My trek around the UK visiting cigar shops with sampling lounges continued in full force this week. In what felt like peak summer vibes, I spent this week’s recent Bank Holiday Monday down in Brighton & Hove on the south coast of England. Judging by the packed, sweaty trains heading down there and the beaches, it seemed like the whole of London had the same idea 🙈😆.
I had two places on my radar to visit while I was there. First was Havana House Hove, but sadly it was closed on Bank Holiday Monday. My second stop was a place called The Cigar Room, located not too far away from there.
Background
The Cigar Room is owned by Karim Saadoune – I think he is also known to some as Kenzo too, although unfortunately he wasn’t in the shop during my visit.
The store officially opened last year around the 20 May 2025, and I remember seeing it mentioned across a few social media channels at the time of opening.
Karim at the time wrote: “I didn’t just fall into cigars – I chased them. A few years ago I lit my first cigar, and that spark turned into a full-blown passion. I started travelling across Europe and parts of the world, hunting for rare cigars, meeting collectors, and learning everything I could. Every cent I had went into building my knowledge and my collection – not because I had to, but because I loved it. Some call it an addiction, I call it vision. Now, I’m turning that obsession into something real – a cigar shop built by someone who truly loves the culture.”.
The Cigar Room is located at 67A Blatchington Road, in between Hove train station and Hove beach.
My experience
From the outside, the shop is fairly discreet — you can’t really see inside — but the large lettering across the front clearly spells out The Cigar Room.
As I approached, I noticed a couple of seats and a table outside for those wanting to sample a cigar outdoors.
Inside, the atmosphere immediately felt like a very small gentleman’s lounge.
There were leather chairs…
… portraits of Fidel Castro and Winston Churchill adorning the walls,
a shop counter at the front, and towards the back on the right-hand side, a walk-in humidor.
One side of the humidor housed Cuban cigars.
I’m not entirely sure if they’re supplied by Hunters & Frankau 🤔, as there were quite a few regional editions available at surprisingly low prices. The shop did appear to stock products from TOR (Charatan cigars) and Davidoff UK- but will need to double check, alongside cigars from the Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, and Honduras.
Overall, the cigars appeared to be in an ok condition, although a few wrappers on some of the Cubans looked a tad bit rough around the foot of the cigar. I picked the best example I could find, and thankfully it was stored and humidified well.
I chose an El Rey del Mundo W.I.H. 20 Years Edición Regional Líbano cigar, priced at £38, which I thought was quite reasonable. These were made specifically for the Lebanese market.
The gentleman behind the counter, Yacinno, was excellent — clearly a cigar enthusiast. He offered me a coffee to accompany my cigar 👌.
He also showed me the impressive Romeo y Julieta Gran Churchill cigar — definitely an eye-catching piece with a gold wrapper. The cost of this one though will set you back £500!
Naturally, I stayed to enjoy the full sampling experience inside the lounge itself. The ventilation was decent — cool and comfortable despite the heat outside — and while I was there, several other cigar smokers came in too, which added nicely to the atmosphere.
My rating: 6.75 out of 10
Overall, I was impressed but a little wary by The Cigar Room.
The cigars were reasonably priced, the atmosphere was welcoming, and the customer service was great.
The venue is very small but well designed, and they’ve even created a small outdoor area outside the front of the shop for cigar sampling.
Why am I wary? I do think their cigar collection could be elevated even further through stronger partnerships with UK cigar distributors, helping to better support the UK cigar industry.
Before visiting, I’d also recommend checking their Google reviews too, as opinions there seem to be somewhat mixed. Havana House Hove could be the better alternative to try!
Saying that, my experience was a good one.
Interested in visiting?
The Cigar Room
67A Blatchington Road
Brighton & Hove
BN3 3YJ
Telephone: +44 7400 413141
Email: info@thecigarroom.co.uk
Website: thecigarroom.co.uk
Social media: instagram.com/cigarroomhove
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