This section lists comedy clubs or shows that I'm fond of that don't run seven nights a week. They often exist for a few months and then stop, so if you try to go to one and find that it's defunct, please let me know and I'll update the list.
Ambush Comedy (Williamsburg)
This long-running Wednesday night show used to be at a Two Boots Pizza location and somehow included a free beer in their zero cost ticket. They've had spells at EBBS Brewing, Flophouse Comedy's venue, Stefano's Tattoo Studio and are now at HELLRAZOR Barbershop, which appears to be a little distance from their preferred stomping ground (Bedford Ave in Williamsburg). On my most recent visit, it was BYO AND they would happily give you a free can of something tasteless.
I saw a lot of good people at the Two Boots location and they usually had at least one well known name per show at EBBS (it was Judah Friedlander on our Mar 2024 visit - see blog post for details).
Josh Johnson is one of the producers and he usually turns up to try out some stuff - I have a lot of time for him. They have a mailing list that you can sign up to which lists the acts appearing each week, usually on the Monday. Doors are 8pm and the show is 8:30pm apparently.
Last visited Mar 2025.
I haven't seen this show listed in 2026. Producer Brittany is running a monthly new material show at Flop House and (other producer) Lucas has an Ambush-type show in Park Slope (called Park Slop). I emailed Lucas and he confirmed that Ambush isn't dead but they're all busy right now and are looking for a new venue, as ever, somewhere near Bedford Ave.
Hot Soup
Produced by comics Gary Vider, Matt Ruby and Mark Normand (all of whom are worth seeing on their own) this show ran every Tuesday in the back room of The Irish Exit pub up until Feb 2019 when they announced that it was ending (as the bar had closed).
After a brief hiatus they restarted in the basement of a busy midtown pub called Printers Alley, only to cease again in June 2019 and resume at the Fat Black Pussycat. This represents a bit of a departure for them as a) They're charging a cover b) They've always operated in bars before c) The show (at least initially) has moved from its 8:30pm slot to a fractionally less friendly 10:30pm timing.
The Irish Exit gigs were always well-programmed and had a good hit rate for famous names showing up unannounced - I saw Maria Bamford there in July 16 and Judah Friedlander in December 16. I guess with a cover charge available to better pay acts, plus the proximity to the Cellar and the VU, they may be able to offer a stronger line-up. They claim it's the longest running independently-produced comedy show in NYC.
They have another weekly Hot Soup show running, though it's rebranded as "GOOD EGGS". On Wednesdays at 8pm they are at the NY Comedy Club on 4th St (use the code SCRAMBLED for $5 ticks but there's still a two drink minimum which really does mount up). As of Sep 24 they also added a Good Eggs show at the NY Comedy Club on the Upper West Side on Mondays at 7:30pm.
Let's See, What Else at Lucky Jacks
Formerly a free show in the basement of Poco Restaurant, the latest incarnation of this long-running night (nine years apparently) is now $8 and runs on Tuesdays at Lucky Jacks (which has housed an assortment of comedy over the years). It's hosted by Courtney Maginnis and Tom Delgado.
The show is well-regarded by comics and the first night I was there (at Poco) Ronny Chieng opened. In August 2023 Mark Normand and Maddie Wiener were listed on the same bill.
I've not been for a long while but will leave the entry here in the meantime.
Secret Sauce at the Beauty Bar
Sunday night at the Beauty Bar used to be a free show called, imaginatively, Comedy at the Beauty Bar. At some point in early 2023 it changed to the current version. I went to the old show several times and it had a pretty good hit rate. The new incarnation isn't radically different. On my last visit I saw seven comics, of which two were decent, for precisely zero dollars.
The Beauty Bar is a weird bar/beauty salon hybrid near Manhattan's Union Square (two blocks from Stand NYC). Drinks are sourced from the front bar and are admirably cheap.
Last visited Oct 2025.
Comedians You Should Know at The Gutter (Williamsburg)
This is a fantastic room. It's in the back of an old-fashioned bowling alley in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. There's a full bar at the front (with views of the lanes) and then you enter via a corridor in front of the restrooms. There's also a functioning bar at the back of the performance space. There's a nice, high stage and the whole thing is very atmospheric. Tickets are around $10 in advance. Shows I've attended have featured Roy Wood Jr, Monroe Martin and Adrienne Iapalucci but I've also seen Judah Friedlander, Sean Donnelly and Daniel Simonsen listed. If you join their mailing list they will often offer free tickets on the day of the show if they're quiet.
From 2021 they expanded, also runing two shows on a Saturday evening (8pm and 10:30pm) called Headliners You Should Know which they claim are "Killers only, longer sets".
On our most recent visit the show started 15 minutes late and the host (David Drake - who is there pretty often) was unremarkable. If you had turned up 35 minutes after the start time you would have missed nothing - though you may have limited your choice of seat.
Last visited October 2022.
In March 2026 CYSK emailed to say that, after 10 years, their night was ending. The last official show will be Wednesday 15th April, though David Drake will be recording a special on Saturday 25th April. The room is a lovely space, so hopefully something else will fill the slot.
Kweendom at Pete's Candy Store (Williamsburg)
A free, once a month LGBTQ show (3rd Friday last time I checked) in the intimate setting of the back room of a pub. Hosted by the charming Bobby Hankinson this had a surprisingly strong line-up when I first attended and quite weak ones the next two times. A collection is taken at the end for charity. Most draft beer is $8 and they have four wines at $10 but everything is discounted to $6 during happy hour which runs till 7pm. They proudly advertise that Time Out described them as "extremely gay".
Last visited Jan 2026
I visited this a long time ago when it was a once a week show in the back of an East Village vegan restaurant. It now appears to have scaled up to a six nights a week proposition so could feasibly merit a place in the Clubs section. On an extremely brief recent visit I noted that they had three rubbish bottled beers, all priced at $9 and decided against staying for the show (open-mic). I'll leave the entry in here for the meantime. It looked like a decent performance space, what little I saw of it.
Opened in October 2017, this venue is underneath a Californian restaurant called Playa Betty's on the Upper West Side of Manhattan (entry is via the restaurant). The stage is decent and it has a nice low roof. They've certainly had their share of famous drop-ins - Seinfeld, John Oliver and Bill Burr have all appeared more than once (BB as recently as Feb 2025).
Joining their mailing list will occasionally result in free tickets or free entry after eating (try using the code BESTSIDEWESTSIDE for Thursday shows - it might work). Their standard weekend entry seems to be $25 in advance or $30 on the door which is firmly priced but a recent line-up paired Gary Gulman and Monroe Martin which is pretty solid. They've also been flagging up when a famous drop-in might happen.
My first visit, early on, hadn't been a great success but in 2021 they reported that they were under new management. Around Jan 2022 they started advertising a new weekly show called Not Ripe Bananas, billed as "comedians working out new material, no cover, no minimum" and it was this that I went along to recently (see May 2022's blog entry). There are no staff in the room so you either bring your own drinks down from upstairs or order online via QR code. I imagine their weekend shows are more structured.
The last time we were in they were looking for $12 (plus tax plus tip!) for a draft beer which is painfully expensive so keep your eye on that if visiting.
This entry used to be in the Clubs section but as of May 2025, they had five regular shows per week (Thu, two on Fri, two on Sat) so I thought it fitted better into this section.
Last visited June 2023
Originally a cramped, ground floor room in Manhattan's East Village, this comedian-owned operation's USP was that they were BYOB. In October 2023 they opened a second, larger room a couple of hundred yards away in what is technically probably Chinatown. Since then their offering has evolved slightly. They are mainly using the Chinatown room where they have introduced a bar, while still retaining the BYOB possibility (albeit at an additional cost of $7 per person).
They mainly put on shows Thu-Sat but there are a smattering of Mon-Wed events. They don't tend to publish lineups in advance, which always makes me a little nervous. On our first visit we had a fabulous time. On our second not so much. That's what happens when you're not in control of who you are seeing.
Tickets seems to be $20 or $30 for some sort of premium seating (?).
See the Oddities page for details of more BYOB-friendly shows.
Last visited Jan 2024
Flop House Comedy (Williamsburg)
This is a new comedy club that opened in Williamsburg in December 2023. It's a modestly-sized room, maybe 50 seats, and is another comedian-owned venture. They currently appear to be operating most nights but certainly concentrating at weekends. Tickets range from $10-20 with occasional Early Bird offers at $5. There's no drink minimum and, similar to The Tiny Cupboard, they're offering a passport (for $20) that gets you into unlimited shows for a month.
On our only visit so far we had quite a rough time. The two billed acts we were keen to see both failed to appear and it wasn't obvious who had replaced them in terms of quality.
Last visited Jan 2024
Paperweight Comedy (Williamsburg)
This odd little show takes place every Monday in a small building called McCarren Park House in the middle of (you've guessed it) McCarren Park in Williamsburg. If we're splitting hairs it's actually nearer to the Greenpoint side.
There's no cover but there is a one drink minimum which I don't remember being too expensive. The first time I went the standard of comics was surprisingly high. When I turned up for my second visit there was no sign of a show happening, so the lesson here is that even if it's listed on Eventbrite, maybe double check it's going ahead before venturing out.
If you fancy trying something different I would recommend this.
Last visited (successfully) Mar 2024
This show is currently listed as "Postponed" on Eventbrite. Not entirely sure what that means.
Frankenstein's Baby at Union Hall
Starting in Sep 2024, this bi-weekly show is on on the 1st and 3rd Mondays of the month. I've not yet been but it has some of the same people behind it as Butterboy and before that Night Train, both at Littlefield. Josh Gondelman, who I have a lot of time for, is one of the hosts. Tickets are $10 (before tax) in advance and $15 on the door. Union Hall has a good happy hour up to 7pm.
In July 2025, they had a somewhat baffling drop-in - Adam Sandler! Drop-ins aren't particularly common and I can't imagine why he chose there but he was definitely on.
Landline Comedy at Wild East Brewing
Landline is run by comic and host Andre Medrano in the atmospheric back room of a Brooklyn brewery. It's a free show and if you register for a ticket you're entered into a draw for a free drink. I'm not sure of the schedule but it's Thursday nights, once or twice per month (check Eventbrite for reservations). I've been twice and it had decent line-ups both times AND there's an entire brewery only a few yards away, which is hard to fault. The brewery also has two cats that you might get to play with during the performance.
Last visited Jan 2026.
This comedian-operated location opened in September 2024. They started with shows on just Thu/Fri/Sat but seem to have expanded to almost every night of the week (two on Friday/Sat). The entrance is a little make-shift but the performance space is nice enough. It's currently BYOB, which is refreshing, but they have a small fridge with cans for sale if you turn up without doing the necessary prep. They also have a food truck each week (details on their website). The discount code "Bushwick" will apparently get you 50% off the ticket price, or you could try "FRIENDS", or "SUNDAY" for Sunday shows. Even without a discount, it's very affordable.
On my last visit I had a pretty good time. Chloe Radcliffe was the only name on the bill I knew. I have noticed one or two more established comics (Josh Gondelman/Shane Torres) starting to be listed.
Last visited Jun 2025