Smokin Stogies n Stuff

Ask anyone who shops here and they'll point you to John, the owner of Smokin Stogies n Stuff, a small shop in Philadelphia that has earned a real following. Regulars know him as John Vee, the dark-haired guy with curls and a beard who introduces himself, asks your name, and answers every question with patience. One local put it plainly: he knows his stoggies n stuff. That kind of service is why this place has such a strong reputation around the city, and why folks keep calling it a Philly gem.

The store may be on the smaller side, but the selection surprises people. There's a well maintained humidor and a great cigar lineup that has kept some customers loyal since 2010. Beyond the cigars, you'll find vapes and disposable vapes, e-liquid and vape juice, hookah and shisha, cigarettes, plus glass pipes, water pipes, vaporizers, and all the smoking accessories you'd expect, along with some genuinely cool pipes and apparatuses. If there's a specific accessory or piece of hardware they don't have on hand, just ask, John will usually order it in for you.

Prices are marked on everything, and the word around Philadelphia is that they run the same or lower than anywhere else in town. Visitors from out of state single this place out too, with tourists driving around for parking just to get inside. We've heard the odd note that the juice section could use a refresh, but that's a small thing next to everything else the shop gets right. The Center City location stays open late, which matters when most spots have shut for the night, and the story goes that John once reopened the register after hours just to help someone out.

Friendly, fairly priced, and genuinely knowledgeable, this is the kind of shop people are glad to have found.