K is for Kasbah
February 10, 2009 at 2:49 pm 3 comments
Kasbah
2115 J Street – Sacramento
I’m not sure if you’ve heard, but sometimes the Middle East isn’t a safe place to be. It’s especially unsafe if you’re James Bond and you’re working your way through “From Russia with Love” or “The Spy Who Loved Me.” To his credit, despite the danger lurking around every corner, Bond is always finding great lounges filled with exotic women, high rollers and shady characters who are probably out to kill him.
I don’t know if lounges like that really exist in the Middle East. I’ve also seen enough of the news to all but cross the Middle East off my list of places to visit, so I’ll probably never find out. Oh, and I don’t know how we determined the Middle East to be the Middle East and not, say, the Far West, but whatever.
Anyhow, if you want a lounge filled with Bond-eqsue intrigue, but without any actual danger, I recommend handcuffing a briefcase to your wrist and heading to the Kasbah. There is even the potential for exotic women as the lounge features nightly belly-dancing. 
However, keeping with my M.O., I went out drinking much too early in the day for any kind of dancer to make an appearance let alone that of the belly breed.
Accompanied by my fellow international cocktail connoisseurs, Brandon and Ed, we found ourselves some comfy seats along the padded sofa-type seating which lines the walls of the dimly lit room.
Had there been belly dancers, these seats would have put my head at an ideal level for belly viewing. They were also great seats for viewing the cocktail menu which featured all kinds of strange con
coctions.
My drink of choice was the Caipirinha which was chock full of lemons and limes swimming in an unidentifiable combination of delicious booze.
Brandon and Ed went for a sampling of the absinthe. The absinthe was cool because it came with a bunch of accessories. After pouring the liquor over a spoon of sugar it ends up looking much like a little milkshake. 
Unlike a milkshake, it screws with your brain. After few minutes, Brandon drank a candle.
Another feature of the Kasbah is the selection of hookahs. A hookah is an apparatus a lot like the kind your college roommate had only it’s used for smoking fruity tobacco. You just kind of set the big ol’ thing in the middle of your table and pass the hose around til you’re sick to your stomach. At least that’s been my experience, so the boys and I passed on it this time around.
Kasbah also has a food menu which has exotic foods like hummus, baba ganoush, olives and an intrguing little number called “Chi Chi al Fuego.” First off, I’ve never met a chi chi I didn’t like. Secondly, as a general rule of thumb, any food served “al fuego” is awesome.
Highlights
* Exotic Middle Eastern decor
* Potential belly dancers
* Crazy drinks
* Cozy seats
* Smokables (outside only)
Price
A little steeper than the bulk of Nick on the Town’s stops, but for a change of pace it’s worth it. Also, there is happy hour Monday-Friday from 5-7pm.
Clientele
When I was there (6:30pm on a Saturday), there were a few tables of older folks getting dinner and the outer ring of comfy seats were filling up with slightly younger folks dressed nicely. No PBR-swilling college kids here. Nothing against PBR-swilling college kids.
Entry filed under: ABCs of Drinking in Sac. Tags: .
1. Ed | February 12, 2009 at 4:45 pm
Another fine review Nick on the Town.
2. PWeekly | February 26, 2009 at 10:45 am
HUGE fan of the atmosphere. And that rum concoction with roughly 1800 lemon and lime wedges is crazy delicious.
3. Christopherson Dalerusko | July 9, 2009 at 10:54 pm
My mom and i are sitting here in Montana laughing thinking about brandon drinking the candle. Am I the college roommate that you were referring to with the hookah? hope all is well.