The L.A. Pizza Comedy Experience

Brian Monarch, Our Host
"Even if you go to a comedy club where you pay to get in, there's going to be people that bomb there too," says Chris, co-owner of L.A. Pizza, and he's got a point. I've driven over the hill to the Improv and paid good money to see unfunny comedians, but now, thanks to the L.A. Pizza Comedy Experience, every Tuesday night you can see unfunny comedians right in our own neighborhood, and there's no two-drink minimum. The good news is, if you're lucky, you can see funny ones too.

On the night I visited, the headliner was Jonas Garvin, who'd just played the Improv, so it's entirely fair to say that Improv-level comics show up here. The main difference is that no one expects any famous drop-ins to happen here -- Bob Odenkirk is probably not going to make a surprise visit to L.A. Pizza (but if he does, please text me immediately).

That being said, for a low commitment evening -- no cover, no freeway -- you certainly get your money's worth at this show, and see a wide variety of acts -- young and old, male and female, experienced and green, hysterical and depressing. On the Tuesday I went for a visit I saw it all, and there are 8-12 new comics here every week, all pulled together by Brian Monarch, the show's host (who opened the evening with a crank call to Domino's, asking if they could make a kosher pepperoni pizza).



Henrietta: "Take a picture of my ass for your blog!"
Just don't bring the kids. L.A. Pizza may play host to scores of Little League pizza parties during the afternoon hours, but come 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday, the room is blue. A memorable line from "Cowboy Comic" Risky Betts: "I live in Moorpark, and the running joke over there is that 'Moorpark' spelled backwards is 'Kraproom.' And Reseda spelled backwards is shithole." And one from my favorite comic of the evening, Henrietta: "I jumped up on the pole at Crazy Girls, and I was so hot three guys took me home. I cracked a hip and they were paramedics, but for me that's a threesome!" My other favorite line from Henrietta's set: "I drive a Geo Metro -- it's so cheap that if you're in an accident, you have to blow the airbags up yourself."