Cigar Lounge: Harry’s Habana Hut – Bayside Queens

I am spending some time in the NYC area this week for some family events and of course a visit anywhere always means a visit to cigar lounges. This past Sunday I had the pleasure of spending some quality time with one of sponsors, Keven Schweitzer – owner of Rock-A-Feller Cigars here in NY. One of the shops Kevin took took me out to was Harry’s Habana Hut, known to the locals as HHH, or just “The Hut”. This comfortable lounge is nestled in the center of Bayside Village in Queens, NY.

A little research shows that Harry’s Habana Hut was recently voted, the 2018 best cigar shop in Queens. I have not been to others in Queens, but I can appreciate the vote, as it is a warm and welcoming lounge. The building is one of the oldest in the area, and has housed a cigar lounge since 2007. Since 2015, Harry Mordjikan, has owned and operated this fine establishment.

Speaking of Harry, he was born in Bulgaria and immigrated to the US at the age of 17 with his parents. He has quite the colorful background, not only in cigars, but also in the food, beverage, and entertainment business. Harry, likes to tell the story of when he was younger, he was living in Florida and used to do a shtick, on the Ft Myers based, K-Rock, morning radio show. The routine was known as “Harry the Bulgarian” where he would do random, hilarious interviews, with people on the street.

Another interesting note about Harry, is that his wife’s uncle was the late Cano A. Ozgener, the founder of CAO cigars. So it only made sense that he would eventually find himself owning and operating a cigar lounge.

The Lounge

Harry’s Habana Hut is located at 214-9 41st Ave, Bayside, NY 11361, in downtown Bayside Village. The store is easy to locate with its black awning and bright yellow “HHH” sign which stands out next to the blue, white, and red awning of the popular old time, Hair Studio – 41, barber shop next door.

As you enter the shop, the first thing you will note is the comfortable seating against the front window and large TV on the wall. Further down, past the checkout counter, there is a double row of black leather club chairs and another TV for your viewing pleasure. At the back of the shop is a small semi private seating area and table, which I would say is perfect for conducting business discussions over a fine smoke.

Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut

Behind the leather seats is a large, well stocked, walk-in humidor that has 100’s of facings, ranging from the big box names to the most sought after boutique blends on the market. The collection includes some rare and hard to find classics. I understand he has fine relationship with Robert Caldwell from Caldwell Cigars and there is a special section of the humidor that houses some real gems from the Caldwell “lost and found” collection. Harry also has one of the best house blend cigars out there, with 5 different blends created by Felix Assouline.

Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut
Harry’s Habana Hut

Harry’s also carries a full line of accessories including lighters to fit all budgets from S.T. Dupont, Xikar, Lotus, Vertigo and Jetline along with a fine selection of Xikar cutters and a select inventory of humidors. For those that are frequent visitors, and don’t wish to store their cigars at home, Harry offers humidified lockers for rent on an annual basis. The lounge runs monthly cigar events that feature visits from the owners and representatives of the fine selection of brands in shops humidor.

The shop does not serve any alcoholic beverages, but that is not uncommon in NYC, as such licenses are not cheap and if you mix beverage with indoor smoking, the lines get crossed. The patrons don’t seem to care about it anyway because that is the way it is. Besides, fuhgeddaboudit , let’s be real here, Harry’s Habana Hut was the 2018 best cigar shop in Queens, NY. So if you’re in the area, make time to check out Harry’s Habana Hut in Bayside Village.