Billed as the nation’s first cannabis lounge, the Lowell Cafe opened on Monday in West Hollywood promising to bring a bit of Amsterdam to America courtesy of a group of investors that includes singer Miley Cyrus.
The establishment intends to offer patrons a menu of cannabis products that can be ordered and consumed right in the place, with offerings including pre-rolled joints and vaping products, according to Bloomberg News.
“Cannabis consumers have always been relegated to getting their cannabis in a plastic bag while you can go to a dinner party with a beautiful bottle of wine,” co-founder David Elias said. “People want to smoke a joint with their friends in a cafe like they can over a beer — not in the alley or in their car.”
The vaping products the cafe will offer are already raising eyebrows as governments across the country — and especially in California — race to ban them after a raft of deaths that are linked to vaping, especially the vaping of pot products.
Elias admits that they are in a “tricky” area on vaping.
“It’s a tricky situation,” Elias said. “It’s something we’re learning about every day and helping to form our decisions based off the information that’s available to us, which is very limited.”
Elias also noted that it was difficult to wade through the city’s requirements for licensing. Still, despite the high regulatory barrier, the Lowell Cafe is only the first of eight pot cafes that are preparing to open in West Hollywood.
Aside from singer Miley Cyrus, Elias says that he counts other celebrities as investors including, comedian Chris Rock, and singer Mark Ronson.
Elias declined to comment on the valuation of his enterprise.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.
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