As California prepares for a very busy year keeping up with industry demands, the state strives to maintain its influential status by conducting cannabis experiments.

Well, that’s what seems to be happening in San Francisco, where the state’s very first cannabis social lounge recently opened its doors.

Barbary Coast is similar to the cannabis social clubs you see in Amsterdam. It is the first of what is believed to be a network of lounges in California cities. A total of eight lounges have been approved thus far, according to a report by the Associated Press.

Based on the report, two lounges will open in Alameda, one in Oakland and one in South Lake Tahoe, with potential options in Los Angeles and Sacramento. According to California’s cannabis “czar,” Nicole Elliot, health officials must conclude the regulations before new shops can gain licensing.

What to expect inside Barbary Coast’s cannabis social lounge

Camouflaged beneath the smoky abyss that fills Barbary Coast Dispensary’s cannabis smoking lounge are groups of ganja lovers, uniting over the herb.

This scene you are envisioning might trigger mental images of Amsterdam, where social lounges have been firmly rooted in Netherlands tourism since Mellow Yellow opened in 1967.

In fact, Barbary Coast is built upon the same concept. The new business allows cannabis tourists to smoke their herbs and extracts safely in the environment from which they procure their pot.

No other place like this exists in the United States. Cozy and inviting with its sports tavern style, the lounge inside Barbary Coast’s dispensary exhibits alluringly dark tones of red and black, merged with hardwood flooring.

Recreational cannabis users aged 21 and above can step foot inside the clean, safe lounge. Consumers can get high using whatever method suits them.

An enticing selection of products and personalized experience can be expected for anyone who explores this tourist attraction, which conceals a lounge, dab bar and upscale dispensary.

Examples of what’s featured in the inventory include pre-rolls, topicals, edibles, flowers, cartridges and merchandise.

San Francisco’s pot plan is spreading

California is taking strides ahead of other states in terms of capitalising on the cannabis industry.

Currently, it is currently the only state to permit recreational cannabis smoking at specific lounges. 

Social clubs might be prohibited in Oregon, Washington or Nevada, but regulators in Alaska are warming up to the idea of cannabis social lounges. On-site cannabis consumption will be allowed in designated areas if Alaska pushes forward with the rules that were drafted in August.

Although it is not permitted for social use in Colorado, a ballot initiative was recently passed by voters in Denver that would grant on-site cannabis use. Just last month, the Coffee Joint received the city’s first license. In Denver, however, cannabis consumers cannot purchase product at the lounges.

Since residents and bud businesses in West Hollywood are complaining about the lack of safe and legal places to use the plant, it’s not surprising that city officials predict the cannabis social lounge concept will develop into a statewide plan.