Craig Cooper, owner of Austin’s Cigar Lounge, wants you to know there’s a new kind of way to relax and spend time with your friends.
And judging from the uptick in popularity of cigar lounges across North America, the Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan business owner is ready to capitalize on that boom.
But it’s not just about cigars, Cooper said, although they have plenty, ranging from the new Allegiance and Pledge from E.P. Carrillo to the Deadwood and Undercrown Maduro lines from Drew Estate.
It’s all about the atmosphere, Cooper said.
“We have a full bar and humidor,” Cooper said. “But the Lounge is a place where you can sit, just relax, and visit with friends or family”
A lot of time and thought went into the Lounge’s design and aesthetic, Cooper said. Not to mention a number of miles travelled around the Country, visiting cigar lounges to see what made them tick.
“Some places, they’d seem overly fancy,” Cooper said. “Like you’re in a big city so you have to dress up to walk in.”
Other places, Cooper said, were “bare bones” cigar rooms, all bright lights and bare walls.
Certainly not the feel he wanted.
“I wanted to capture the whole Upper Peninsula vibe, capture its essence if I could,” he said. “Hunting camps, cabins, wood, natural kinds of materials. But also the industrial feel you get when you look across the river at Sault Ontario.”
The design kicked around in the back of his mind for some time. Then, after setting up shop on Ashum Street, a slate of renovations revealed old stone and red brick. That led to barn wood walls with old gas light style lighting and exposed tubing.
“It all kind of came together,” Cooper said, and Austin’s Cigar Lounge was born.
“I think we nailed it, that UP vibe, which makes everybody comfortable,” Cooper said.
“Wearing shorts and a t-shirt are great,” he said. “But if you’re on a date and you're dressed up a little bit, you’re not going to feel like you’re standing out or feel uncomfortable.”
Despite the name – calling it a cigar lounge may conjure up images of smoky rooms, pool halls, private clubs for some – Cooper said he was aiming to provide visitors with a comfortable, home-like destination to chill, relax and have good conversations.
“You don’t have to smoke cigars to come in here, but if you want a quiet place after work, somewhere that’s comfortable, or to have a conversation with friends, this is a perfect place to come do it.”
Austin’s Cigar Lounge also operates with a state of the art energy recovery ventilator (ERV), a system that makes the environment cleaner, and more comfortable by continuously replacing stale indoor air with fresh outdoor air.
Every 10-15 minutes the air inside Austin’s is pulled from the room and replaced with fresh air from outdoors.
That means no smoke, and visitor’s won’t be picking up any traces of others’ stogies while they sit and have a chat with friends.
It’s all about the atmosphere at Austin’s Cigar Lounge
Maybe the Lounge can best be described as a throwback to a different era, where visitors sought sanctuary in a room with comfortable chairs, mellow tunes and a host of different beverages at the ready.
It’s the kind of vibe Cooper’s hoping to bring back. Vintage, but with modern amenities.
The name itself – Austin’s Cigar Lounge – is a tip of the hat to one of the Soo’s earliest tobacco companies, Austin Oak and Tobacco. The company counted several shops throughout the midwest, and was a downtown Sault Ste. Marie staple for years.
Eventually, the company morphed into Austin Oak, Pipe Tobacco and Furniture, before its owners retired.
Now, Cooper said, he’s resurrected the name and that will reflect the city’s heritage and draw on the past for future inspiration.
“I wanted to keep the Austin name going in the Soo,” Cooper said. “Just kind of a tribute to history and the city.”
Austin’s Cigar Lounge also occupies an historic building in downtown Sault Ste. Marie. Originally a furniture – and coffin! – maker in the late 1800s, the Ashmun Street location is firmly set in the town’s lore.
“We have one of the original signs for that business when it was here,” he said. “The business has a neat history, and the building has a neat history, so it’s been cool to tie both of those together.”
The Lounge Crowd
So who’s hanging at Austin’s Cigar Lounge?
Cooper said he’s already drawn the interest of curious people who are out-and-about, visitors from across the border in Sault Ste Marie, Ontario, or those looking for a neighbourhood watering hole.
He’s also drawn interest from a loyal group of regulars.
“I have a group of three women that come in once or twice a month, and they have a drink or two,” Cooper said. “It's just kind of like a stop on their route because it's quiet here, they can have a nice conversation.”
Mellow tunes are the norm at Austin’s – Cooper says he likes to keep the atmosphere quiet, relaxed – and most important, the constant influx of clean, fresh air, are what makes the lounge an easy place to spend a couple hours with friends.
Cooper’s choices of whiskey also keeps people interested in what’s behind the bar.
“The drinks that we make really grab their attention,” Cooper said. “I have probably one of the better whiskey selections in the city. Trying new things, bringing in new whiskey is something I’m always trying to do.”
“For example, right now we’re making an Old Fashioned using a butter-washed Benchmark No. 8 Bourbon, Michigan Maple Syrup to sweeten it, and some Old Fashioned and Walnut Bitters to give it some spice.”
Cooper said a couple of staples – the Old Fashioned and Manhattan, for example – have been popular at the Lounge in past years.
He’s hoping to really entice visitors with a couple of new drinks on the summer menu, too.
Their special summer Negroni will be called the Jungle Bird, Cooper said. And a new Gin and Tonic that he’s calling The Superior. Cooper said the new offering is made using Birch Water, Tonic Syrup and Blue Spirulina powder to make a blue tonic water.
But at the end of the day, it’s really about friends and family, Cooper said.
“We’re a place where people are hanging out, visiting, enjoying a cigar or drink before they go home,” Cooper said.
“It’s a place that people want to be.”
Check Austin's Cigar Lounge out online here.