Hey.....from the Big Easy

Hello from the NW! I did find an ok tobacco shop (a real one, not a head shop) on a trip to New Orleans once. If you haven't yet, might check out the Mayan Import Co. They have locations in the Quarter, the Garden District, and Metairie. I went to the one in the Quarter, and while more cigar than pipe focused, they did have some options.

I'm pretty sure the place in Metairie closed and combined with the Garden District. What I've heard from friends is the place in the French Quarter is 99% Cigars, so I've not gone there very often, but will check it out the next time I'm in the area. The place in the Garden District does pretty good, as it's the only place in New Orleans and beyond. But then again, I don't know many that smoke pipes either, most all smoke cigars.

You would be wrong about that.
When Mayan bought out the Tinderbox, they moved to a small strip mall and was told smoking inside was allowed. Once they opened they found out they had been lied to. Mayan then bought a building and had it built out to meet their needs. The Mayan Imports on Magazine Street (the Garden District) is mostly cigars. The one in Metarie is the best one for pipes and pipe tobacco as it is about 50/50 between pipes and cigars. The Metairie location is 3540 18th Street (about 1-1/2 block away from Lakeside Shopping Center). It has two indoor smoking lounges plus a covered patio for smoking outside. 

The New Orleans Pipe Club meets there every month. In fact, our next meeting is on Thursday, Oct. 17 from about 5:30 til 8:30 pm. This month coincides with a pipe event at the shop - Steve Monjure from Monjure International will be on hand. We usually have 10 to 14 members attend the meetings where we sit around and share different pipe tobaccos.  Full disclosure - I am the current President of the New Orleans Pipe Club. 

The Mayan Import Metairie Location Facebook page is: www.facebook.com/MayanImportCompanyMetairie/


PappyJoe, I am sure I'm mistaken, When you mentioned Tenderbox, thats the company I once visited at the mall in Metairie, just off of Causeway Blvd, coming in from Covington. I've never been to Mayan Import Company. I will now visit the site from facebook. The little place I've been talking about is in Covington. Although I work in New Orleans east, I really dread going to the city, for obvious reasons I'm sure your aware of. It's been my understanding the place Tinderbox moved to the Garden District, and there was nothing left at that Mall. As a matter of fact, the Tinderbox was my hangout when my ex drug me over there (Kicking and Screaming!!) There were a few nice pipes in their shop, and also a few blends I tried there as well. I only remember the shop owner/or manager telling me they sold out and was moving. I have been receiving e-mails from Mayan pipe and cigar, speaking about pipe clubs, however I thought it was an online company, linking Mayan to an online pipe & tobacco shop. I will have to punch that address into my navigation and try to visit now that I'm through this misunderstanding. Yesterday I contacted an old haunt of mine in Merrit Island Florida named smoke rings. They made this one blend by the name of Royalty. The Aroma from this Tobacco was absolutely heavenly. For 1 lb of this blend shipped to me cost me $110 bucks yesterday. My plan was to bring a small amount to the covington shop, and see if he could possibly blend some. This blend it a top seller in Florida, but the shipping, and boxing and postage is more than I want to spend. I believe it was an online company named Uhles, which told me to package a bowl amount of this blend and send it to him, he was 100% sure he could blend it. Full disclosure on my part, I have no idea of one tobacco to another, how to blend or even how all that works. I open a jar at a distributor, take a good whiff, if the aroma delights my nose, I purchase an ounce to try. I never purchase sealed bags from like grocery stores, pharmacies etc.... b/c I can't smell them without buying and opening them. I was once told, and I'm to novice to say if there is any truth to it, from the shop owner/manager of smoke rings, was one bowl of tobacco wouldn't be enough to get a true sense of the true taste of a tobacco, because of the previous blend still in the pipe. Idk if this is true, but it made sense in my mind, as I was able to wrap my mind around that statement, again I'm very novice to smoking a pipe. PappyJoe, please allow me to share my e-mail address with you, can you please send me the rules, expectations, and fees for joining this club. I'm very interested, b/c I feel it would help make transitioning to a pipe more successful than otherwise would be. (Casper00223@aol.com) I'll look foreword to receiving your e-mail.