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Coming to The Improv is always bittersweet for me. I am normally going to see a comedian I love, so I know I will be entertained. But just thinking of where I might end up sitting always kills me.
Case in point, last night I went and saw Margaret Cho. Love her! Of course she did not disappoint, but my view of her sure did! We were seated about half way back, on the aisle, in a half table/half booth. We took the booth side. Then they seated two other people on the chair side. Now I can barely see the stage. The whole night I had to lean to my right and crane my neck around the guy in front of me to see what Ms. Cho was doing. Bummer.
They also have their 2 item minimum. I personally think their alcoholic drinks are overpriced and weak. So last night I opted for a Snapple - $5! And I can't put down 2 Snapples in less than 2 hours, so I only had one. Not sure if they charged us for a 2nd item, I didn't pay the bill.
I do like the parking here. They have a parking garage and the valet right by the venue, so you don't have to walk a mile to get there.
Of course I will continue to come back to The Improv, as it is really the only place around here to see comedy shows, but they should really do something about the seating!
Came in very late (damn Irvine is a pain to get down to on time from LA on a weeknight.) around 8:45 for a 8 pm start time. PK and Kevin Shea were two of the performers so I rounded up 3 friends and came out to support.
Valet parking at the Irvine Spectrum is $9? Dayamnnn Gina!
The door guys consulted with the manager since I was on one of the comedian's guest lists for $7.50 tickets instead of $15, and to their credit, since the show was almost over, they let us in free. That's pretty awesome.
It was packed so they sat us at a table in the back corner by the kitchen. Two pretty annoying things: 1) the kitchen apparently has no doors, so all the joking and carrying on in the kitchen was easy to hear and annoying to try and ignore while listening to the comedian on stage. Kevin mumbles a little bit and doesn't yell when he talks, but maybe the sound on the mics should have been higher.
The crowd? Ehhh. There was a guy and girl who had too much to drink in front of us who wouldn't shut up and eventually left early. That's not the Improv's fault, but still annoying. Why would you come see a comedy show and talk during the whole thing? And not even whisper, but talk! The guy got up to leave with her and just walked out without holding her hand so she sat there undecided for a moment if she could wobble out safely. She managed to put her hand on everyone she walked by to support herself, to those people's surprised annoyance. Hahaha...classy.
The drinks are typical comedy club fare...not very big, lots of ice, and not the cheapest. Maybe there's a cheaper place to drink at the Spectrum beforehand? :)
The actual theater was nice enough and reminded me of a bigger version of the Icehouse in Pasadena.
BTW, PK is one of the founders of and hosts Kollaboration, the Asian-American talent show in many major cities now, and Kevin Shea was born in Korea but adopted by a white family in Pennsylvania. Check out some of his videos via Google or Youtube, if you like sarcastic and blunt humor, you'll dig him...he's hilarious, although I think he had an off night connecting with the Irvine crowd. I saw him at the Brea Improv before and he was hysterical, especially if he's lit by the time he performs. ;)
The Irvine Improv is great for a date or a fun night out with friends. On Tuesday nights, they have a promotion called Comedy Juice. E-mail Assad @ CJTickets@gmail.com and request the # of tickets plus your name to get free tickets. That's right, FREE.
Some of my favorites that perform regularly on Tuesday nights are: Tom Vrab, Kevin Shea, Smooth-E, Kyle Cease, Eddie Ifft and Erik Griffin. You can count on those guys to make you laugh, who knows, maybe you'll pee your pants.
Maybe it has been the last few comedian's I've seen here, but the improv is just okay. I thought nachos were one of those things that you can't mess up... I mean, it's cheese, beans, sour cream, and maybe olives. The Improv wins the award for WORST NACHOS EVER. They were so bad someone at another table heard someone ordering the nachos and stopped them from ordering them. Plus, the two item minimum is a little steep considering the price of tickets. I figured out that we paid over $60 per person for a mediocre show last night. And, the design of the Improv is a little flawed- you can't see the stage from a lot of the seats unless you are an NBA basketball player and can see over the crowds of people.
Sanitized improv for the uptight, repressed, boring Irvine crowd (I repeat myself), this place is a god-send from the sheer boredom of the most boring place in America - Irvine! Coming soon in 2D (from 1D).
Improv has 18+ nights and 21+ nights depending on the type of show and if it's on the weekend or not. Usually its 21 and over Fri-Sun.
I came on a Friday night and did not have dinner there, so we arrived about 20 minutes before the show started. To my surprise it wasn't very busy when we first got there so we got a booth close to the stage.
It was a good seat minus the pole that was chillin in front of me. As long as the comedian was standing on either side of the stage I could see him.
Always a 2 item minimum either drinks or food. I didn't buy food, only 2 an iced tea and a Sex on the Stage. Same as sex on the beach but it was in a BIG glass. I would hope so for a $10 drink!
The comedian was funny, I forgot his name though already.
Its a little place, but still cool to go out to every once in awhile if your mainly looking for laughs!
Rating 3.5
Came here again when they offered us free tickets...we got 8 for free. We didn't know who was performing but for a free night out (well except for the drinks), we decided to go. So we invited a group of friends and had a good time. The headliner was Kevin Shea but the other 4 comedians before him were also hilarious.
This time to fill my two drink minimum I ordered bottled beer $5.75 and a mixed cocktail $9 for a tall glass. I guess they are not that stict with the 2 drink per person rule cause some of my friends only ordered one drink. One of my friends did order prime rib taquitos...wow fancy...and $9.50 for an order. I thought it was expensive but when it came it was a good size and big enough to share. One taste and I was wowed. I dodn't expect much but this taquito was flavorful- the beef was well marinated and tender inside. That was a good pick and I will definitely order one when we come back.
Oh and about our server: she was fast and effecient...
all in all...free tickets + good friends + ok drinks + good taquito = a fun night.
We came here to watch Rex Navarette. I got my tickets on http://Goldstar.com and the tickets were… Read more »
Comedy is subjective, so regardless of the act here's why I love the Improv in Irvine in light of all other comedy clubs:
1) FREE tickets all the freaking time if you just register on their website. I've gone here for free more time than I can remember and paid less than what I can count on one hand. It's a great, last minute good time when you get one of their "Free tickets" e-mails and throw a group together. Even if it's a "B team" group of comedians (and remember you usually get a lineup of 3 people), it's STILL a riot and you still end up laughing most of the night away.
2) They are super laid back about the 2-drink minimum, and if you get any food at all, that also counts for 2-drinks.
3) I'm not huge on comedy club food in general, (it usually sucks), but they have FRIED CHEESECAKE. It's as good, sweet, and unhealthy as it sounds. The minute someone tried a bite sized piece, their eyes got big and all they could say was "oh...wow!"
The 3 F's: Free tickets, Funny people, and Fried cheesecake. Now that's a good time! What fourth "F" are you talking about?
Overall a good place to eat, drink, and laugh (depends on the comedian).
Got to give a lady a lap dance courtesy of Steve Byrne's Mantastic Boy Band last night. Sexellent!
Jackie Chan signing off. *Twirls sweater in the air*
As far as comedy clubs go, this place is pretty great. It's roomy, not too hard to get into, the drinks are generous (you get to keep the glass!) and the variety of comedians is pretty great. I came most recently to support my friend Iliza Schlesinger doing stand up, and I gotta say the majority of comedians were really great.
A definite fun way to start the night - then I recommend meandering down to Dave & Busters to have a few more drinks and blow the rest of your cash playing "FLAMING FINGER!!"
I enjoy a good laugh every now and then. For most of us, the laughs come free of charge. Either courtesy of your drunk friends, your significant other, your hyperactive dog, basically all those around you, just name a few. But in the rare instances where you must plunk down your hard-earned money for some laughs, I don't mind an occasional visit to the Irvine Improv.
The admission fees can be ridiculously overpriced, basically the higher the popularity of the act, the higher the prices. I think the most I paid was $40+ for Carlos Mencia, back at the peak of his popularity. I remembered waiting in a long line just to get in. The other times when I watched Dat Phan and most recently, Jo Koy, the the prices were a more reasonable $15-$20.
The 2-item minimum per person as stated on the receipt is a head scratcher. But I'm not sure how strictly enforced that is. When we were there for Jo Koy, I had 2 beers while the wife just had water. Granted, the total for those 2 beers + tip was an obscene $16, but they never said anything else about ordering more.
I've learned my lesson eating dinner there a few years ago. The food is atrocious. But by showing up an hour and half early, you get to sit in the front row and see your favorite comedian up close and personal, like the beads of sweat dripping down their faces because of the hot spotlight.
Seating is cozy and intimate, and can get stuffy in there. Just hope that everyone is wearing their deodorant. People are jam-packed into every square inch of the club on a sold-out show, which means sharing tables and personal space with complete strangers. Luckily, we've sat down with some cool people. I'd hate to sit in the same table with some loud-mouthed, drunk douchebag heckling the comedian all night.
We recently watched Jo Koy, who is one funny mofo. He takes simple, everyday observations and turns them into a knee-slapping riot. We got a chance to meet him and take pictures after the show. Despite some of the shortcomings of the venue, I'm still amazed that some of funniest comedians in the world make a stop in Irvine, of all places. In the words of Jo Koy, unbrrrvvvbrrr! (unbelievable, with ahem, Chinese accent)
Christopher Titus ROCKED!!!!
Seriously funny.
The Improv SUCKED.
I can't go in unless I'm buying dinner? Or until all the close seats are filled with people willing to spend more money than me? That's just wrong.
The food SUCKED.
I'm convinced they have nothing but microwaves, in which they (barely) heat up the Costco food. The chicken and *meat* patties have fake grill marks and a funky chemical taste. There's no way the breaded calamari saw hot oil. No way.
The drinks SUCKED.
$5.00 soda? $3.00 club soda? $10.00 martini that's only half full? No free refills on anything but water- which doesn't count toward the 2 item minimum. Serious gouging.
The service SUCKED.
Slow. Rude. Got nothing right. I'm here for the show- get your big empty head out of the way.
The sound SUCKED.
The opening acts were horrible, but their mic worked. Unfortunately. It took several minutes to get Titus' mic to work well enough, but not good.
The seating SUCKED.
Hard seats, cramped, tiny tables. Not tiered enough to have a decent view. Hubby's 5'11'' and couldn't see Titus on stage. And HE'S 6'2".
The prices SUCKED.
See above. I'd have been homicidal if I didn't get half price tickets through Goldstar.
The drunk beeotches in front SUCKED.
You know who you are. And you're NOT the freaking comedian. No one is here to listen to your crap. Big Clue: the comedian told you to shut the f*ck up. I hope you all got DUI's.
The air conditioning was NONEXISTENT/SUCKED.
Hot. Hot hot hot hot hot.
It sucks so bad that Hubby, who has been perfectly content to Yelp vicariously through me until now, cannot WAIT to rip this venue top to bottom.
Never again. For anyone. Ever.
I don't understand why people talk ish on the Improv, because they are awesome.
We came here to see Craig Robinson and the only complaint I have is that it was raining outside and there was no awning to take cover under.
The venue is great as was the comedy!
I would have to say, Irvine's Improv Comedy Club is definitely smaller and more intimate than the San Jose location. I went recently to a performance by Dat Phan, Last Comic Standing season 1 winner and we were seated in the front row! My friend and I were like what the heck! There were many people ahead of us but somehow we got front row. No complaints there and service was quick and friendly with our server bringing us toothpicks, ketchup and water without even asking.
The place is not bad and I would definitely come back for another show here. Pictures are not allowed during the show but we were able to snap some pictures with Dat Phan before the show started which was awesome. He is a good comedian and he did make the crowd roar with laughter. Nice venue and no worries about parking either.
The food here sucks. Eat dinner before or after as there are a lot of options at the spectrum. Crepemaker is a good choice.
Cocktails are $10 which is very expensive. Stick to the beers and 'special drinks'.
Visit their website to get free tickets. If you do, then it's well worth it. Essentially you'll be paying for 2 drinks which is like paying $15 for a show. Great deal.
Having been in retail and restaurant venues for all of my working life, I will say that the dining portion of our visit was the absolute worst in memory.
The food was awful, hamburger burnt and dry as cardboard, fries sprinkled with an unwanted hot powder. Do not ask for the cook to deviate from an item's menu written description. Plain mayo instead of garlic mayo translated to no mayo. Grilled instead of raw onions translated to fewer raw onions. The chicken & calamari were Costco's finest.
But hey, they made up for the abysmal food with horrible service. Slow, robotic drones trying to figure out which table got what food. That is of course after the kitchen released the long awaited dishes.
That aside, it is a performance venue. They really should hire an industry experienced sound person. When the head-liner says "You gotta be f)@(!^& kidding me", the frustration is real.
We'll go again if the act is prime, pay for their overpriced drinks, even test the sound person's ability. But I will never eat there again.
I am a little conflicted on this Improv. A lot of bad and good.
The bad:
--We had the late show, and the act before ours ran over quite a bit so it was a very long wait.
--Because everyone was tired and it was so late, it wasn't the greatest crowd.
--For the most part, the stand-up comedians (especially the host) were pretty bad. For some of them, I even felt a little awkward. I don't like stand-up as much as I used to (back in the 80s and early 90s when it was big). But many of the comedians performing were just not that funny. The final act (a guy I've seen in a few things on television) had a few good moments, but even he was a little disappointing.
The good:
--The iconic look of the place, which you've probably seen in countless stand-up clips on television. It was also (for the most part) comfortable.
--The staff acknowledged the long wait and provided gift vouchers to make up for it.
--There were some funny moments (though they were very scarce).
I would come back, but I would pay a little more attention to who is performing because if you get a run of bad comedians (as we did on this night), you are going to be in for a long and painfully awkward night.
My cousin David Lew performed here last weekend. Luckily for my bf and I we were already planning a vacation down here and we just added my cousin's show into the itinerary. I can't really complain about the price because my cousin had guest listed us!
Yes the drinks are really overpriced, but that's how it usually is at any comedy club. Servers were really polite and didn't mind us moving to sit closer to my other cousin who had come in a little bit later.
Overall it was a pleasant experiance and I enjoyed the small intimate atmosphere, there really weren't any bad seats in the house!
OVERPRICED. Tickets ranging from $15.00 to $25.00, + a 2 item minimum?! Yikes.
The drinks and food are mediocre, at best. They made us wait in line for what felt like forever because the show before us ran long. The service is whatever, nothing too special about it. The venue is nice and cozy though, with the classic comedy club feel. The only thing that really impressed me about the venue was the fact that they filter the sound into the bathrooms!!! So when you have to go pee, you don't have to miss a thing!
They do get some good comedians here, like Gabriel Iglesias (FLUFFY!), so you do get a great show. But that's more on the comedian, not so much on Improv.
Overall, it's a fun but unnecessarily pricey night out. And go see Gabriel Iglesias if possible! He's hilarious.
Unless you're going to see a comedian you KNOW, or you got free tickets off goldstar, don't waste your money. Yes, some of the Irvine comedians are funny, however...$15 to get in PLUS a 2 item minimum? (taking into account they charge $5.50 for a bud light!! and $3.50 for a soda) I may be cheap, but if i'm paying that much for a night out, i expect good food and a nice service staff. They made us wait in the RAIN for over an hour and started the show late. Which would not have been that bad, if the bouncer / door men didn't harass us on the way in. My roommate asked for the door man's name, and he later tracked down where we were sitting to threaten her. (exact words were "go ahead and complain its not going to do a f*ing thing")
maybe we just went on a bad night, but I will only go here again for comedians that I really want to see.
Just went on Saturday night to see KC Armstrong (Howard Stern show) and friends.....very nice!
I can't recall how many comedians we saw, but the late show rocked! At least 4-5 different comics, and KC proved to be an effective host as well as a very good comic.
I would never have gone to see comedy like this before, but now I am hooked. Very nice lineup of comics, all very funny.
As for the cost of the drinks, I don't think it's too bad. This isn't some dive bar in Tustin, it's the Irvine Improv. Live it up a little, or "preparty" before you get here, if you must.
For the love of God, people, get out to see your favorite comic soon at the Irvine Improv!
Went for FREE!! I found one of the comics ad on craigslist and hit him up bout it... he emailed me bacc and bow chicca wow wow we was in da game! It was 6 of us which woulda cost $90 but we since we were on the guestlist we got in FREE!! it did require a 2 item minimum person (which only makes sense) and the show was dope!! The first girl who came out, i think her name was Whitney, she was comedy!! she was talkin bout how she's a crazy gf and she b snoopin thru her man's shit, it was HILARIOUS!!
"when ur at work i'm lookin thru ur shit, when ur in the shower i'm lookin thru ur shit, do i want something to eat? i don't give a fk i just needa look thru ur shit!!" LMAO
So why did the Chicken Cross the Road? To get to the IMPROV! ZOMG!! LOLZ!! HAhhAHhAHhAH! ROFLOL!!
Ok... I know that was the sorriest attempt at a Joke EVAR! But don't fret fellow YELPsters! You WON'T be chucking fruits and random objects at the comedians at the Irvine Improv. Because the line up here will bring tears of laughter!
I was on a comedy binge and have attended headlining acts such as; The Last Comic Standing Winner Dat Pham [ http://static.px.yelp.... ]; Southern Twang and often mistaken Jasper Reed; and the Four Headed Monster Bobby Lee, Kevin Shea, Dr Ken Jeong, and Steve Byrne of The Kims Of Comedy [ http://www.schemamag.c... ] !
Being that it's a short crawl from Yardhouse. You can eat and stumble short steps toward The Improv [ http://static.px.yelp.... ]. You could either pre-purchase tickets at the ticket window or buy them right before the show. Tickets range from $15-$40 depending who's the headliner with a TWO drink minimum.
The Food here is acceptable. I've had a couple of appetizers here and it wasn't something memorable BUT it was filling. When it's a BIG act. DO come early because this place can fill up like Dolly Partons Bra.
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Rye's Notes:
- Sign up for the e-mail newsletter and receive discount tickets (sometimes free)
- Weds are usually DEAD!
I am on the fence when it comes to the Improv. Sometimes it's great, sometimes not so much. Sometimes they charge too much for unknown not all that great people. But some of them like this weekends act, Jamie Kennedy, are really awesome.
Just don't order the food. The cheese sticks are straight out of the microwave. Apple martini was pretty good though.
BTW- Sign up for their e-mail thing because they randomly send free tickets! Yay! Everything is better when it's free!
Gabriel Iglesias, aka "Fluffy"
My boyfriend took me and it has to have been the best night ever.
Its a comedy club, don't let the name full ya. They have a two-item minimum which is really hard for a picky eater like me. My boyfriend ended up having 3 items and I had a coffee with Bailey's.
The place is bigger than it looks but smaller than a theatre. Seating was cramped the night I came in (but look at who I was in for!). Showing up early is a must for good seats and since it does get really packed its hard for the servers to be fast and the furious so do be patient.
Overall, atmo was good and the comedians were funny.
Would go again with another comedian or for Fluffy. Not sure about the others... I kind of like knowing what I'm paying for. ^^;;
Also, don't worry. The boyfriend didn't drive home - I did. ^ ~*
While on my visit here, my sister took me to the Improv. OMG! I've never been to one out here and it was so cute! I walked in and the servers were really nice. The seating was intimate, dark enough to still see your drink and the seating was awesome! We had a little table for 4 and even though we sat way in the back, I could still see Jo Koy's facial expressions. It was awesome! Loved it. I'd definitely have to come back to see another artist!
Came here last night to watch Janeane Garofalo. EXCELLENT show.
We chose not to dine there early and arrived about about 6:15 to a half-packed house. The usher brought us to the very front and seated us with a set of identical twins. Very cool sisters who drove down from Redondo.
The announcer's PA system was not very clear, so it sounded pretty muffled (like the teacher in Peanuts cartoons). I took a chance and ordered some prime rib taquitos which tasted better than it read.
Leaving the venue is easy peasy, since there is a side exit that nobody notices. We were in our vehicle in no time.
No real complaints. Staff was cordial and there was no service charge for purchasing at the box office. Glad I don't have to leave the city if I want to watch an entertaining show.
I came here with a large group of friends; tickets were free because my friend got a deal - so look out for those. Granted, there's a catch: you have to buy a drink or food item. But we got away with that; in fact, it was mostly on them because I had to repeat my order multiple times to multiple people. Seating sucked too; it was mega awkward because they put this line of chairs in front of the tables, and it just made everything uncomfortable. Acts were hit and miss and very typical: Indian guy jokes about being a terrorist; Jewish guy makes Jewish jokes; Asian guy makes Asian jokes; etc. Overall, I'd go back if it's for free again [even with the catch, which I'm sure I can get away with for now on].
The drinks are expensive. $5 for a bud light.
I had a margarita and a pomegranite margarita $9.95/piece. But at least they had some alcohol. Of course, they want you all boozed up so you'll laugh at the comedians -- I mean laugh with the comedians.
The seats are uncomfortable and the tables are tiny. Even if you wanted to eat there, there's no place for the food. If you are a twosome, you could end up sharing a teeny-tiny table with another couple who you don't know at all.
We ended up in the back this time. There was a very tall couple in front of me so I had a difficult time seeing. They recommend getting there at least half hour before your show starts. I recommend at least 45. You'll get closer to the front. More time to buy drinks and get sloshed.
The redeeming grace are the entertainers. Saw David Alan Grier last night. Jon Lebovitz a while back. Jon was funny. David was hilarious. My husband like Jon better. But at one point, I was laughing so hard my stomach was in pain and I thought I was going to die if I couldn't stop.
I think the tix are priced pretty well. It is a two-item minimum, so you don't have to buy alcohol, you could get appetizers or sodas or something. Get a souvenir. They have shirts, keychains, mugs, hurricane glasses, shot glasses, all the tchotchkes.
The only thing that really annoyed me is that I bought full price tix, then I get an e-mail from the Improv saying buy one, get one free. My cheap soul was cringing. AARrRGGHH!!!
I feel guilty giving the Improv 4 stars when I gave the Laugh Factory (Hollywood) 5 stars, so I have to clear things up:
1. I used to intern at the Laugh Factory, so it's partially a sentimental thing.
2. I met Robert Downey, Jr. and shook his hand at the Laugh Factory.
With that said, if you're looking for a newer, nicer comedy club, the Improv is definitely it. Their drink menu is pretty extensive (and all of the drinks that my friends and I tried were delicious), and they have a variety of appetizers for you to munch on. I've only been there twice - once for Wanda Sykes, once for Pablo Francisco - but both times have been amazing. The opening acts are always hilarious too - check out Daryl Wright! The things that come out of that man's mouth are both astonishing and laugh-til-you're-in-pain funny.
-1 star because they pack you in there like sardines! It doesn't matter if you came with a group of 3...everyone is seated as if we're all one big group of 150. It really didn't help that I had a plastered, incoherent, 200-pound man sitting next to (and occasionally falling onto) me.
Got a 2 for 1 ticket deal. Went on a monday night. Got there a little after when the doors open, and we pretty much had choice of any seats we wanted I got my own table w/ my guest, but if they were to cram other people and made us share with another couple, it wouldn't be very comfortable. The tables are very small.
There was a "2 item minimum" stamped on our tickets. This was NOT a dinner show, but apps, and drinks only. We ordered a drink, and a burger with fries. We expected to order more.. but the service was horrid! They never came back to our table to see if we wanted to order more drinks, or anything. The plus is, the food wasn't very good. I was expecting the burger to be bad, but I've had worse. 2.5 stars for the burger. The fries were 2 stars IMO. I wanted to try the bananas foster, but the server ignored us. She did go to other tables.. WTF? We ended up never having to fulfill the 2 item minimum..
The cheapest thing is $3.50 for a soda - no refills. We saved a little bit of money because they didn't enforce the rule.
The comics.. the headliner was good, the middle guy sucked, and this other guy was ok. Overall, we got a few good laughs.. The show lasted about 80-85 minutes.
We know from past experience not to sit in the very front.. and wow, did they ream the guys up there.. It was actually one of the funniest parts of the show.
So you ladies out there might be familiar with Greg Behrendt. You know...he wrote the oh so popular "He's Just Not That Into You" (I never read it) and "It's Called a Break-up Because It's Broken" (uh, I even did the work book exercises). He was the headliner last night.
A friend of mine had gotten on the Improv's mailing list, and they emailed her a promo code to buy tickets. Our tickets were $3. No joke. We just had to pay the service charge and we were in! It was a perfect plan for a Thursday night.
We got there early because we wanted to eat and walked right in. The 'hostess' or seater or whatever was very accomodating when we told her we needed to sit somewhere wheelchair accessible, as another friend was joining us. We ended up with great seats, although it is a small venue, and no seat looks that bad. Our server was already really busy with other tables, which was how it was all night. She also informed us that they were out of lots of beers. No Sam Adams, no Dos Equis, no Hefe, etc. Kinda surprising. But I'm a Stella girl, so whatevs.
The food was alright. The spinach artichoke dip was a bummer. Watery and not flavorful. We also shared the grilled chicken sandwich, which was pretty standard. The fries, however, were delish and were served with a fantastic garlic mayo. We had dragon breath all night, but it was deliciously worth it.
I would go back to the Improv to see a comedian I really liked, but I would eat somewhere else and use the two item minimum for booze. And I'm signing up for the email list, I'm always up for a bargain!
Fun! Nice! Seating is not very comfortable. Good headliners.
I've been to quite a few comedy clubs in Southern California and the Improvs are by far my favorites.
In my opinion, while not cheap, the prices are fairly reasonable. The food options are not the most exciting on earth but they are all pretty tasty except for the really dry chicken breasts. STAY AWAY FROM THE CHICKEN BREASTS! You have been warned.
If you're on a strict diet you should probably avoid the food here.
The workers are really cool and don't have attitudes.
I came here on Friday night to see Craig Robinson (you know him as the token brotha on The Office, no NOT Stanley, but the one that works in the warehouse). It was $25 a ticket which I purchased on-line for me and my beau. The receipt you print out are NOT your tickets, by the way. You have to pick them up at the box office on the day of. Maybe everyone already knows this and I'm simply an idiot, but in case there are other idiots out there...
It was raining in Irvine this particular Friday night, yet there was a queue spilling out to the parking lot at 6:45 pm. WTF?!! I deliberately made reservations to have dinner there (despite all the lukewarm reviews about the food) so that I wouldn't have to stand in any kind of line, much less in the rain!! So anyway, when the line started moving, the doorman informs me that my wet, crumpled receipt needs to be exchanged for tickets at the box office. I was extremely peeved at that point cuz I thought they were a bunch of jerks for having everyone stand out in the rain and then when it's my turn, I have to go back to the box office. He assured me that I could step right back in the front but there was no use cuz everyone was inside already!!
Sigh...
When my BF and went in, I saw that there was PLENTY of seating!! This is what I was hella rushing for?! The venue is so small that even if you don't decide to eat there (don't do it, by the way - but more on that below), and you get stuck way in the back,it's still good seating. Anyway, we sat pretty close up front but not so close that we'd get picked on (uh, I got picked on anyway when I was coming back from the bathroom during the act, so whatever!!). The menu has your basic pastas, sandwiches, burgers and appetizers of wings and nachos. We ordered chicken nachos and wings. The nachos were prettty much bleh... very little cheese but crispty chips. The wings were forgettable. My entree was a beef dip w/ fries. Fries were good. But the beef dip was forgettable, too. My BF ordered a penne vodka w/ chicken. Again, very forgettable. Their cocktail list is fun, I had the mango iced tea (twice). My BF swore that his bottle Heineken was "off" in flavor...
Service was kinda spotty. Our gal was real nice, but I had to remind her for a couple things we asked for. But she was really sweet, so I wasn't buggin out too much. Once the dinners were served and cleared, service was better if you needed more drinks. I think the rush of diners all at the same time can overwhelm any service staff.
I'll defintely go back to the Improv, fo sho... but I am NOT gonna shell out $80 for a mediocre dinner. Seriously, Denny's could give the Improv chefs a run for their money...
This is a fun venue with an awesome staff. Definitely get on their email list and you'll get lots of great deals on tickets.
If you're going to purchase tickets, don't go for dinner. The food isn't anything amazing and its WAY over priced. You don't get free refills on soft drinks and apparently they consider Cherry Coke a "mixed drink" and charge you $4.50 for it.
As a comedy club I give the Improv 4 stars, but as a restaurant I'd probably give it 2.
I've only been here a couple times...most recently this past weekend for Pablo Francisco. Anyone unfamiliar with Pablo, I encourage you to check him out on youtube. I laughed so frikkin much I was crying.
I definitely encourage to arrive early... we had dinner at the Spectrum and walked over about 8:15pm for the 9pm show we had tickets for and the line was already about 80 people deep around the side of the building. Also - if you buy tickets online you will still need to go to the ticket counter to get a different print out receipt before getting in line. Just an FYI - it will save you time and frustration.
The venue itself is aiiight. I actually prefer smaller, intimate comedy clubs...However - I don't so much enjoy being crowded at a tiny ass table that is made for two people yet must accommodate four. The seating arrangements = minus one star.
The drinks - another minus one star... I ordered a Cabernet Sauvignon, which is probably my fault to begin with, since I am more partial to white wines but their white wine selection (only five varieties) did not appeal whatsoever... this is a problem for me at a comedy club that requires a 2-drink minimum - especially when I'm in the MOOD to drink booze... but my hard liquor days are behind me... I find it is much more bougee to get tanked on a couple bottles of wine than black out after too much Jameson's. The wine I ordered though was ick... it tasted old and I don't mean "aged."
Pablo was amazing though and if I were just reviewing him then 10 stars would be in order, but - I'm not, so there ya go!
The Improv, isn't the worst experience on Earth. It certainly isn't the kodak theatre, but it isn't the strip mall comedy club down the street from my apt either. But like both of those establishments its perfectly equipped to host great comedy. When you watch really mainstream comedy at the Improv it can get kind of hairy, so make sure you do the whole show up really early thing and what not. But for less popular comedians, things become a little more easy going.
The food here though. Awful. Usually the 2 item minimum is easy to accomplish, but here nothing looked all appetizing. And what finally came yack! The nachos were loaded, but tasted like they could have easy came from taco bell. My date ordered the tequila pasta, which even at places like CPK isn't so bad. Here it looked like straws swimming in dishwater. The sauce was a murky runny mess, and it did not taste good.
However, I still had a great time. And the laughs helped me forget the food. Be prepared to sit next to another couple if it is only two of you, that can be fun or not so fun.
The venue is a happening place on Saturday night. Our party of nine got fairly good seats because we had arrived an hour before showtime. I have no complaints on the venue except our 20-yr-old waitress reeked of what-seemed-like 50 years of accumulated chain-smoking.
The comedy lineup was a mix of good and horrible comics. I initially expected them to arrange the order by "not-as-funny" to "extremely-funny" comedians, but no such gradual progression existed. The first three comics were good, the last two sunk harder than the Titanic. Daryl Wright namely was the best of the night. To name the horrible: there was a guy named Yoshi, who told stolen jokes, had a poor gauge of the demographic in the room, and had the world's most arrogant smirk; he's as obnoxious as Dustin Diamond. The room was silent for most of his time up there.
Our headliner was Pablo Francisco. Now, that's another sad story. He reminded me of Danny Tanner, sorry I mean Bob Saget: older, more skeptical, dirtier, more repetitive, and has a distorted sense of what's funny. The only difference I can see between Francisco and Saget is that Saget probably isn't as drunk and drugged-up. I'm surprised at this too, but I much prefer the free pg-13 shit you can download off the Internet.
My friends and I went to a Gabriel Iglesias show this past weekend. Fluffy (he also goes by that name) is freaking funny. This guy made my jaw hurt so bad from all the laughing I did. Not only Gabriel was funny but his two opening acts were hella funny too. The place was packed with different ethnicities that all came to watch Gabriel performance. One interesting thing I found out at the Improv is that they have speakers in the restroom to so you can hear the comedian while you are doing your thing. I will definitely come back to see more comedians perform here.
Lake Forest, CA
Category: Bowling
Brea, CA
Category: Comedy Clubs
Lake Forest, CA
Category: Lounges
Costa Mesa, CA
Category: Lounges
Costa Mesa, CA
Category: Performing Arts
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