We recently had our wedding reception here and although its a nice venue and the open bar is great,(1star for venue because its beautiful and 1.5 because Joe and Liz (who doesn't work there anymore) were great to work with)here are some things to think about before booking.
The day before our event we had to drop off some things off for the wedding. Amber said things had to be dropped off by 2pm because the venue would be closed. Upon arriving before 2pm there was a rehearsal going on and when my husband asked what time they end, Amber told him 3pm. This was very upsetting because they lied about what time the venue closes causing extra stress to be there sooner than actually necessary as well as the worry of having to leave things there while people are there (who aren't the workers) So rather than being placed around the venue, it was placed in Ambers office.
During our details meeting, Amelia, the core person you will be speaking with, upfront told us "I'm lazy today", probably not a good thing to tell people who just put in time and resources for their big day. Also, she was aware we were coming in for our details meeting and when we asked about going to the hall to look at table settings she "oh there's no table settings. I haven't even been there today, ain't nobody got time for that"....this honestly shocked me, I don't know how she thought that was professional to say and very irresponsible. She was aware we were having a final details meeting and there were no table settings made, how does this make sense? I was overwhelmed will all the planning at this point so I didn't have the bandwidth to say anything at the time but it was a major turn off. Why would you say this to the couple about to have their reception there? Fortunately, my wedding coordinator had suggested what to do for table settings so we went with what she had recommended.
We had asked if we can park our car overnight because we would not have a car during the event to load things in and they accomodated which was great. Unfortunately during our actual event my husband was approached to pay $13 for parking. This was not mentioned at all by Amelia so we were shocked and upset. So just be mindful because it seems as though if you ask for something they expect something back.
During this meeting, there was also the talk about the use of the fog machine, we had specifically asked for it to be used during the grand entrance with strobes and warm white light. Unfortunately we got none of that during our grand entrance and instead the fog machine was used during our first dance. Amelia will act like she cares but to be honest, shes lazy and doesn't care. The customizations for the lighting that you pay for is not done because they have a "grand entrance sequence" they usually use and the fog machine is usually used for the first dance so the day of your wedding reception they will just go on autopilot as opposed of doing what you'd like as well as had discussed.
Also, this meeting among others felt rushed. Our coordinator needed to ask questions to coordinate with the venue and Amelia kept giving her a hard time and kept saying within 2 weeks. I feel like being in this business and to make sure things go smoothly, you can answer questions outside of the two weeks, its not like she was asking for an official meeting. It really gave the vibes of she really didn't want to deal with anyone but I guess that makes sense since shes lazy, has admitted shes lazy, so she will do the bare minimum.
During the wedding Amelia was rude to one of our guests. One of our guests wanted to grab a new pitcher of water for their table because there was a fly in it. When he walked in front of the dessert table to get ahold of the waiter. Amelia was wheeling the fog machine towards that area and rudely told our guest to "get out of the way!" without explaining why. If she had used the fog machine when planned this wouldn't have happened. But since she used it during what they usually do, this happened and she could've said it nicer and with an explanation but she has a baseline attitude so I guess that's expected.
In terms of service, plates were being taken even when our guests were not done eating. I'm not sure if they were trying to speed up the clean up process but I think baseline our guests should be asked if they are done with their food before taking their plate. Also, they weren't refilling waters efficiently.
Scope around before booking this place, it may seem like a good deal but it does come with its issues.
If you decide to book, just beware/prepare for Amelia's bad attitude and laziness, if you don't mind it than go for it.
The day of, make sure your own coordinator makes what you want actually happen because the venue won't (in the aspects mentioned above because they still got things right but these things stuck out and are definitely worth mentioning considering you will be spending a lot of time, money, resources for your special day) read more