biscuit

inaugural Empire Biscuit Comedy Festival serves up laughs (and biscuits) in August

by Arielle Gordon

Empire Biscuit Comedy Festival

These days, it seems like every bar or restaurant with a basement is jumping on the comedy train with open mics of dubious quality and the occasional improv show. But the East Village’s 24-hour all-biscuits-all-the-time Empire Biscuits is taking the comedy-restaurant collaboration to a whole new level with the very first Empire Biscuit Comedy Festival. The festival spans three nights, August 2 to August 4, with three showcases each night. The festival kicks off Sunday (8/2) at 7 PM with Liza Treyger (Comedy Central’s Half Hour), Alingon Mitra (Last Comic Standing), Joe Pera (Comedy Central), and Mark Normand (Inside Amy Schumer). Other Sunday highlights include Jo Firestone, Giulia Rozzi, Brett Davis (The Special Without Brett Davis) and Jim Tews (Louie) at 9 PM.

The comedy continues Monday night (8/3) with sets from Joe List (Comedy Central) and Ben Kronberg (Last Comic Standing) at 7 PM. The night continues with two more shows, including sets from Mike Lawrence (who recently toured New York with Marc Maron), Nate Fernald (The Pete Holmes Show), Abbi Crutchfield (VH1) and more.

Finally, Tuesday night (8/4) starts out with heavy hitters Josh Gondelman (Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, @SeinfeldToday), Nore Davis (Inside Amy Schumer), and Nick Turner (Comedy Central). The subsequent shows are just as stacked, featuring Michelle Wolf (Late Night with Seth Meyers), Myq Kaplan (Comedy Central), Sasheer Zamata (SNL), and Kevin Barnett (Friends of the People) at 9 PM. The final show of the festival features Seaton Smith (Mulaney), Sean Donnelly (Comedy Central), Phoebe Robinson (Girl Code), Carmen Lynch (Inside Amy Schumer), and Aparna Nancherla (Conan).

So you’re probably wondering – how much do I have to pay to see this fantastic lineup of indie New York comics? Well, for the low price of $50, you can see all nine shows, including one biscuit and one beer per night. It’s $14 for a single show, which also includes a biscuit and a beverage. Tickets are on sale now.

Full lineups for all nine Empire Biscuit Comedy Festival shows are listed below…

Empire Biscuit Comedy Festival

Sunday, August 2nd @ 7pm
Liza Treyger (Comedy Central)
Alingon Mitra (Last Comic Standing)
Joe Pera (Comedy Central)
Mark Normand (Inside Amy Schumer)
and more!

Sunday, August 2nd @ 9pm
Giulia Rozzi (Comedy Central)
Jo Firestone (Chris Gethard Show)
Hadiyah Robinson (Comic View)
Jim Tews (Louie)
Griffin Newman (Draft Day)

Sunday, August 2nd @ 11pm
Brett Davis (The Special Without Brett Davis)
Josh Ruben (College Humor)
NANCY (UCB)
Casey Jost (Impractical Jokers)
Livia Scott (IAF.TV)
and more!

Monday, August 3rd @ 7pm
Shakir Standley (Last Comic Standing)
Joe List (Comedy Central)
Smith (VH1)
Ben Kronberg (Last Comic Standing)
and more!

Monday, August 3rd @ 9pm
Saurin Choksi (White Guy Talk Show)
Nate Fernald (The Pete Holmes Show)
Calise Hawkins (Funny Girls)
Mike Drucker (Fallon)
Abbi Crutchfield (Vh1)
and more!

Monday, August 3rd @ 11pm
Mike Lawrence (@midnight)
Nick Vatterott (Comedy Central)
Matteo Lane (Guy Code)
Hasan Minhaj (Daily Show)
Jeffrey Joseph (Comedy Central)
and more!

Tuesday, August 4th @ 7pm
Josh Gondelman (Last Week Tonight with John Oliver)
Andy Sandford (Conan)
Joe Zimmerman (Comedy Central)
Nore Davis (Inside Amy Schumer)
Nick Turner (Comedy Central)

Tuesday, August 4th @ 9pm
Mike Recine (Conan)
Michelle Wolf (Seth Meyers)
Myq Kaplan (Comedy Central)
Sasheer Zamata (SNL)
Kevin Barnett (Friends of the People)
and more!

Tuesday, August 4th @ 11pm
Seaton Smith (Mulaney)
Sean Donnelly (Comedy Central)
Phoebe Robinson (Girl Code)
Carmen Lynch (Inside Amy Schumer)
Aparna Nancherla (Conan)
Christian Finnegan (Comedy Central)