Comedy Lottery at La Luncheonette

The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine
The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine

St. Henri’s lovely new retro-esque cafe-eatery, La Luncheonette, has stepped up its hours and its drink offerings on Thursdays and Fridays. Proving itself more than just a place to get a good meal or snack, Keith Waterfield and Bianca Yates bring a pot-luck of comedy with the Lottery Comedy Show on Thursday evenings.

The premise is that comedians enter their name into a hat (and a proper hat at that!) and Yates and Waterfield draw the name of each performer. Given the sheer randomness of the hat lottery, an opening and closing act are also booked.

The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine
Peter Wheeland. The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine

For the first night of the Lottery Comedy Show, La Luncheonette was full and patrons were happily drinking bottles of ale and eating as the show began to take shape. A make shift stage created in the window and Waterfield and Yates came forward to begin their banter. We found out that Yates had a vamprish incident with a wrangler for Weird Al Yankovic and the first comedian came to the stage, Peter Wheeland. Wheeland shared his take on the struggles of learning about gender in French (the clitoris is masculine!).

Then the hat picks began.

The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine
Kris Dulgar. The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine

Kris Dulgar of Biftek’s weekly Danger Dulgar comedy night talked about facing racism and the specific sound it makes.

The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine
Erica Taddeo. The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine

Erica Taddeo, who recently appeared at the women’s comedy night Open Michelle, discussed the finer points of being Italian.

The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine
Alon Azimov. The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine

Then things took a weirder turn as Alon Azimov (the great nephew of Isaac) came forward with his impromptu, highly interactive set that focused on sandwiches, maps, and ended with a rap.

The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine
Bianca Yates. The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine

Yates herself came back and reminded us that every now and then, you do something that makes you look like Harry Potter speaking to snakes in front of a horrified Gryffindor audience.

The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine
Eoin. The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine

Last draw was Eoin (no idea if I’ve spelled that correctly — he claimed three vowels in his name!) who danced and flowed as he brought us through an extended metaphor comparing a summer lover to the beach itself.

The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine
Daniel Carin. The Comedy Lottery. Cafe La Luncheonette. Photo Rachel Levine

Finally, the lottery done, the endlessly funny Daniel Carin of The Ladies and Gentlemen Comedy Hour was on stage, flirting with everyone and just being baaaaaad.

Overall, the Comedy Lottery seems like a hit for the west side of St. Henri if the first show is anything to go on. Comedians tried new material out and the audience was slightly shy, but certainly willing to be entertained. As the sun set and the room grew darker, everyone had a second beer, everyone loosened up more.

The Comedy Lottery show takes place Thursday nights, show starting at 7:30 p.m. at La Luncheonette. La Luncheonette is located at 4271 St. Jacques W. and open Monday-Wednesday from 7:30 a.m. –  7 p.m., Thursday and Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Closest metro is Station Place St. Henri. 

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