Hudson County is getting its first cannabis consumption lounge this weekend, and it's opening with a hip-hop twist: rapper Jadakiss is set to work the counter as a celebrity guest budtender when The Lounge at Xena throws its grand opening on October 2 from noon until 11 p.m. The approximately 50-seat venue sits in the basement of Xena Dispensary at 759A Bergen Avenue in Jersey City's McGinley Square neighborhood.
The opening marks a milestone for the city and the state alike. According to Jersey Digs, the lounge will be the first of its kind in Hudson County and just New Jersey's fifth cannabis consumption lounge overall once its doors open. After the grand-opening event, regular hours are planned to run daily from noon until 11 p.m.
The venture is the work of Haytham Elgawly, who founded Xena Dispensary and ran a previous operation called The Clearport out of the same storefront for about six years, per the same report. Xena Dispensary itself opened in Jersey City in April 2025, according to Heady NJ. Elgawly graduated from William L. Dickinson High School in 2006 before attending New Jersey City University and the Art Institute of NYC, and he previously worked at Hyatt, Bank of America and Honda Motor Company, the Jersey Digs report notes.
More Than a Place to Light Up
Elgawly has described the project as about more than simply having a place to consume cannabis, framing it instead as a space where people can meet, connect, watch events, listen to music and consume cannabis together. The lounge is designed as an upscale social venue, outfitted with multiple TVs, device rentals, games, music and what organizers call a full calendar of events, including puff and paint sessions, kush and karaoke nights and comedy shows.
The name Xena draws inspiration from xenia, the ancient Greek concept of hospitality, and the operators have promoted the opening on Instagram at @xena_nj. Guests looking for a bite won't find a kitchen on-site, however: state law prohibits the sale of food and alcohol inside New Jersey cannabis consumption lounges. Guests can instead order food from local restaurants and have it delivered to The Lounge at Xena.
How New Jersey's Consumption-Lounge Rules Work
Those restrictions trace back to statewide guidance from the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission, which makes clear that only adults 21 and older are permitted inside consumption areas and that alcohol or tobacco products cannot be used on-site. The same state guidance warns that operators who violate the rules can face warnings, fines, license suspensions or revocations. The commission has separately said consumption lounges are meant to give consumers a place to ask questions and learn about safe use in real time, with endorsements available only to licensed Class 5 retailers that secure municipal approval specific to the space.
Xena's path to opening ran through both local and state regulators: the dispensary secured approval from the Jersey City Cannabis Control Board and City Council before the state's Cannabis Regulatory Commission signed off in a 4-0 vote, according to Heady NJ. City officials previously noted that Xena's basement lounge space includes a ventilation system worth $250,000, as reported by Hudson County View.
Part of a Slowly Growing Statewide Rollout
Xena's debut follows a broader, gradual rollout of consumption lounges across New Jersey. The state's Cannabis Regulatory Commission approved four dispensaries for consumption-area endorsements on July 15, 2025, including High Rollers Dispensary and SunnyTien Dispensary in Atlantic City, Gynsyng in Merchantville and URB'N Dispensary in Newark, according to nj.com. The outlet reported the state was accepting applications for such lounges on a rolling basis.
By August 5, 2025, two of the four lounges had opened for business. That outlet also noted all four were state-certified Diversely Owned Businesses. Gynsyng in Merchantville along with Sunnytien and High Rollers in Atlantic City had soft-opened their lounges in July 2025, per Hudson County View's earlier reporting, while Heady NJ has described Xena as poised to become the second cannabis lounge in North Jersey and the fifth statewide.
