Hookah John レビュー 

Honestly, pretty disappointed with my first (and apparently last) order from HookahJohn.

I placed a $600+ order using my credit card, and shortly afterward got an email saying my card had been “flagged for fraud” and asking me to pay the order via Zelle instead.

I checked my bank account and could actually see the HookahJohn transaction, so I replied that I'd rather stick with a normal credit card payment. Especially for a first $600+ order, I'm not going to send money via Zelle and give up the protections that come with paying by card.

I asked them to check their payment system and see if there was another way to process the order. Instead, the order was simply canceled.

What really made me question the whole thing is what happened when I searched for other people's experiences. Just Google “HookahJohn order issue” and you'll find a ton of Reddit threads and reviews describing basically the exact same story: place an order with a credit card → get told the card was flagged for fraud → get asked to Zelle the money → refuse → order gets canceled. This isn't some one-off complaint from years ago either; there are very recent reviews describing the same thing.

I gave them the opportunity to explain what happened before posting this review. No response so far.

Good products and prices are nice, but there are plenty of other hookah shops where I can simply pay with a credit card and get my order without this whole situation. I'll be shopping elsewhere.

This company seems fraudulent or shady at the very least. I placed an order for a hookah and many supplies, around $600 worth of product. I purchase many thousands of dollars of products over the internet with this card. They sent me an email saying that my order was on hold because it hit a snag and a fraud alert stopped it. I contacted my credit card company and they said that was not the case. Hookah John asked me to Zelle the money instead. This guy is shady and I would move to a more reputable vendor.

I was excited to place an order for over $500, but unfortunately my experience with HookahJohn was disappointing.

After placing my order, I was asked to pay via Zelle instead of using my credit card. I declined because I wasn't comfortable giving up the purchase protections that come with using a credit card on a purchase of this size. Shortly afterward, my order was canceled.

I understand that businesses incur credit card processing fees, but I don't believe it's reasonable to expect customers to waive their own payment protections to help the business avoid those costs. For a purchase exceeding $500, I think using a credit card is a perfectly reasonable expectation. If accepting standard payment methods is a problem, that shouldn't become the customer's responsibility.

The situation left me feeling uncomfortable, and it came across as an unprofessional way to handle a legitimate order. Instead of moving forward with HookahJohn, I purchased the same Steamulation setup from a competitor at a comparable price using a normal credit card transaction without any issues.

Based on my experience, I can't recommend HookahJohn. There are other reputable retailers that offer competitive pricing while accepting standard payment methods and providing customers with the protections they should expect on a purchase of this value.

Waste of time….boycott them and put them out of business. Come across as scammy. Takes credit card info but the ask for Zelle. This has happened to me three time.

Skimmed credit card (had to have it changed) and attempted to force me to zelle him the money.

ordered a premium hookah from them, got an email that my credit card flagged as a fraud which it's a mistake from their system and the want me to pay by Zelle which is fine too. I tried to email them if I can use a different credit card, no response. tried to chat with customer service on their website, no response for 2 days. no phone number to call listed on their site. the funny thing when I asked to cancel the order they did cancel it and still haven't responded that means they are reading my messages but ignoring them. very bad customer service

Read the reviews and watch the trends. My guess he’s practicing tax evasion. He only accepts Zelle even though has a payment processor through his website. The owner himself replies back and bashes all negative reviews as if the world is out to get him. Not that he’s being unethical. If you want a good site to get products from go to your local stores, or Hookah Junkie, Hookah Shisha or 5 star hookah. They have amazing pricing and the best customer service. It’s impossible to leave you upset with their service. The owner of Hookah Junkie called me himself once because a product was out and wanted to send me a proper replacement. Hookah John is unethical and untrustworthy.

Be aware when ordering, they won’t charge your credit card, but will ask to take a picture of your credit card and send it to them instead. For what reason do you need to have a picture of my credit? Called American Express, and was told that this looked like fraud, and when i tried to contact hookah john, got no response whatsoever. Terrible, if you want to buy any product from them, think twice.

I have ordered from hookah john many times and I have never had an issue or bad experience. He is one of few vendors who did not have any shipping delays during COVID and always has a good selection of the best brands. I always get my order in 3 days and I live all the way across the country. I am a regular customer and recommend him highly to anyone.

HookahJohn is a hilariously bad vendor that clearly doesn't care about their customers.

-Outdated payment processing. They require you to send a full copy of your ID and credit card so they can process on the back end triggering a fraud warning on your credit card.
-Horrible support. Support is incredibly slow and isn't helpful. I emailed John directly and it's clear he doesn't care about the customer experience.

After dealing with John, I did some research and spoke to the other US vendors. The reality of the situation is that hookah's in general aren't popular enough in the united states to drive serious demand. With that, John has done something incredible for his business by establishing himself as the "big vendor" in the small market. Most of the other vendors receive their inventory from John.

What this means for the consumer:

John's competitors will have higher prices because they are receiving inventory from him which means that on the surface, John's shop looks like the best bet. The reality is that if you pick up a hookah or accessories in the US, he gets a cut regardless so he absolutely doesn't care about quality or consumer satisfaction.

I should have listened to the reviews but instead I chose to take the gamble. This time it didn't pay off. I strongly suggest doing your own research before purchasing from HJ. Read the other reviews that are being posted, it's step by step exactly what you will go through ordering from this guy. Go on reddit and read his reviews there as well.

They have the worst CS ever.
Be very careful and dont do international shipping with them, they will steal you.

I purchased charcoals from this company I tried a few of the charcoals the quality was very bad I called the company they refused to allow me to return the low quality products within the first 30 days I called the company more than 10 times they kept ignoring my calls my recommendation is do not purchase any items from this company they can not be trusted.

Got exactly what I ordered with nothing damaged and it was delivered to me with in a week.