Rivercenter Comedy Club

My friend and I saw a show here tonight with Rick Minervini as the headliner and two warm-up acts. We had purchased a Groupon voucher that brought the ticket price down from $17 per person (on-site price) to $18 for two. The act was fine, but the review is for the venue.

The venue is a bit tricky to find; it's inside the Rivercenter mall, which is huge and has several floors. I think clear directions to find it would be nice. We called to ask for directions, and the person on the phone was helpful but we still had a bit of trouble locating the venue, which is next to the AMC Theatre, but the theater is very large and on three levels and has multiple entrances and a separate IMAX area, so it's not a very helpful landmark.

The man in the ticket booth was friendly and nice. We redeemed our voucher and picked up tickets a few hours beforehand to avoid a potential line before the show. It was a good experience and a smart idea so that we wouldn't be rushed at dinner or be confused about where to go and how to get there.

There is a 2-item minimum, which is common for comedy venues because the venue needs to make additional money. If you want to spend the least, a bottle of water is $2 and tip is automatically added. So the most you'd be out is $10, which is bad for four small bottles of water but not bad for a comedy show venue. There is also not a whole lot of food selection and they do not have desserts.

There is a pretty sizable bar inside before the main show room. There is a bathroom off to the side, and a large wall of previous visiting comedians, including big names in the industry.

The interior of the show room was large, easily enough to accommodate 200 people, with plenty of tables and comfortable seats.

Our server was attentive and dedicated but checked back in with us far too many times--but I guess that is better than too infrequently.

Depending on the comedian and if I were back in the area, I'd consider returning to this venue.

Hit this place up this past Wednesday night with the headliner Raul Sanchez and we thought the entire set was hilarious! Definitely worth the $17 cover!

A tip worth mentioning if you've never been here before, bring your parking tag with you so they can get validate it!! AND The kitchen closes early so if you come hungry be sure to order something when the waitress comes by the first time. If you decide to wait the kitchen will probably be closed by the time you want to order something...

Cool spot. Kinda weird cuz it's in the mall. Came to see Gary Owen. He was HILARIOUS from beginning to end! He did his thing for a lil over an hour. He did a great job!

They have a 2 item minimum and they charge a 15% gratuity on all tabs. I'm not complaining because the service was good. They took our drink and food orders within 5 min and the food came out shortly afterwards. We came for the show, not the food. The food wasn't horrible, but it wasn't the greatest either. I stuck with something safe to eat so it wouldn't be hard to mess up.

I'd come back to see another headliner when they have one.

I had never been to a comedy club but I have always been a fan of standup comedy. So when I got a pair of free tickets to the comedy club, I had to go!

After researching the shows at both Rivercenter and LOL, I decided to come with a friend for Sean Kent show on a Friday night at 8:30pm at the Rivercenter comedy club.

The comedy club is located on the 3rd floor of the Rivercenter mall. The location is a little strange but it was actually not too bad once you get inside albeit the space is a bit outdated. We parked at the mall garage and got the first 3 hours free with the comedy club validation. Awesome deal!

The crowd was small that night so we didn't have to sit with strangers. But the seating is communal style so you don't usually have much choice of who is gonna be sitting at your table. Staff usually take your food and drink orders before the show so make sure to come in a little early. They require minimum 2 item orders per person so I got a bottle of water, my friend also got water plus a side salad and we shared an order of chicken wings. Food and drinks were a little expensive (our bill was almost $30) but I heard that's the norm for comedy clubs. The chicken wings were actually tasty so that's good.

There were 3 comedians performing that night. The first two were local comedians. One of the guys named Mike was hilarious! I think he is the winner of the funnies person in South Texas competition. I couldn't stop laughing at his jokes. Sean Kent was the third to perform. He is obviously quite well known in the comedy world and has won international comedy competitions in San Francisco and Seattle. Although some of the SA conservative audience might find his jokes offensive, I thought he was pretty great and really enjoyed his show. His twitter is a verified account with the little check mark so I guess he is some sort of celebrity? I tweeted him after the show and he tweeted me back, lol!

Both my friend and I had great laughs and we were glad that we came to the show. It was deff a great way to spend a Friday night! I really hope more ppl will come here instead of going to a bar or watching some lame football game on a Friday night. But then again, it is a little expensive if I had to pay for regular admission and the minimum 2 items order. Regardless though, it is still a lot cheaper than other comedy clubs in bigger cities so I'd deff come again to see popular comedians perform!

Where to start. Well, first off the two comedians were great. Laughed my ass off, so that was a success. And they validate your parking for three hours.

My reason for two stars? I'm a law abiding CHL holder so I called ahead to see if this place was a restricted carry place 51%/30.06/30.07. I called and asked the lady and she handed the phone to some guy. He answered the phone politely but as soon as I asked he immediately got super aggressive and rude. Wanted to know who I was (I told him), asked "Why are you wasting my time with stupid fucking questions!" and then went off on me for asking about having a gun in the comedy. So went anyway because my tickets were already bought. The mall that the improv is in has legally post 30.07 signs but not 30.06. The improv has illegally posted 30.06 signs so you can still legally carry. It's not a 51% establishment either. All this because I was being responsible and asking a simple question.

Now to the food and drinks. First, there is a two item minimum. Meaning that you must order two things off the menu on top of buying your tickets. We ordered the cheese sticks, two burgers, and two drinks. The cheese sticks were barely warmed just enough to begin melting the cheese and the marinara sauce was totally canned spaghetti sauce. The burgers were both wrong and luke warm as well as the buns being completely cold. The fries that came with the burgers were soggy as sin and cold too. The drinks were weak and watered down. And lastly there is an automatic 15% gratuity added to your dinner and drinks.

So do yourself a favor and eat somewhere else beforehand and get a decent hot meal. They can get 15% gratuity off my two bottles of water, if I ever return. Thank God the comedians did their job superbly.

They were closing the center and the site was clearly not fully staffed. Noisy patrons disrupted the event for us.
Also no forewarning that the kitchen was closed. Wouldn't go again. Seemed poorly managed.

I was visiting with a group of about 12 people from Houston. We just made it into town and I ran to a fast food joint in the mall for a bite to eat before the show. When I walked in the comedy club to meet my friends, I had a soft drink in my hand. It was Sprite, no alcohol. I was informed, rudely, by a white bald man with a mullet that I was not to have any outside drinks. He yelled at me, as if I was purposefully breaking the rules and he actually went to grab the drink out of my hands. After a few seconds of confusion, another employee of the club nodded in agreement with the first man. I was upset that the guy yelled at me and a little embarrassed, but agreed I would step outside to finish my drink.

He then followed me, hovering at my right side, as I walked out the front door continuing to gripe at me. I was about two steps away from the door and absentmindedly took a sip of my drink. It wasn't on purpose, and I wasn't trying to cause any more problems, I was just thirsty after a 3 hour car ride. He then screamed at me, "THAT'S IT" and ripped the drink out of my hand. He then proceeded to yell at me more about how it was against the law and I wasn't above the law and he was going to kick me out of the club.

All of this, over a drink. A soda. I wasn't even drunk! Completely sober.

When I walked back into the club, my boyfriend had my ticket. I was standing at the entrance to the venue looking for him and was ONCE AGAIN yelled at to get back into line by someone else that worked at the club. I was trying to explain that I was looking for someone and was threatened again about being kicked out of the club.

I understand rules, and I also understand TABC. I was by no means trying to break rules or cause problems. None of the choices I made were intentional. All anyone had to do was to tell me nicely to take my drink outside, or to please wait in line. I was a woman, by myself when the bald/mullet man approached me and got in my face. He jerked a drink out of my hands, which completely took me off guard and made me feel uncomfortable and threatened. It took almost an entire hour after that for me to relax and be able to watch the show. I was afraid he was going to kick me out, or yell at me about something else I wasn't aware I was doing wrong.

Moral of the story, be nice. Be polite, and unless someone is causing serious problems, take it easy. People are there to be entertained, not to be treated like they are in prison.

Rob Schneider was awesome! So there's that.

Went for my husband's bday; trying something new. The two comedians and the MC/comedians were great. Ricky Gutierrez was the headliner. He was especially funny. The placid was full but not uncomfortable. Knew the language would be rough, for me but it wasn't horrible. Lol. Very nice atmosphere. Our table mates were nice until she decided to over talk the acts and it went hilariously down hill. I cried hot tears.
Only drawback was we couldn't order food bc the kitchen was backed up and the wait staff,2, were amazing but running. Don't think they'd planned on the crowd. Definitely going back.

Definitely one of the two places I have to hit up on if I have the extra time when I'm in SA during the weekend!!! It's conveniently right next to the riverwalk; get a nice dinner and cocktails, stroll on over the Imporv, have your laughs and finish the night with some music and drinks anywhere along the riverwalk!

Place was small for it to be on the river walk. The drink I had was not tasty at all. I wasn't impressed,the place looked old. It needs a remodel.