Improv Comedy Club

I have only been to this location for the Sunday afternoon Magic and Comedy family shows. They do it up right! They have a special cheaper menu-​including cookies for only a buck-​to make it more family friendly. The magicians always get the kids involved– my grandkids have gotten on stage each time we have gone. I like the shows enough that I will have toreturn for an adult show sometime soon.

I’m a big fan of live comedy so I’m familiar with the Improv establishment. I’ve been to Improv locations on both coasts and the midwest. I bought tickets to see Sheryl Underwood and flew to see it with friends.
We arrived an hour or so and waited in line with everyone else. I purchased the regular tickets vs the VIP tickets which guaranteed seating close to the stage. My friends, who live in Dallas, told me that the extra $ 10 wasn’t worth it because you could see the stage from any seat in the venue. The people that paid more were escorted in first and everyone else was divided into two separate lines. Some people complained about the method in which we were being seated but I found it efficient and orderly. We all were seated relatively fast given the size of the crowd.
Our waitress was very attentive and pleasant. She was personable and had a sense of humor which was great. I ordered margaritas and chicken tenders. The drinks were good and the food was typical bar food. Honestly, the food tastes the same at all Improv locations for the most part. The waitress would have gotten more than an 18% tip if the gratuity hadn’t been forced upon us.
We ended up with a fantastic table. It was just above stage/​main floor level. We had a perfect view of the stage. There was no one seated in front of us so we didn’t have to shift in our seats all night to see. Sheryl Underwood was hysterical and we all throughly enjoyed the show. Overall, my experience at the Arlington Improv was a good one. I wouldn’t hesitate to see another show there in the future.

Very enjoyable place to go see a show! Great staff, good drinks… and they do karaōke on Wednesdays!!!
Avg bar prices and great comics every week!

This club is in a huge space, and the ushers for my show did not group the audience in front of the stage. This made it really hard for the comedian to not feel like he was talking to an empty room, and he might have been going through withdrawals as well, but I will still go here if someone I like is playing.

Great venue with nice staff, my only issue was our server unpleasant breathe. He was as sweet as pie but that breathe was seriously warm and tart.
We were visiting Dallas for my husband 45^th Birthday weekend and in an effort to keep my Amazing Wife award for the 7^th year straight I ensured that this birthday was just as full of fun as any (even though my hub would take a book and the couch any day). I purchased tickets online for Gary Owens Saturday show the earlier show (8pm). I told my girlfriends and their husbands to get their tickets however one couple waited and it was SOLD OUT.
The seating is pretty good and you can’t go wrong with any wear really unless you are on the chair side of the booths which has your back to the stage and you must turn your seat around and at that point you have a good view but you are also in the aisle.
We didn’t eat as we are prior to coming for the show however there is a two item minimum and both the hubby and I are light weights but was pleasantly surprised that they served hard cider which we LOVE. They have Angry Orchard cider so we ended up with two each. When I’m back in the area I’ll definitely check this place back out if a good act like Gary is performing.

I attended a big star comedy show, I was not impressed with their service. The environment is nice and is clean. Their prices however are ridiculous, not only do you pay for the tickets but you have a purchase of two items minimum and the an 18% gratuity. The waitress would take forever to get our drinks to us, it looked like she had too many tables and couldn’t handle them all.
I definitely suggest Hyena’s in Fort Worth over this place, will not be going back!

Be prepared to have a great time, every time you go! Great food and drinks, and they always have the best comics come in and give you some gut busting laughter. Corey Holcomb is the best comic I have seen there but i have also seen several other comics there and i have no complaints.

If it wasn’t for some of our favorite comedians Bruce Bruce, Arnez J. plus more we would never visit this venue. The food and drinks are overpriced and overrated. Tickets for 2 people are already $ 60 including fees. The venue itself is a little tight when full but descent for that short time. Everytime my husband and I go here we spend about $ 100 including the tickets. There is 2 drink minimum. Needless to say we only go here for our FAVORITE comedians now otherwise not worth the money.

Attended the Sunday afternoon comedy/​magic show. Kids had a great time. They spent the rest of the afternoon inventing their own magic tricks. My over all experience was positive, great show, decent food, good service. Definitely worth doing at least once, maybe again if the acts change regularly.
Pros:
Tickets only $ 6, great location
Cons:
2 item minimum per person, 18% gratuity automatically added to your bill
Note:
Woman at ticket booth was surely and impatient.

Was there this weekend 4÷11÷15, to see Corey Holcomb. Shows for Friday night & Saturday night were sold out, but Improv added an 11:30 show to Friday & Saturday nights which sold out as well. Although we all know that by the 3^rd show, most comics are tired, drunk, and sometimes obnoxious. So, entertainment was what I expected at a late night comedy show.
The complaint is with The Improv being too greedy, and seating too many adults at the bartop tables across the back of the room. It is ridiculous and uncomfortable to seat 6 adults each at tables that are too close together. The tables were so close, an average adult could not move once seated. And mind you, everyone had to get up, just so you could be seated. Fortunately, the couple at the table beside us were nice and understanding of the crowding. We were literally shoulder to shoulder, seated like kindergardners at the school play.
With the tickets and mandatory 2 item purchase, you will spend $ 100 plus, and if you don’t pay the extra $$ for upfront seating, be prepared to be PACKED LIKE SARDINES!

Ah yes, Arlington now has an approachable comedy club without the seedy atmosphere and fear of getting mugged. It’s even in Arlington Highlands so there is quite a bit to do in the event you decide to throw some tomatoes during the show.
However, it is a comedy club! You know what that means? 18% added gratuity and minimum two item purchase. If you come rolling in with your tricked out ’73 Pinto expecting this place to be a cheap date with enough pizzazz to impress your girl of the week, you wrong buddy. You wrong. This is a standard practice for comedy clubs, but luckily it’s the only thing criminal going on in the establishment.
Besides blowing your wad out, it is a pretty nice club. You have a good view of the stage no matter where you sit because the space is very open and there aren’t any random columns obstructing your view. If it’s a packed night, seating does get really tight. It’s like they cram 6 seats into a 4 seat table. Well, hello neighbor!
Plan on dinner beforehand because the food is pricey for what it is and the selection isn’t too exciting anyway. Chicken, rice and vegetables… mozzarella sticks… chicken tenders? Even the Microwave Queen can handle that business at home.
It is definitely a good place to go to when your favorite comedian is in town, but not something to do on the regular unless you got that cash money!

Fucking hilarious. David Allen Grier almost killed me. The staff was really attentive and that manager was really nice and greeted me and answered my extremely important question… lol. Going to make this a regular monthly event and will hopefully see my favorite comedian Bill Burr there soon.

The management was poor at best.
Attended on a Friday to see Godfrey.
His performance was average.
But the worst part was the management yelling at people, getting in their faces, and telling them to shut up.
Very unprofessional …
It was drawing attention away from the comedian and it was highly disrespectful.
I will be sticking with the Addison location from now on.

PROS:
1. The Improv name means popular comics visit regularly. Wait long enough and your favorite will make an appearance.
2. The Arlington Improv showroom is a large rectangle, and most seats have a great view of the stage, even if you have to flip your chair around (facing away from your table) to see the comic. The back of the room is a tier higher, so people in the front half aren’t blocking your view. There are no view-​blocking columns in the show room (like at the Addison Improv).
3. All the box office needed was my ID to retrieve tickets purchased online.
CONS:
1. Automatic 18% «S/​C» (Service Charge) on your bill. Our server wrote «this goes to the club, not the server» on our ticket, so I asked for clarification from a manager. He said it’s standard practice, and is posted at the entrance, and that all ticket fees go straight to the comic. First off, the ticket purchase itself included a «service fee» which goes to the club, so that was an outright lie from a manager. Second, he confirmed the S/​C is for the club and not the server, so you are expected to pay 18% to the club, then 18% or more for gratuity, for a total of almost 40% extra on top of your 2-​item-​minimum food & refreshments bill.
Note that the signs throughout the club do mention the automatic 18% charge, but do NOT specify that they are for the club and not servers. I made very clear that if I’d known that coming in, I’d have turned around, gotten a ticket refund, and left. The manager removed the charge «this one time» even though I’ve had to argue this before. Don’t put up with being gouged this way; speak up, DFW.
2. There is a 2-​item minimum. This is a standard thing throughout DFW stand-​up comedy clubs. Just be warned that the food isn’t anything special. I’d have been fine with a beer and chicken strips, except that I was forced to purchase water. (see #3)
3. Free tap/​glass water is not available. Our server informed us that it’s their «policy» to ONLY sell bottled water. So even if you’re buying alcohol with your food, and just need the water to dilute your BAC/​sober up, or to just wash your food down, it’s going to cost you. This is ridiculous, and no one else does it.
OVERALL
The Improv name means great comedy talent, but the experience has been repeatedly ruined by having to debate their ridiculous Service Charge and club policies that gouge customers. I’m not returning to the Arlington Improv until they reconsider every one of these customer-​unfriendly practices.
DFW: Let your favorite comedians know that you were unhappy with the club; they have a choice of where to appear, and they listen to their fans.

I’ve never left without holding my stomach to ease the pain of laughing. Too funny! Much better than Addison Improv (immediate seating, no smoking, cleaner dining room, funnier acts). I’ve been at least 5 times; going back tonight LOL. Definitely a good place to shake off the work week blues. I must admit, though, I’m tired of ordering side salad or chips & salsa, and H2O. Please baby baby please HIRE A CHEF — NOW — so I can have a good meal with my good comedy. 2 item minimum is hard to swallow when nothing on the menu looks good.

I just learned after visiting the Improv that a 2 item per person minimum and an automatic 18% gratuity on all tabs does not inspire quality food or good service.
At our table we ordered the spinach artichoke dip, onion rings, and chicken tender basket. The spinach dip tastes like it came straight from a bag heated in the microwave and the toasted bread chips it came with were stale. The onion rings appeared to have been purchased from the frozen foods section at the local grocery store and dropped in the fryer. Worst of the food was the chicken tenders. I could get better quality at the local gas station.
The food was bad but the wait staff was worse. The quality of service was the worst I have ever had at ANY restaurant. In the couple of hours we were there we managed to wait up to 15 minutes for drinks to arrive, have food brought to us with no napkins or silverware, then eat off napkins because no plates were brought to us to split up appetizers. When we got our tables tabs we then noticed that the waitress had the audacity to write next to the line for the 18% gratuity «goes to club not server». Really? I can’t even imagine writing that on someone’s tab.
In summary, if you are looking for a place with bad service and low-​quality overpriced food this is it. Otherwise, I would recommend you spend your time elsewhere.

This place is really fun, but they should revamp their menu if they are going to require that patrons purchase a minimum of 2 items. The nachos and mozzarella sticks were sub par and their drinks are really watered down for the price, even if you get top shelf there is only a hint of alcohol. Other than that we always have a great laugh, the best comedians come here. In the last couple of months I’ve seen dl hughley, Donnell rowlings and rob Stapleton! Very fun, food isn’t that tasty :(

If you can ignore the food that is below the quality of most fast-​food restaurants, the pitiful service, and the faulty stage lighting, maybe you can enjoy being gouged on the bill too at this Improv. Better to wait till the comics you want to see are booked somewhere else.
I had been warned by previous reviews of the $ 3.50 water charge, so at least it was less infuriating since it was expected. But my server putting my food in front of me and then being unable to find anyone to get silverware until the food was stone cold did not set as well. Later she kept showing up asking if I needed anything after I sent the ¾ of the food back to the dumpster, and never failing to time this so as to interrupt something I wanted to hear from the person on stage. Loved it when I didn’t get the name of the comic coming to the stage because of this!
And BTW did you know that adding a gratuity that cannot be refused is actually not legal when the customer is not informed in advance? Considering my service — I am owed the gratuity for enduring last night for enduring it.
If aggravating the audience wasn’t bad enough even the performer had to deal with issues. Either the lighting tech did not check his equipment before the show, or was totally incompetant. More than one of the stage lights kept flickering, dimming and brightening randomly throughout the evening. It got so bad during the last act that the comedian was commenting on it. Oh, and the overbearing sound system too — bring earplugs for the all too high volume before the show starts.
The only good things about patronizing this location is that the acts were good, the lines of sight are better than other clubs, and the front door staff was very nice and professional … giving no clue what to expect once in the house.
Thankfully the Addison Improv is around to save the reputation of Improv clubs across the country.

I’m a little disappointed in my last visit to the Arlington Improv. I’m not sure where to start because from the moment we walked in the door there were issues and problems.
First, we arrived early because it was a surprise birthday celebration with a party of 4, well now we can’t be seated unless the whole party is there because if the other couple shows up later they would have to be seated somewhere else. Really? REALLY? We can’t go in and be seated at a table for four and reserve the other two seats for our group? Okay, whatever management thinks is best (although later on in the evening I saw another party come in that was larger than ours that had people staggering in up until the show started).
Then there’s a new ‘we can’t give you complementary water, you have to buy it rule’ again, REALLY? You already have a two item minimum per person and now we can’t have complementary water with the alcohol we just purchased? Interesting. Again, later in the evening the group next to us had nice glasses of water. They tried to blame it on a new server, but what needs to be blamed is the stupid rule. What’s the difference between whether you give me a glass of water and if I purchase it? $ 3.50 for the Improv on top of the two items you’ve already MADE each person purchase.
Oh, but that’s not the end of it. So now there’s an automatic gratuity added to the ticket. Probably because they know their service is sub-​par and their waitstaff wouldn’t get tipped otherwise. When I inquired about the automatic gratuity my server, Shannon, informed that that’s how it’s always been. Um, no sweetie, it hasn’t…we’ve been to both the Addison and Arlington Improv venues and have never had an automatic gratuity, not even at the Improv in Houston!
The service is horrible, the food is okay. The only thing the Improv has going for it is the comedians… and even that can be hit/​miss.

Comedy — great!
Food– not so much. We ordered 3 appetizers, nachos, wings and spinach dip. The dip was just gross although the bread that came with it was good. The wings were blah. My guess is the nachos were made with cheez wiz. We all ordered drinks. I sent mine back. It was a lemon drop martini, how do you screw that up? They did.
If you’re going to require your guests to purchase a two item minimum, at least make the food and drinks worth ordering.