PianoPiano in Claremont, CA

Rating: You Might Like It

PianoPiano is a dueling piano bar attached to the DoubleTree Hotel in Claremont.  It features two pianists on a stage in the front of the room.  They take tips to play songs requested by the audience or for special events like
bachelor/bachelorette parties and birthdays.  If you want food and/or drinks, it's easiest to order your food and drinks at the back of the building and pay as you go (instead of waiting for a waitress to come around, which takes forever).  It will still take you a long time to get your food and drinks from the back, but not quite as long.

Our view of the front.

We went for a friend's birthday on a Friday night.  We didn't want to pay the cover charge, so we got there just before 8pm and found a table for 4 that was open.  It was super crowded and our friend hadn't made a reservation, so by the time the rest of the group got there we were trying to cram 15 people into a 4 person table (just picking up extra chairs around the room and basically sitting anywhere there was floor space).  So, if you're planning a party here make reservations!  It was a lot of fun singing along with everyone and watching people act crazy.  There is a lot of adult humor and they had a random guy in the audience take off his shirt and give a lap dance to a girl celebrating her bachelorette party.  For birthdays, they make you come up and do something embarrassing and then give you a free shot of whatever the "shot wheel" lands on. 

The Tipsy Jar

The bar is open Wednesday through Saturday.  It opens between 7 and 9pm (depending on the day) but always closes at 1am.  There is a cover charge of $5 a person after 8pm on Fridays and Saturdays (it's free besides that).  The average expected tip is between $10 and $20 for song requests.  Food is pretty expensive, starting at around $8 for appetizers to $15 for entrees.  Drinks are average restaurant drink prices, except for any drink specials they may be having.  There's also a giant fish bowl drink you can order for a group called the "tipsy jar" that's $46 dollars.  The only downside is that all your friends have to agree on one type of drink they like, which I know none of my friends would.  This is definitely a bar centered around drinking and singing, so if you don't like those things you will not like this bar.  If you do, you'll have a great time.  We only had one drink and shared an appetizer and we had a good time.  If you do decide to go, I recommend bringing cash.