A blanket ban has pushed qalyan-smoking out of Mashhad, but in Shandiz you can still relax puffing on water pipes at various upmarket teahouses. While not recommended for its limited food, castle-styled Lankadeh Padideh has particularly smooth-smoking qalyans (IR440,000) – try the nanae-portokal (mint-orange) flavour. The associated tea set comes with fruit plate and a samovar of boiling water.
It's at the back of a small pine grove filled with numerous other cafes and restaurants in the Old Padideh-e Shandiz restaurant complex. Note that it's not the same as the new Padideh Shandiz development, which is still under construction 1km down Valiasr St at Shohada Sq.