Top comedy clubs
The Second City Mainstage
Comedy
The Second City Mainstage
Even if you know nothing about improv, chances are you've heard of Second City
iO Cabaret
Comedy
iO Cabaret
There's no doubt about it, the house that improv legend Del Close and founding partner Charna Halpern built rules
Annoyance Theatre
Comedy
Annoyance Theatre
Annoyance put itself on the map with its famously distasteful gross-out musical Co-Ed Prison Sluts. Twenty years later, it still cranks out bizarre, unconventional comedy.
- Critics' pick
The Lincoln Lodge
Bars
The Lincoln Lodge
The back room of a washed-up diner may not sound like much, but that's the beauty of the Lodge, a room that virtually placed Chicago on the alt-comedy map. The emphasis is top-quality comics, as evidenced by both local talent and visiting greats
Zanies
Comedy
Zanies
Remember the olden days when comedy clubs with a two-drink minimum policy ruled? That era is long gone, but this venerable laugh factory has managed to hang on. The comedy here is a bit of a mixed bag
The Playground Theater
Comedy
The Playground Theater
The nation's only not-for-profit co-op theater devoted to the art of improvisation is an excellent place for young teams to practice their craft. The programming is often experimental and incredibly hit or miss, but there's no denying the youthful, infectious energy that pervades the place.
The Red Bar Comedy Club At Ontourage
Comedy
The Red Bar Comedy Club At Ontourage
Every weekend, the guys who produce the Red Bar Comedy podcast transform swank River North nightclub Ontourage into a Vegas-style joke joint attracting plenty of the city's finest comics
Timothy O'Toole's
Bars
Mon–Fri 11am–3am; Sat, Sun 9am–3am
Timothy O'Toole's
In one corner of this subterranean sports bar, you’ll find frat boys flirting with the bartenders. In another, you’ll see an entire accounting department downing beers and watching various games on the 50 screens

