i-Pic Movie Theaters

When I met Mr. Mari, we used to go to a dinner and a movie with friends but eventually he grew to loathe going to the movies in New York because of the audience. He wants to be swept into the movie but whenever some audience member yells at the screen, stays in their seat with a crying baby on their lap, answers their audibly ringing cellphone - and has a conversation - it takes him out of the immersive experience. Last year, we saw only four movies that we deemed "had to be seen" on a big screen. However, I sense a shift in our future...

While we were in Boca Raton visiting family over Christmas, my sister thought going to see a movie at the local iPic Theater would be a fun and different experience than what we get in New York. Really comfy seats, she said. They also serve food and drinks to you - in the theater! 

Our friend, Tony, raves about ArcLight Cinemas in Los Angeles. For the price of a regular movie ticket in NYC, there is assigned seating. What does that mean? That means you don't have to show up to the theater two hours beforehand to shove your way to some mediocre seat in the front row. I'd say that's worth becoming an ArcLight member. There's also a café and bar. They do have "21+ Screenings" but that means I wouldn't have been able to see Monsters, Inc in 3D with my niece. 

iPic Theaters take it more than one step further though. What's the point of going to the theater? To relax! So, you'll first approach a desk that looks like a concierge desk in a hotel. If you get there early, you can go hang out in the theater's bar and restaurant but my sister had other plans. We went up the escalator and took our seats. Holy moley. There were only eight giant seats in our row. These chairs were definitely wider than any First Class Cabin chair I've seen too. On each leather seat was a pillow and blanket. Every two-seat section had a small table between it with in-theater dining and drinks menus and each seat reclined with just a push of a button. 

A waitress came and took our order and then a waiter came around and gave everyone a complimentary bag of popcorn. Free popcorn? Am I in Heaven? Mr. Mari and I ordered some draft Peronis, Caesar Romaine Spears, Angus Burger Trio and a Grilled Cheese Panino/Tomato Bisque combo. They also had a list of signature cocktails that you could order too. Now, I'm not saying that I'd go to an iPic just for the food but it wasn't half bad. The Romaine leaves were trimmed and super crisp and the grilled cheese was amply gooey. Mr. Mari snorged his sliders before I could take a bite.

They have a concession stand so if you still want traditional movie theater snacks, you can get those too. You don't have to get the primo Gold seats to eat in the theater either. You can order whatever you want to eat and drink downstairs and bring your food to your assigned seat but we were there on holiday so getting movie-side service was a fun treat. 

Real estate prices probably makes this prohibitive as a viable business in NYC but there are a few iPic Theater locations nationwide AND one is being built - you guessed it - in Hollywood! So between the ArcLight and iPic Theater, I'll bet Mr. Mari and I will be seeing quite a few more movies on the big screen. Now pass that man his free popcorn and on with the show!

(ArcLight image via Discover Hollywood; iPic hallway and concession images via iPic Theaters)