Catalina Jazz Club

02/24/12

Best Spot For Tonight

by jwall09

Big Wang is an awesome restaurant! The food it offers is delectable, and drinks are inexpensive! Definitely a wonderful spot for a relaxing night out in town. Highly recommended to all the yuppies in the area.

02/18/10

Great show

by rosstodd

We attended the sold out Steve Tyrell's show on Sunday night. It was great. The musicians were really one of the best we have heard in a long time. We are fairly frequent visitors to the Catalina club and this was our favorite so far.

Steve's selections along with his stories wether personal or how the song was written added spice to his performance. He told how Jimmy McQue's "I can't give you anything but love" was inspired. He's doing another run this weekend if you are available go!

• Pros: Steve Tyrell's Valentine show was the best!

12/10/09

Catalina...mix it up.

by bday1984

Went on a date there. I had a great time the music was awesome. It was a fun night and not the average date night. A great way to shake things up.

• Pros: music is the best.
• Cons: food is good

11/28/09

Musicians often good, place/food so bad, so overpriced.

by King Isincharge

Run like a little jail --all their rules, to hell with customer satisfaction. With the possible exception of the completely bland, completely UNspiced steamed clams, the food is terrible beyond belief. The "steak" quesadilla was unchewable, smelled bad (you know, that cheap "horsemeaty" smell), and was left uneaten after several unsuccessful tries to find a chewable bite. The caesar salad was barely average, like in a school cafeteria, with boring bottled dressing and cheap restaurant-supply packaged croutons, as well as I recall, since recalling is painful! The thing is, they charge a substantial cover PLUS a minimum (overpriced BAD dinner or 2 drinks) for EVERY show. I'd much rather go to a crowded little place with acceptable overpriced food and rarely a cover, like Charlie O's, or really get my money's worth at Vibrato Grill and Jazz, with rarely a cover and great food, service and atmosphere. But Catalina's, where they hustle you out even if you haven't finished eating, is an insult to diners. They should just forget the food and rushed service, and become a straight theater, like the old Jazz Bakery. At least they wouldn't make enemies or offend anyone.

• Pros: The bookings are often good, room is rarely full.
• Cons: Horrible food, mostly inedible, painfully overpriced. $$$$$$

11/11/09

Fantastic Venue

by Joanne Olivieri

I made a special trip from San Francisco to Los Angeles to attend the Sony Holland concert at the Catalina Jazz Club. I had never been to the Catalina so I had no idea what to expect.

Since I had never been there I decided to arrive early at 7:00 p.m. when the doors opened. The person cleaning the outside area of the building buzzed me in the front door of the building and the club was identifiable by a simple sign on a door located on the first floor of the building. I walked in the door and was pleasantly surprised. The host was so friendly and welcoming that I felt as if I had walked onto the set of "Cheers." The club had that distinct feeling all evening. I was also thrilled to see two of my friends from the Bay Area there as well.

The club itself has an L shape to it which is very interesting and I think well thought out for the venue. The main club area has table vignettes which seat anywhere from two people to around ten people situated around the stage so that no matter where you are the stage is the main focal point in the room. Even if you are at the bar which is the longer part of that L shape, you still have a good view. Each table was set with tablecloths, menus and flyers with the artist information. I found these extras very appealing which high end jazz clubs normally do not provide.

The lighting I found to be the best I have ever encountered in any club, jazz or otherwise. I was able to actually see my bill when presented with the dim lighting during the concert as well as the menus and upcoming show information. Normally clubs are so dark, especially during a concert that you cannot see anything. Here the lighting in my opinion was perfect. Even the lighting on the stage was good enough that we were able to get photos without a flash as can be seen in this post. Usually in clubs, the lighting is such that it will distort the actual colors of the musician's attire though not the case here. I really liked that.

The sound was crisp and clear. You could hear each instrument along with the vocals without anyone drowning out the other. It wasn't too loud or too soft but right on key, throughout.

The service was friendly, quick and non intrusive. The servers knew when to approach for your second drink and were very cautious not to interrupt or obstruct the view of the patrons. They were helpful, knew what they were doing and very friendly.

As I said in the beginning of this post, I had that friendly feeling all evening. Now I know why this club is considered to be the premier jazz club in LA. I've been to many in the Bay Area and have to admit I enjoyed this club over and above any other I've experienced. I will definitely go back to see Sony if and when she again performs at the Catalina. In fact, if anyone I really like will be performing there, I will absolutely make that trip from SF to LA to see them. That is exactly how much I enjoyed the Catalina.

• Pros: The Live Music Acts, The Lighting, Sound, Service etc...
• Cons: There are none