What you can and can’t do at the new cannabis cafe in West Hollywood

The Lowell Cafe is a new restaurant and bar in West Hollywood that will allow diners to smoke marijuana inside and out thanks to a new license issued by the city. It’s slated to open Oct. 1 and when it does, it will be the first of its kind.

If you’re imagining a giant smoky room filled with bowls of weed, couches and lots of pizza, think again. Imagine instead a functional restaurant with servers, plus a special air-filtration system that sucks up and filters the smoke from people smoking weed, everywhere.

“We have families reaching out wanting to bring their kids or grandparents and high school groups of friends flying from all over the world,” restaurant director Kevin Brady said. “I feel like we’re Disney World.”

When you arrive, you will be seated at a table and greeted by a flower host (also known as a “budtender”) who will serve as your cannabis guide. He or she will drill you on your past cannabis experiences (whether you’re Snoop Dogg-level or haven’t smoked since high school or at all) and help personalize your cannabis order. You also will have a server from whom you can order food and nonalcoholic beverages.

Brady compared the flower menu with a wine list and noted that the products will be seasonal. Most of them will be supplied by the Lowell Farms organic cannabis farm in Santa Barbara County, the company behind the restaurant.

Chef Andrea Drummer’s food menu is inspired by the different flavor profiles in the strains of cannabis, and each dish will have a suggested product to smoke or vape with. The opening menu will include miso-glazed pork belly, jalapeño mac and cheese bites, vegan nachos, sticky tamarind wings, house-made pickles and avocado and white bean hummus.

Here’s a breakdown of what you can and can’t do at the cannabis cafe.

YOU CAN:

Come in if you’re 21 or older and have a valid ID.

Smoke joints and vape both inside the dining room and on the side patio.

Consume edibles.

Smoke or consume edibles you bring from home for a small “tokage” fee, similar to a corkage fee.

Use your own bongs or pipes to smoke or rent one from the restaurant.

Drink beer or wine on the front patio once the restaurant secures its license postopening.

Make a reservation up to 30 days in advance. The cafe will accept walk-ins as well but reservations are recommended.

Request a bud and food pairing.

YOU CAN’T:

Take unfinished products home to consume later. (You can take your food leftovers though.)

Smoke on the front patio. The license does not allow for smoking on any front-facing outdoor area.

Drink beer or wine inside or on the side patio (drinking is permitted only on the front patio).

Smoke to the point that you’re incapacitated. There is no hard and fast ounce limit but there will be security at the door and your flower host will check on you periodically to make sure everyone is feeling safe and having a good time.

Order pizza. (Drummer is planning to put some form of flatbread on the menu at some point, though.)

Lowell Cafe will be open daily from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. to start and plans to extend its hours to 2 a.m. by Halloween. Brady is hoping to introduce a breakfast menu and extend the cafe’s hours even further by opening at 8 a.m. in mid-November.