Observatory OC Reviews

Great venue in OC. The Constellation Room is great for small shows.

I always have a great time here!!! The atmosphere is super chill and laid back.

I've been to a few shows there, and every time it has horrendous sound, especially for metal.
I don't know what the bar quality is. When a tour is at The Observatory and in L.A. or Riverside on an alternate night, I'd rather go there than to the Observatory even though its closer to me.

Great venue, big enough to get good acts. Small enough to be intimate.

The ticket I purchased off of the observatory website said the concert started at 11 pm when in reality they sang their last song before it even hit 11. It was a waste of money and an utter disappointment, but lesson learned i won't be returning

One of my favorite venues in So Cal, good view from any location.

Nice venue for a concert. There is a pit, a lot of standing room, and a second story. It's a little hard to spot from the street.

They always have concerts for really cheap and if you pick up your tickets there the service fee is a small amount other than online

Saw She Wants Revenge with my youngest daughter. We had a great time!

The venue double books shows (2shows on 1night, 2areas) so if you're seeing a band in the main area, you can hear sound bleed from the other room. Not cool finding that out after spending a whole bunch of money on Tix. Won't be back. You also have to park extremely far away from the venue. Skip this place, check out Los Angeles venues for a better experience.

This is a great venue for live shows. The floor is made up of a few different stepped platforms so there is a good viewing angle for everyone, even short people like me. The pit is a good size and the stepped platforms has walls so it can't get too big or unruly. The sound is pretty good, but good ear plugs help out.

In my opinion, this local music venue is almost perfect. It's certainly not fancy, but it's definitely a great place to see bands. I think it only holds 800-900 people, & that includes the space for the smaller "Constellation Room" that's separate from the main stage. Because of this smaller size, it's much easier to navigate. Even in a sold out crowd, you can get to & from the bars & restrooms, & you can usually find a decent vantage point. They even have rooms upstairs that are sometimes vip, depending on the event. The parking isn't great, as there is now limited parking in their lot, but you can park in neighboring parking lots for a fee. Still, it's nowhere near as bad as parking at any of the larger venues in Orange County or Los Angeles. The new owners have changed things over the past couple years, adding some outdoor areas with small but convenient bars. They even hold festivals from time to time, where they'll set up a stage outside, plus the 2 inside. I've been to one of these & it was great... lots of vendors & not too crowded so that you can't walk around easily. I don't recommend the food, although I haven't eaten there in a long time. They've always had a reputation for a below average menue, but I don't go there to eat anyway. Lastly, their ticket prices are usually very reasonable, & the box office is easy to get to if you want to avoid the online "Convenience" fees. So after posting this, I noticed several bad reviews by other people. I don't doubt they had issues, but I've learned you do need to behave a certain way at these types of venues. I've been to countless concerts, many of them here, & never had a problem. The secret is to be polite & considerate of others, realizing its difficult to stand in a huge, constantly moving crowd for hours. I'm grateful when security removes someone who is interfering with our enjoyment... Usually it's someone who can't control their drinking or testosterone.

Decent indoor venue with a small-scale feel. General audience area is quite close to the stage. The standing-only nature of the GA area means that comedy acts and the like resort to rigid plastic fold-out chairs, though if you can get a good seat the intimacy of the venue makes it worthwhile. Drinks are pricey, typical venue prices, ~$7 for a decent beer.

Well, the venues nice and a lot of great bands play here and it's cheap. But apparently no one is ever around to pick up the damn phone!

It's standing room only, tables are available for a price (still no seats) great venue to see your favorite artists. Tickets are reasonable. Get there early and be prepared to stand.

One of the best music venues in SoCal! And you can smoke in there now!!

So far so good.. enjoy meeting new people and different types of music.

Sick pits and great line up of artists who come to play here

My favorite venue. Seen five shows there now. Always a good experience.

EDIT: NEWS! This venue has been purchased by LiveNation. Expect many more changes to come in the future!! Who knows for better or worse. Hopefully better, but security will probably be even tighter. 04/13/2019

Been coming here for years. I've seen a lot of growth in this place, but recently it has a different vibe. They now have really tight security outside, they knocked out the second floor balcony on the sides, and I no longer see the little pop up bars inside and outside around the venue. Seen so many great bands and artists here. I've definitely partied really hard and had some great times, but I always made sure to be respectful of the staff and venue. It now makes me sad to see that they aren't catering to the guest's expectations anymore. The best years for this place for me were probably 2014 to 2017....now I see a decline. What is stopping this place from being that crazy, anything goes, party venue that we all fell in love with? But anyways thanks for all the great times guys. Hope everything works out for this place.

Worst venue I have ever experienced!! The staff is even worse, they told me misinformation twice and still tried to blame me. Money is money and that can be replaced but being treated like a dumbass and missing your favorite artist because of their stupidity, now that really is priceless!!!

Horrible!! Too many people. Very uncomfortable space. Doors were supposed to open at 7pm, but didn't open until 8:30pm.

It's kind of a sh** show every time I go here; The drinks are $9 each, so there are tons of poeple slamming beers in their cars in the parking lot, kind of worse in my opinion (is that so no DUI suits come back to them?)
Hopping into two shows for the price of one is a fun thing to do there, though -saw my first hip hop show because of that. No it's not allowed, but you'll see people do it all the time, so be spicy and try it ;)
Lastly, VIP dummies are a real thing here: It's really distracting and takes from the experience when bands let their posse onstage -I mean the posse that doesn't just stand along the outside repping their buddies & enjoying the show, I mean the ones who seem to have never had special treatment in their lives, so they're in the background walking around drinking sloppily snapping photos of the crowd from behind the band. If you have been to a million shows there also, you definitely know what I'm talking about, it sucks!
All in all, I'd say it's good for seeing bands you don't really catch in the OC area, or if you just don't feel like making the trek to LA.

Great concert venue in the OC ..all the best upcoming artists in a intimate venue. Not a bad seat in the house.

Went here for a concert. Had some issues at the ticket desk (won tickets online, they took almost an hour to find my name on a short list of people to let in because it happened to include my middle name.) Frustrating at the time, a little funny in retrospect.

Nephew Xavierwulf did a concert here. This place was perfect for a home town boys concert. Packed and rockin! Hollowsquad!

Fantastic music venue that is increasingly more enjoyable the more packed it is with patrons

Good sound, great shows & you feel safe with the personnel they have on staff!

Had a positive experience for my first time there. Heard lots of bad reviews and was a little skeptical. Only downside was parking. Not convenient. Had to park far and had a long walk.

An amazing, intinate music venue. One of the best places to visit as a resident of OC. I just wish parking would be better (it's pretty good otherwise).

Great music venue. I was there to play and also to watch other bands. It was very cool for me being on bith sides. Good for the public and good for the bands.

I ve been to quite a few shows here over the past few years and I will not be coming back. My boyfriend and I just returned from a King Gizz show at the Observatory, and the security was extremely discomforting. One guard in
particular completely singled out my boyfriend throughout the show, and I am still in awe as to why- I could not enjoy the performance because I was uncomfortable and anxious the entire time. He put him in a choke hold, and he has marks all over his neck. Neither of us have had an experience like this in the 20+ shows that we have been to and it made me angry to have given money to this establishment... Fans enjoying a show should NOT have to feel at risk because of a sexist security guard. The bartenders are friendly and it is an intimate venue, but I will no longer recommend.

Nothing against the staff and the venue itself, but SOULQUARIUS could have been organized 100x better. Doors didn't open when advertised, people waited hours in line just to walk through a metal detector, missed half the sets, waited in line to eat, relieve themselves, drink, view who was left, line after line. Plus it was dangerously crowded. Nightmare.

Awesome venue for live shows. There isn't a bad view unless you aren't there.

Great venue often crowded but they book great musicians

I had a great time and the people are nice and friendly.

Wish tall people would let smaller people in frnt of them

Great place to see a concert! Saw Me First and the Gimme Gimmes while sitting in the balcony and truly enjoyed the service and show.

The parking could be better. And the merch is crowded near the bar.

Concerts are great here but parking is expensive and a far walk. Beer is a little pricey but not insane.

Overall, The Observatory is great for Santa Ana and Orange County because it is a well-know venue for artists world-wide!

Awesome tucked away.little venue... Actually has more than one bar!! =]

Small venue with two bars. One stage with good lighting definitely a good place to be up close and personal with all of your favorite artist.