste comes from the tobacco as opposed to the melon itself. I suggested we do a blind taste test between the watermelon hookah and a normal pipe, but, oddly enough, no one would agree to being blindfolded while I stuck pipes in their mouths.

One of our testers, also a relatively inexperienced hookah-er, did say that the aftertaste of the smoke reminded her of watermelon gum after it has lost most of its flavor.

Are you pondering what I'm pondering? Hubbly Bubbly watermelon chewing gum-cum-chewing tobacco, for the win.

In case you were wondering, the simple, unapologetic food at Cedar's is worth checking out in its own right. It's a great way to eat in Sanlitun for cheap, since most of the dishes are in the RMB 20 range. We recommend the cheese mankoushi, mutabbal and the falafel sandwich.

If you decide to try and make your own watermelon hookah at home, make sure to buy the melon from a reliable source. We'd hate for it to explode on you. Also, please keep in mind that watermelons and high-voltage electricity do not mix, as proven in the video below.

Are there any fruits that you wish you could smoke out of? One of my colleagues suggested making a durian hookah, but I'm hoping there's some sort of law against that.

Photos: Josh Ong, Bestbuycandy.com