Sacramento cannabis dispensary builds special room that could be city's first pot lounge
SACRAMENTO – A new California law gives cities and counties the option to allow dispensaries to sell food and provide live entertainment, creating a so-called Amsterdam-style cafe culture with cannabis lounges.
Maisha Bahati owns Crystal Nugs cannabis dispensary and has built a special room that could become Sacramento's first pot lounge.
"Very new but it's definitely wanted," Bahati said.
Inside her dispensary is a "Doobie Den," which would allow on-site smoking with the possibility of serving food and hosting live entertainment.
"We're going to have couches, we're going to have a mini stage up front so we want it to be inviting," Bahati said.
Pot smoker Jane Holly would pay.
"Because I no longer drink, so it would be a new way to get out and socialize," Holly said.
Assemblymember Matt Haney authored the statewide bill just signed into law. It gives cities and counties the right to regulate the cannabis industry expansion allowing cannabis and kitchens under the same roof.
"We've got to find a way for these legal small businesses to get a little more creative," Haney said.
The cannabis smoking allowance is different than state laws banning tobacco smoke in businesses.
"These are places where people go specifically to consume cannabis," Haney said.
The American Cancer Society is opposed to the idea of combining cannabis and cuisine.
"And so we need to be building on the strong foundation of protecting the public from secondhand tobacco use, and not chipping away at it," American Cancer Society Cancer Network's Jim Knox said.
Bahati says she is already installing a vent system to push fresh air into her "Doobie Den." Only adults would be allowed in, by law.
"It's going to expand your business into a completely different market that people are excited about," Bahati said. "Which is hospitality and entertainment."
In California, dispensaries can now diversify.