The Waiting Room

I have seen so many shows here, I would have to make an effort to sit down and go year by year to figure it out. This is my favorite venue in Omaha. I have seen so many different genres here from Underground Hip-​Hop, Rock, Comedy (Doug Benson in Benson! LOL). I seen a woman here that I still daydream about to this day. Seriously though, this place is legit. After the expansion, my love for this spot grew as much as the floor plan did. I have some good memories in this place.

I love this venue. The stage is nice & low, making for a personal experience no matter how large of a crowd is gathered (it’s still a raised stage though– you can see the artists from the back of the crowd as well). There are booths on the side & tables near the bar, but good luck sitting at any of them if there’s a lot of people at the show– they fill up fast. The bar service is fast & accurate & the employees are almost always friendly.
Good vibes all around at this one.
(Although it should be mentioned that Benson isn’t the best part of town. The Main Street of Maple can be deceptively hip, but this by no means constitutes a «safe» neighborhood.)
Also, they do New Music Mondays that showcase new local artists & it’s free admission!!!

Man, I love live music. And in Omaha, this is one of my favorite venues for it. I like the neighborhood with plenty of other bars, shops and restaurants in the immediate area and it feels safe.
I’ve been to The Waiting Room many times over the last few years and they’ve made so many improvements over the years to make sure the customers enjoy a clean, safe, enjoyable concert experience. The lighting is good, sound is great. The bar (during concerts) is packed and very busy, but the bartenders did a good job of working to make sure everyone got served.
As for concerts, they book some really great entertainers. I’ve seen such a wide variety of acts there including Colin Haye (from Men at Work), Matt and Kim, Reverend Horton Heat, and many others. Prices for concerts are very reasonable and you’ll enjoy a concert here much more than any of those big arena shows where you can barely see the act. Here, you’ll be within a few feet of your favorite singer. How cool is that?

Extememly rude girl at the front checking I. D’s & taking money tonight. Everything else about the place is great!

Decent for live shows but only a few employees behind the bar are pleasant.

wow… what happened NYE. Secret Agent was band and they were awful… Gettting old and lazy? who knows but I’ve heard them before and they have been much better…

Every time I go to The Waiting Room, I self-​promise to revisit this venue more. Yet, life gets in the way and I seem to forget (which gives you a clue as to why I don’t make New Years resolutions).
What’s not to love? Affordable cover. Live music. Good sized venue. Two drawbacks (kind of, but not really: (1) Wish they had more seats, but I always think that up until the moment the dancing starts and (2) Wish they had a larger bar or more bars or more bartenders, since it can get pretty crushed in the bar area, but the work around is to just order more than one drink at a time.
Again…self-promising to visit more…

Want to see a random live band or maybe get lucky and catch a popular one? You’ve got the right place! If bars had a «Feeling Lucky» button like Google, I would choose this one. Go for it, you might just like it, 5 stars on first impression :)

I have been to numerous shows her since they open this venue a few years ago. Back then, Benson was a pretty sleepy section of town that you could go get some work boots, beer and a tattoo in just a short walk.
With the demise of the Ranch Bowl is seemed as the only place to catch a show was Sokol. Then came The Waiting Room.
This place is awesome! The setup is perfect. Not too big and not too small. There is a smallish dance floor right by the stage and the stage itself is not too high. Now the lighting is all LED and that is good because it doesn’t get as warm as it did during the show.
You can hang out by the bar, grab a table that sits tall, pull up near the sound guys (my favorite spot) or even take a large booth. Really not a bad seat in the place.
The bartenders are usually pretty good, too. They have to deal with all sorts of idiots during every show and I try not to be one.
During one show I was cut off from service and only served water. I was surprised! Water? Really? For me? What the hell?
It turns out the door guy thought I was too intoxicated even though he admitted to barely seeing me all night. That guy sucks. I was able to show that me level of inebriation was not as high as was reported and the bartender eventually served my group the drinks as ordered. She was very apologetic and professional.
Short list of the types of music featured here:
4020
Rev Horton Heat
One More Round (Cash tribute band)
Man or Astroman?
TL;DR: Great sight ans sound, Good beer, not crowded

Benson hops on a warm Friday night. The Waiting room is cool, dark, clean and crowded as REModeled plays a long set for a polite forty-​something audience. Good music. Good fun. Seven dollar cover. Glad I went.

I went to The Waiting Room last night to see a Nirvana cover band and a Led Zeppelin cover band. The Nirvana cover band was great, but the Led Zeppelin was just okay to me, me being a Led Zeppelin superfan. Anyway, the venue…
The place is a great little concert venue, it is similar to the Underground in size. The Waiting Room actually has a lot of tables and seats to sit at too, which is great as you can choose to stand for hours or sit down, if there is a seat available. The acoustics are pretty good too.
Their bar is really great too. They have a lot of beers on tap. They have a beer called Fruli, which is a really good strawberry beer, and its very hard to find and they have it on tap and it tasted amazing.
There is another cover band concert at The Waiting Room next month and I will definitely be going.

I went to the Waiting Room for the first time last night and saw a Nirvana tribute band (Nevermind) and a Led Zeppelin tribute band (Achilles Last Band). It was Nevermind’s first show and they were awesome! The Waiting Room staff was friendly and tickets were easy to purchase.
Décor was really modern and the sound system sounded really good. Fruli (strawberry beer) is in tap!
I wish they offered food. That would make me and others want to stay longer. It’s difficult to drink and enjoy a show for 3 – 4 hours with no food.
I already have plans to come back to the Waiting Room for Nevermind and a Pearl Jam tribute band!

Huge fan of the Waiting Room. This is one of the key places in Omaha if you are into live music. With the remodel awhile back, they really improved site lines, sound and lighting. Great venue for live music. Bar is always staffed up so drinks flow quickly. Bathrooms at both ends of bar so never hardly lines there either! Music is scheduled almost, if not every night with lots of new interesting acts. Come check it out.

The Waiting Room is awesome! It’s not only a concert venue but just a regular bar that’s got pool tables and everything.
Having said that, one of the best concerts I’ve seen was here. The sound is amazing (minus one slight mishap with a microphone) and the effects seemed like they were amplified because of the way the room is set up and the colors.
The bar has a very nice selection of beer and alcohol for being mainly a music venue. I mean if I can get craft beers on tap while I’m watching a show, that’s awesome. Bartenders knew what they were doing, they weren’t understaffed, and they knew about every brew they had. I can’t wait to go to more shows here in the future.

I’ve never been disappointed with a show at Waiting Room. I’ve been going here for years, and it only seems to get better and better. It’s more intimate than other venues in the area, with great acoustics, lighting, and visibility. The staff and bartenders and friendly, and drinks aren’t overpriced as with some venues. I LOVE the location; Benson is one of the best areas of Omaha. Great shows, fun atmosphere, a must-​go!

The Waiting Room is the best live music venue in Omaha. In it’s six years in existence they have done two remodels and two sound and light upgrades (the second remodel and upgrade was not needed-​but they wanted to stay ahead of the curve). Full disclosure-​I live in the building, have worked at this venue and host events here. I am also a music critic who has been to hundreds of music venues all over the country. With the most recent sound-​upgrade you will not find hot spots. You will find the sound pretty much evenly distributed throughout the venue leaving every spot equal depending on who is hanging out around you. The venue also boasts impressive sight-​lines giving you an unblocked view from I would say 90% of the venue.
The Waiting Room bring in top national, regional and local talent to it’s stage and offers quite a few craft beers both on tap and in bottles. I think the service here is great and the staff is friendly-​but again-​I am going to be a bit biased there as they are all people I have known a long time. It’s a safe bet that if you are going to see an artist you like at this venue you will not be a let down. If you are someone who likes to sit during a performance-​make sure to get there a bit early. Seating is limited-​especially on shows where a large crowd is expected

The Waiting Room has been an amazing addition to Omaha’s music scene since it opened a few years ago. And it’s nice to see that it’s always improving. Recent renovations to the interior and exterior prove the folks who run this place are dedicated to having one of the best music venues in the country. Plus it’s in a great neighborhood (Benson) for a night out on the town, as several great bars and restaurants are a short walk away.
They book all kinds of music — folk, bluegrass, jam, DJs, Americana, rock, rap, pop, alternative, etc., etc., etc. — so definitely check out their calendar, as there’s surely an upcoming show you’ll want to go to.

Great venue with a regular variety of music. It is in a great neighborhood and you can get a great bargain too as cover is usually pretty cheap! Live music just about every night and always entertaining.
Check it out!

Dinosaur Jr is the loudest band I have ever heard. I have heard them at several locations and each time it blows my mind. This place was a great place to see them. It was not too crowded but there were a lot of people there.
It is a unique space and I had a really good experience watching a band here. It is as simple as that.

I am up in the air for many reasons, so I will settle on three, even though my experience was more of a two.
We came to Omaha just to see Son Volt here, and we have waited an eternity to see them, so we were super excited about the opportunity. When we arrived, it was pretty crowded. We grabbed beers at the bar and then slowly made our way toward the stage area to wait for the show. I have been to plenty of GA shows with no real seating, so I know the game. My BF left for the rr, and while he was gone, a whole slew of tall, sweaty middle-​aged men came and actually rubbed up against me to stand RIGHT IN FRONT OF MY FACE. Seriously, there was about ½ inch between my nose and this sweaty jackass’s lower back. This loser didn’t even acknowledge that he was a) touching me to cut in front of me or b) obviously completely blocking any view I had with his enormous smelly body. None of his dorky friends acknowledged me, either. Oh, they knew what they were doing. As the evening progressed, men in the crowd behaved similarly for the rest of the evening. They had no problem invading my personal space without so much as an «excuse me» or a touch on the arm to indicate they wanted through. So, it wasn’t like they were being outright rude to ME. They were just so full of themselves that they disregarded everyone else to get what and where they wanted. The very few other ladies in the crowd were pretty cool, but my man-​rant continues. I went to the bar to order another beer. Bartender made eye contact with me as he finished one order. I was definitely next. Then, some rude-​ass shouldered his way next to me, and as I guess he was a regular and I wasn’t, bartender ignored me and waited on his friend next.
Come on, do these dudes really represent the men in Omaha? If so, I feel very, very sorry for the ladies. Where are the manners? Nowhere to be found at The Waiting Room, sadly.
I hate writing a review based on one experience, especially a negative one. This is why I am padding the olé star-​string. The venue is laid out well, the bar is great, and the concert was fantastic as far as the band. I would definirptely return another time to give it another chance.