The First Cannabis Cafe in the United States
The very first Cannabis Cafe in the United States opened on April 20, 2021 in Fairbanks, Alaska, in what they described as a "soft opening." There was no media extravaganza, and no celebration with balloons for the kids and snacks for the adults.
No, they just opened quietly on 420 Day, and that was cool. I chatted up the owner, and he said they weren't going to make a big deal of it just yet as they are still working out the bugs in their brand new building. I visited on April 23, and they still had electrical contractors in the back making sure everything was getting electricity, and such. For instance, they tested the fire alarms while I was there. He didn't say it outright, but I think they weren't 100% ready to open, but couldn't miss the chance to make the official opening on the most famous cannabis holiday of the year. They were ready enough to satisfy the pencil pushers, and so history was made.
I didn't get any inside pictures of the cafe, but here are a couple of shots from the outside. When you enter the main doors, you will show your ID, and then turn left to go to the store, or right towards the cafe. Upon entering the cafe, you are directed to a menu display and the coffee bar. They have the coolest looking 3 line coffee/cappuccino/espresso machine, state of the art.
There are roomy booths that line each side of the cafe, with large video screens mounted on the walls above them showing non-stop meme videos; one had a movie playing, one had sports, that sort of thing. There was another adjoining room that is designed to simply sit and hang out with others, with bench seating, end tables, places to recharge a device, and all that.
The whole building is brand new, and modern on the outside, but inside you will see birch log beams and paneling, with warm lighting and earth tones. In other words, typical Alaska.
I ordered a simple mocha, and a 5 mg drop of THC. You order the coffee, and add the magic yourself. This is one of the stipulations to getting a license in Alaska. They sell the goodies, but you have to mix them yourself. In this manner, they can keep tabs on how much you buy at at time.
There are purchasing limits, and I cannot remember exactly what they are because I was geeking over being there at that moment in the first place. I heard "You can buy up to 1 gram of flower..." and all of the sudden I thought I heard angels singing somewhere and got distracted. I got the 5 mg drop, and my brother got a .5 g pre-roll. He also got a 5 mg drop.
They have great plans for expansion, but I cannot give that info away just yet. I promised not to let the secret out of the bag for his plans in the future, but I can say that I now have exclusive franchise/distribution rights to Texas. Yeah, I think this is that big of a deal, what they have planned is unheard of in the whole world of cannabis consumption.
(the guy in the photo was some vendor, and gave me permission to use this photo with him in it)
Comments
@justaguy your a lucky man, great menu and prices in comparison . Unfortunately my sister in law just moved from Fairbanks so I won't be back to Alaska anytime soon ☹
This gives me even more reason to visit!
It's been a dream of mine to take an extended trip there, and possibly move if I love it as much as I imagine I would.
@MigraineWarrior79 you go girl, you have to see it once. I loved it just not in the winter..for me spring, summer and fall lasted about a month lol. My mountains cold enough for me. It's one of the most beautiful places I've been to. Do yourself a favor and go.
@MNTDWLER - this month has been very interesting for me, to say the least. Suffice it to say this was the high point of my trip there.
Bad puns aside, I forgot to mention that you can only buy a certain amount of cannabis related stuff while at the cafe because... laws, right? But after considering the limits, they wont get in the way of someone coming in and enjoying some of mother nature's very finest buds. It's not the place to get blasted.
You cannot get a "to-go" order at the Cafe. Whatever you buy there has to be consumed there. They do not sell vapes in the Cafe... yet.
They also encourage sharing, meaning there is no such thing as social distancing when you are holding a joint in your hand.
The new store is on the north end of town, out towards the college, for those that know the area. I wasn't driving so I didn't pay all that much attention.
I wanted to update this thread. I am in Fairbanks again for a couple months, and for sure I'm going to visit this store again. It's 420 day, after all. I went to visit the other day and tried their MauiWowie, and all I can say about that strain is "wow!"
The numbers look like this:
THC = 20.96%
CBD = 0.48%
Terps = 1.73%
They didn't have any "tied stick" but that's cool.