Rabobank Arena Theater And Convention Center

We recently stopped in at Rabobank to see a Bakersfield Condors game. Long gone are the days when the Condors were a low-​level minor league team. They are now part of the AHL, which is basically the triple-​A of hockey, and they are the top minor league team for the Edmonton Oilers. The overall experience was good, but Rabobank is not without its flaws.
TICKETING:
Whether you buy online or at the arena you are charged a $ 2/​ticket facility fee. The Condors sell their tickets online through
, so if you buy online you are charged an additional $ 4.25-$ 8.25/ticket convenience fee. Due in part to the high online fees, the lines on game-​day to get tickets are utterly absurd — we waited about 15 minutes to get tickets despite the fact five ticket windows were open plus a will-​call window. To top it off, due to the mass of people trying to get tickets, the ticket agent at the window would only give us the best available at a certain price point but wouldn’t let us request a specific section number only. On the plus side, I did see a guy give away two tickets that he couldn’t use to a random fan in line making that fan’s day. Plus one for humanity!
PARKING:
If you can’t find free parking on the streets nearby, there’s a lot on the other side of the train tracks charging $ 6, which seems a bit steep for a minor league hockey game. If the trains are barreling down the tracks you can take a bridge over the train crossing to get to/​from the arena.
CONCESSIONS:
Rabobank has as many different concession items as you’d find at any major sporting event or arena, along with typical arena pricing. In addition to the usual hot dogs, you could get fries, a variety of Mexican items, and pizza. There were a few standalone beer stands as well as a Tap Room, which is more or less a bar with high tops and TVs. For those craving sweets Rabobank Arena has both ice cream and shaved ice.
SEATING:
The seats are cushioned and have cup holders, and the sight-​lines are pretty good, but there isn’t a lot of legroom. It doesn’t help that people wouldn’t stand up when fans were trying to get into and out of the row. Have some common sense people — if you’re a big guy simply spreading your legs open doesn’t provide enough room for someone to walk by you.
CONCOURSES:
The concourses in the arena are painted a dull steel/​blue but there was enough room to walk around in between periods without bumping into people. Along the concourse walls are displays honoring local heroes such as founder Thomas Baker, NASCAR driver Kevin Harvick, and Raiders QB Derek Carr. Kids can have fun too with a Kids Zone featuring a small bounce house and mini-​hockey. The mascots walk around the interior of the arena as well as the concourses for photos and high fives.
THE GAME:
Perhaps it was because we saw a game the day after Christmas, but the arena was probably no more than ¹⁄₃ full. There were a handful of Stockton fans that the Condors fans razzed a bit — all in good fun. The announcer tried to pump up the crowd but even though the Condors scored five goals in a win over Stockton, the place never got jumping. This was quality, high speed hockey and one of the players that scored two goals for Stockton was called up to Edmonton the very next day.
SOUVENIRS:
There are random souvenir stands/​tables scattered throughout the arena and they don’t all have the same merchandise, so if you’re looking for something specific you may have to do a lap. The deal of the day was a mini-​puck (about 2″ in diameter) with the Condors logo for just $ 1 (tax included).

Pros, Cons, then summary
Went here with my wife and kids, and hockey friends.
PROs – It’s a great venue. It’s not too big, so most events you can see everything close… even the upper seats. I believe it seats 10,000. We went here for the AHL Condor game. The event was nice, and the crowd was fun. This arena is nice, and the toilets worked well.
CONs – Beer prices!!! WTF??! $ 12.50 for a cup of beer… absolutely ridiculous and not worth it. Total rip-​off on that part… at that rate it would cost me @$ 200 just to get a good buzz… Makes me not want to visit the concession stand… Bring down your price for food and drinks please. Not much else for a con, as it was a fun game.
Would I go here again? Yes, as the venue is nice and prices for events here (usually) are much cheaper than elsewhere.

Just went to an old school jam last night. We were sitting front row floor. Well people who bought seats higher up kept coming to the floor where we were! Why buy tickets on the floor if you can obviously buy blood nose seats and just come down to the floor?! The security guards weren’t doing anything because they were watching the concert! The security isn’t even security they are just there for a free show! Rabobank hire better people & make sure they’re doing their job! Super disappointed due to the fact that the people who weren’t supposed to be on the floor were causing problems & nothing was done.

Love the Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra! Wish this town actually had a concert hall, but Rabobank Theater will have to do. Absolutely LOVE the new conductor Stilian Kirov. He is young and brings such energy to this already good orchestra. If you haven’t had the chance to go, make the time and do it.

So thankful to have our Conventions here every year, what a blessing. Plenty of seating for the 4 – 6,000 that gather here for English and Spanish. Parking is excellent on weekends, however, during the week it’s awful finding a place to park. Sound, lighting and everything else is amazing.

THEATER: I really wished they fixed the acoustics & the sound system of this theater. This is where the Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra performs, and where the local school districts do their honor concerts, and it never sounds as good as it should. It really is a shame because it’s the best (read: most accommodating in terms of space) that Bakersfield has. Even though they use shells, they still have to mic the Bakersfield Master Chorale when the orchestra plays with them, which means the balance gets thrown off terribly and all you can hear are the few people next to the microphones. I haven’t been here to see the occasional theater productions, so I can’t comment on that.
ARENA: It’s a full size ice rink and home to the Bakersfield Condors, but the whole arena itself (including the seating & concessions) is relatively small, which I honestly like because it’s not a pain to get from your seat to the bathroom to the concessions. They don’t have a wide variety of concessions (just typical sports arena food), but they do have a bar with a few TVs so if you’re not too interested in the game you can hang out there instead.
PARKING: If you get there early enough you can park on the street (north of the Arena). Otherwise you will have to park in their lots south of the arena.

I came to this theater to watch dancing with the stars. My biggest grip about this place is the restrooms. Is there really only one on the main level for the entire theater? It took over 20 minutes to get to a stall, which caused me to miss part of the second act — -not too happy about that. Also, if your planning to watch a show here, I would not recommend sitting in the pit. It’s extremely difficult to see above the lights and speakers. Other than that, it’s a beautiful theater with well-​kept seats, friendly staff, and adequate lighting down the aisles.

We go to RBA for all kinds of events (Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, Marvel Live just to name the most recent) and we really enjoy the venue. The big issue seems to be the parking. Street parking is easy to find, but not necessarily close (you will probably have a little bit of a walk to get to the arena). Sometimes the parking structure is open, which makes it easier. The seating on the floor is a little cramped. The seating in the areas around the arena are more comfortable. So, you just have to decide if your proximity to the stage or comfort is most important to you.

I was attending a sporting event in the arena and my friend wanted to come buy a ticket to see the rest of the game. The arena was half full (maybe) and they wouldn’t let her buy a ticket because the stadium «didn’t have any seats left». I’m pissed.

For the concert experience:
Ushers and security need to learn to handle the people who drink too much and forget that they’re sharing space with other paying customers. I’d rather drive to L.A. than put up with that again.

I’ve seen my favorite music artists perform here at the the convention center. I also enjoy watching the condors play.

Trains crossing in front of the only specified arena parking?!

Nice family night out w the kids, seats are avg, refreshments about the same. The teddy bear toss night is our favorite. Nice arena to catch the local teams play.

GREAT place for hockey!
WONDERFUL staff! Super friendly & helpful.
Comfy seats.
Adequate concessions — Pepsi products. Good kettle corn.
Parking in the lot just behind the arena was just $ 6. I’d like more lighting there, if I were to complain about anything.
Will definitely be back for hockey and maybe other events too.

Been to 2 Condor hockey games so far and I feel the Center is clean, well staffed and has some, not many, but some options for food if you skipped dinner. Mostly snacks are offered. Popcorn, pretzels, nachos, that kind of thing. Nothing healthy! Everyone is friendly.
I wish they had more choice for drinks, liquor but you can go to the bar and bring the drinks to your seat. You will pay a pretty penny though. A double in a small cup = $ 14.50.
I also wish more people came to the games, they are a really fun way to spend an evening.
Maybe during play offs, things will pick up.
PR reps are super nice and easy to find if you need help with anything.

Just went to see a show featuring the Goo Goo dolls. We got our tickets on groupon for $ 28. We expected nose bleeds, but even though we were on the balcony our view was awesome!!! Perfect view of the whole show, great sound, beer booth and bathrooms right below us, what more can a girl ask for in a concert venue?

I’ve been here for events a number of times, both in the arena and in the auditorium and I think that this is a great little facility which hosts a variety of activities.
I was here for a cooking show in the auditorium which was a lot of fun. The seats are comfortable and we received a bag full of free goodies to take home. I also attended an 8^th grade graduation and saw the Blue Man Group in concert in the same auditorium, though not at the same time ;). I have attended a Riverdance show and seen a travelling company perform Les Miserable here, too. My church even hold its annual Christmas concert in the auditorium every year.
I have been to the arena side of the Rabobank many more times. I have attended a few Bakersfield Condors hockey games, watched a Bakersfield Blitz arena football game, attended several concerts including the Sidewalk Prophets, comedian and the official So You Think You Can Dance tour. This last weekend, I attended a show by my favorite comedian and ventriloquist Jeff Dunham.
I’ve been up in the nosebleed seats and have been down on the floor up close to the stage. My only complaint is that when seated down on the floor, which are much closer seats with a better view, the seats are attached together in such a fashion that if there are any large men sitting next to you they spill right over onto your seat. My friend and I spent much of the last show squished together as there were large men on either side of us taking up more than their share of room.
The concessions stands’ lines aren’t too bad if you get there right when the doors open usually an hour before a show, but I usually go out to dinner before an event so I usually only buy sodas and can’t comment on the quality of the food.
You do have to pay for parking for most events. There is a multilevel parking structure across the street and another lot on the other side of the train tracks. They have built a walkway over the train tracks that can be reached by stairs or an elevator so that you can still reach your car if there is a train coming through. Do not park in the Maya Theater’s parking lot for free and try to sneak over. I’ve heard that they police that vigilantly, though I don’t know this from personal experience.
I enjoy attending events at the Rabobank and am happy that there is a venue in town large enough to hold events of this magnitude.

Drove in to catch a hockey game. I have been here several times before and its been great. Good food, very nice staff including Ushers and Food Servers.
This trip was different. For whatever reason, the security staff really had an issue with the group I was with. Only a few of us however, we seemed to get questioned everywhere we went. Security kept asking to see our tickets. They popped out of elevators, walked down the isle to our seats… they were everywhere and I have no clue why.
Other than this issue, the arena is really nice and clean. We will be back next season. Parking is free if you get there early enough. Pretty nice for a California venue.
Regardless of the security issue, I will be back next season!

I went to the both theaters within 24 hours. I saw Barry Manilow (I am not a Fanilow) in the arena stadium. It was cold, I wore my jacket the whole time, as the arena is also a hockey rink. The show didn’t sell out so they moved the stage from the back to the middle of the rink. Our good seats turned into great seats. There was a bit of a disaster when they had to reassign seats due to the chance, which pissed people off and made the show start very late. That could have been handled better. The facility itself was nice. Concessions were reasonable, parking was easy (especially for us since we had a friend who worked at the county building use his pass to get us a free parking spot). Acoustics are good and overall it was a fun place to see a show.
THEN, the next day, I saw the Nutcracker and Bakersfield Symphony. The auditorium is comfortable. No concessions allowed inside, although stupid people didn’t follow the rules. The aisles are quite steep, be careful if you have any mobility issues.
Overall, a huge improvement over the «Civic Auditorium» of ages past, and two very different areas to show different kinds of shows and sports.

If we’re grading this on a scale of «good for Bakersfield,» then I think that this score would be much higher. Grading the actual facilities on a real world scale, I’ve given it the appropriate rating. I’ve experienced much better elsewhere. I am 6′ 2″ and have long legs and a large behind. So, the typical seats and legroom just don’t seem to work for me. I’m not sure what else to do, but when I’ve mentioned this with my purchases for tickets in the past, I’ve been moved only to experience less leg room and further discomfort. I am certain that if I were shorter and slimmer that this place wouldn’t be so bad, but I have to imagine that in a place like Bakersfield with many people being my size and larger that perhaps they should consider the legroom more and perhaps even the seat width.
Overall, I’ve seen some great shows and think that the facilities are relatively modern. Also, I am grading this separately from the arena (where the hockey is played.) I think that they bring lots of current acts and shows to the venue, so I have no complaints there.