"Review #500" :-D October 31, 2024 On Friday October 4th I attended a Beautiful Fall wedding at The Pine Knob Mansion for My Dear and Close friends Phil & Jessica. The main road entrance starts with a welcome sign to Pine Knob Golf Course. The winding road will lead you pass the greens with golfers, then several expensive residential homes. There are two venue banquet buildings called The Carriage and this one called The Pine Knob Mansion. Both have valet parking service at their entrance doors. My photos attached will show how wonderful this place was from start to finish. The ceremony was outside in the Garden Gazebo area overlooking the ski lifts and property of Pine Knob with fold up chairs on the grass area. This venue can accommodate all seasons of the year for many memorable and personal events. The outdoor brick patio was large enough for both cocktail hour after ceremony and again in the evening with a DJ for music and dancing. The Bride and Groom performed their special dances together on it plus with their parents. The wedding and party time continued till midnight! The efficient servers were very attentive when eating the plated sit-down dinner. They also served refill of waters quickly too. The Formal banquet room was very elegant with Chiavari Chairs, along with great lighting. Check out my attached photos of Jess and Phil's special and lovely wedding which expresses it all! The Food was Fantastic and Oh My Deeeelicious along with Great plate presentation! This location can be found on The Knot and has different price packages based on your event for food and desserts. My Friends Phi and Jess opted to bring in their own seasonal desserts with cider and donuts along with mini parfait desserts for that special Fall Style Theme. My photos attached shows a wooden wall with pegs on it for displaying the variety of donuts. What a wonderful and impeccable wedding venue for Phil & Jessica. Thanks to the terrific and pleasant staff who showed teamwork working together serving here at The Pine Knob Mansion. Sincerely, Karen N. SpecialK :-) read more

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My husband & I just got married at the Pine Knob Mansion this past Thursday. It was nothing short of spectacular. Our guests were raving about the unique beauty that the mansion has. Pine Knob went above & beyond to make our dream wedding happen. Kurt & Gloria in particular were amazing. Anything that we needed they were the first to step in and make it happen. We are so grateful to them for what they do & we could not recommend them more. read more

A wonderful venue!! I attended my 50th Year Flint Northern Class Reunion in the Mansion and it was absolutely delightful. Gorgeous inside and outside! Outstanding staff!! Every single one of them!!!!! Drum roll for me was the food. I'm a bit of a foodie; and buffets do NOT have my name on them. This one was very nice!! Nothing overcooked OR undercooked. Fresh ingredients prepared properly and flavorfully! I would definitely not hesitate to plan a venue here!!! Thank you so much for a perfect evening!! read more

We attended a wedding here, the grounds were beautiful. The service was impeccable, the only thing left to be desired was the food. Our tables steaks were all over cooked/under. read more

Attended a wedding reception here. Gorgeous grounds and views. Very nice decor on inside also. Outdoor patio for drinks and dancing,in good weather. The staff and bartenders were very efficient. Food - tho plentiful didn't taste great. Chewy chicken, salty steak. Very elderly,or handicapped unfriendly. Almost to edge of - I can't believe someone doesn't make them do renovations. Very few ramps and stairs involved everywhere. Mens room - downstairs, starting with a steep set of stairs- no railing. Second set of stairs- is where all food service comes from, so traffic is directed- or nearly run down by trays of salad being carried up- lol read more

Beautiful venue Good food, not the best, but pretty good. I attended my friends daughter's wedding and I know he put down some money for this event. Not sure I'd go to those numbers for a buffet dinner. The staff was pleasant, the grounds were clean. The room we were in had sort of an odd set up too...very choppy, but it still a nice event. I'd be interested in seeing other rooms and other menu items as well. read more

I would never think of renting a venue that does not give potential clients the courtesy of a return call. I called twice and left messages to inquire whether they book meetings and never got a call back. I guess they just book tacky, noisy, maxed out credit card weddings. They will never get my money. In addition, I have friends that live in the nearby residential subdivision. I have visited them when the noise from over the top, loud weddings is unbearable. I don't know how they can stand it. Management really should limit the decibels allowed. read more

We had brunch at the Pine Knob Mansion a couple of weeks ago and, while the ambiance, view and building get five stars, I'm reluctant to give the food and service two stars. The good: the mansion is, well...a mansion. It's elegant and old and beautiful. I could imagine a grand wedding being held here. Especially if it were warmer out, because the view looked wonderful. Unfortunately, we weren't lucky enough to step onto the terraces, due to snowy, cold weather (in April!!!). The bad: First, the service was painful. The hostess spent most of her time walking around the dining area on her cell phone. The rest of the staff was noticeably young and inexperienced. They wandered, stood aimlessly and stared off into space for most of our brunch. The girl at the omelet station took an excruciatingly long time to make my dad's omelet to order and completely ignored me for a good 3 minutes to finish a conversation with her girlfriend, only to turn around to me later, smile sheepishly and say, "Oops. Girl talk!" The waitress we had was decent (polite, but not always around and in the midst of training while waiting on us). The service may have been overlooked had we been subjected to outstanding food. Sadly, this wasn't the case. Most of the brunch food was cold or lukewarm. The pork loin was dry and room temperature, the make-your-own waffle station was constantly out of commission, the salad selection was limited and the breakfast foods and entrees were dull and, again, not hot. The only saving grace was the pile of crab legs for the taking. My mom and I spent most of our time there. The pricing for adults was reasonable (if the food would have been decent) at $19.99 per person. Actually, a deal compared to other brunch spots that we've been to, but not so much once you've had the food. The prices for children 5 and up were steep at $12.99 per child. My daughters are little eaters and they barely ate enough for one person, let alone two, but we knew the prices going in. read more

Pine Knob Mansion- What a joke, this place has no professionalism. We scheduled a tour for our wedding On Saturday. We received a confirmation through the Knot. Received a call to confirm at 4pm on the Friday before our tour with no voicemail. We tried to call back but they were closed. We assumed because it's a wedding tour someone would be there. We were wrong, we drove from Grand Blanc at 9AM on a Saturday and no one was there to help us. What a joke they struggle with scheduling a tour only God knows how a wedding will go. Very disappointed in the staff and the way we were treated when I called on the following business day to question what happen. They blamed myself and my fiancé. Claimed they called three times and left two voicemails. As I questioned more it changed to 1 voicemail. They blamed us for not confirming our appointment. When I started to get frustrated because they were blaming us she (Angie) hung up on me. Very unprofessional and I warn all to stay away from this venue. Side note this was our first venue tour for our wedding planned and our guide was a no show. Set the tone for our wedding planning. read more

We can't say enough nice things about our wedding experience this past weekend. We were in the Mansion for both the ceremony and reception. The entire staff was so kind and accommodating. They allowed us in early to do our first look and outdoor pictures long before the ceremony. Due to daylight savings time change it would have been dark by the time the ceremony started, so we were able to get all out bridal party pictures in on the beautiful grounds beforehand. Kurt was super awesome and quick to fix anything that needed tweaking with our ceremony set up (on the dance floor due to cold) and got me some hot tea after I came inside freezing from taking pictures. Our guests raved about the Chicken and Salmon from our dinner buffet, and many said it was the best Salmon they ever had. There isn't one thing I can think of that didn't go according to plan, and if it did, I gratefully knew nothing about it! read more

Had the pleasure of eating brunch today at the Pine Knob Mansion for Father's Day. It was absolutely one of the best displays, variety and quality of food that I've experienced at a brunch buffet. Our server was very attentive and made us feel welcome. read more

As a service provider..it kills me to leave this one star review of this venue. Saying that..I'll explain..the Mansion itself is ABSOLUTELY BEAUTIFUL..It's got lots of personality, it's clean..beautifully decorated and just comfortable. The scenery is out of a storybook. That being said..careful consideration should be taken when booking ANY EVENT here..please make sure you've got all the rules before you sign on the dotted line. As in before you make a deposit. Family events are a VERY special thing. Given this few years..especially. Everyone on staff there was polite, kind and helpful..with the exception of one person..because I'm a lady I will not mention a name..however..use your best judgment when contacting the "main coordinator"..(that's fair). Extremely unprofessional comments were made to a bride on the day of her event about "guests being fined for traveling beyond the space of the designated areas.AKA..if any of your guests are found on the ski area there will be a fine. Unprofessional attitude, ridiculous comments and an all around negative presence. Family members were left uncomfortable and frustrated. That being said..beyond one person's energy..the Pine Knob Mansion deserves a 5 plus star review..other staff was EXTREMELY helpful, professional and courteous. Life events deserve patience, understanding and all around detail..consider this place for your event..with a good "tribe" to back up all your questions and ideas..as we all deserve the best for the hard working money that's spent on a celebration of a lifetime. Please just ask questions and get what you deserve. I've learned that the kindness and attention to detail I give as a service provider means the world. I wish that venue would learn that lesson before it's sterling name gets tarnished. read more

Really beautiful location. Fell in love with it right away! Such a nice location to have a wedding ceremony. We choose not to have our reception there, just our ceremony. The pleasantness ended after we signed the contract. We worked with a general manager. They were terrible to work with! Numerous calls that I made, ended with me feeling unwelcome and that I was taking up their time. I really felt like just a profit to them. They were concerned with business, not brides. On the day of our rehearsal, it was cold and we were waiting for all people to arrive. We stepped in the building to stay warm, and they asked us to leave the building because they set up a room for tomorrow's wedding. We were nowhere near that room so I don't see what the problem was. They were being stand off'ish and a little stern by not letting us use the building for our time reserved. Also on the rehearsal, we needed to use the outdoor plugs to time out our ceremony music with the coordinator. They said the would not turn on the power for us, we can only use power on the wedding day. So our rehearsal was cut short. They were not flexible or helpful at all. Quite terrible to work with. It gets worse! On the day of the wedding, I arrived at the Mansion no one was around. The hallway to our room was blocked off by purposefully placed chairs. Finally, someone came up to us and told us we couldn't use our room I reserved for us and pointed us elsewhere down dark hallways and dark stair cases. They had no explanation for that. They also messed up what room I had reserved, even though I had called their facility nearly a dozen times in a year. (Yet again, we're greeted with another uncalled for "no"!) The staff should have escorted us to to our new location to be helpful, especially after they said we couldn't have the room we reserved. They might be familiar with the layout, but we had no idea where to go. Staff was not helpful. As we went to the room, no lights were on, and when we got to the room, it was freezing and no lights were on (the rooms should have been lit and ready for us! A true warm welcoming for the special day!!), After guessing where else we needed to be Diane the manager then noticed I was there, and came up to me and said, "Now, you must leave the ground by 2....okay? Everyone off of the grounds by 2pm!" It would have been nice if she said, 'Hello, you must be Miss Blank, how are you today? Let me show you your dressing room.. can I get you a water?...' She was very rude by not even greeting any of us with a proper "Hello" and instead immediately telling me when I needed to be off their grounds. Once again, my bridal party, and mother commented that they felt very un-welcomed in their establishment. Another concern for other brides to be aware of. They didn't want guests to walk through the Mansion (even though I paid $300 for valet, partially, so guests could walk through the Mansion to experience it's beauty. They also didn't let us to use the library to sign our marriage license, even though I paid for my time in the Mansion. I paid a large sum of money and essentially their only service to be preformed was for them to set up chairs, and they didn't even do that right. We were 10 minutes away from the ceremony starting, and they're still setting up chairs! My guests were standing on the patio, waiting for them to finish. Setting up the chairs should have been completed well before the ceremony. They Expect the woman to say, I've worked here 15+ years, we don't ever do that, or can't do this, or have never received that kind of request... Again, belittling you for your thoughts and questions. Just because someone has worked there 15+ years, doesn't mean they are any good at representing your business with class and respect of others. Perhaps a bit jaded. Pine Knob gets away with treating their clients like this, because they can.. they have a beautiful location, but the worst customer service. Expect to feel like you are unwanted and wasting their time. read more

UPDATE: Yelp user Michelle W. (the troll who I was complaining about) just sent me a harassing message on Yelp! Thought I would share it with everyone (as well as the BBB and whoever her Manager is): "Has your mother never taught you that when you have nothing nice to say about someone and their NATURALLY curly hair, you dont say anything at all. Your behavior was that of a spoiled little brat! Which KARMA came back to bit you in your ass when you fell and hurt yourself and spent hours in the bathroom crying!!! NO it was not MY JOB to get anyone drinks. It was my job to be behind the bar making the drinks. I DID NOT snap at you to get a 'fellow' bridesmaid a drink. I asked you in a hurried tone if you would take your fellow bridesmaid a drink as I needed to stop you from walking away w/out getting your "fellow" bridesmaid a drink. An observate person would have seen that we had 300 guests we were serving drinks to and taken a drink to their fellow bridesmaid no questions asked. It never pays to be mean, inconsiderate & selfish!! KARMA always bites!!!!" Michelle W's Yelp user profile: http://www.yelp.com/user_details?userid=nVM9ot50lU8yJEiymmRq5w read more

I attended a wedding here over the weekend and if it wasn't at least a pretty spot I would have felt horrible for the bride and groom. The short hefty troll of a manager must be working for the fun police too. She was just wretched and treated everyone horribly. Please don't smile at the mansion or she will get you! She actually followed people around outside and drove her rusting out white van right up to prime customer parking and told people she was gonna shut the party down early! Wow. People were just arriving and having fun. No one was loud or rowdy. Ugh what a troll. She continued throughout the night... Snotty to everyone and just a downer for the whole party. Waitstaff, bartenders and food were all decent. DJ was stuck in the past... Very outdated play lists, even the old people thought so. He managed to clear the dance floor for most of the night. I would not recommend ruining a special occasion by using the mansion. read more

I got married at the mansion (not the carriage house) back in July of '09 (sorry a bit behind on my yelping!). For weddings this place is perfect. The scenery is gorgeous and I give it extra points for being unique. The mansion only holds about 150 people but the great thing about that is if the weather is nice (rarely in MI but sometimes) you can hold a lot of your wedding moments out of the patio and everyone can fit. There is a really nice room for the guys and a huge bridal suite overlooking the grounds for the ladies. We decided to feed the guests while we were taking pictures so they wouldn't have to wait and then had our meal (the bridal party) served upstairs in the bridal suite. We chose Hors de Vours dining which we received countless compliments on and the staff was nice enough to provide a whole separate spread upstairs. I found it reasonable priced and the ambiance was so much better than your average banquet hall. read more

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The Sunday brunch is only on days when they do not have a wedding but it is well worth a call to see when it is available. Yes, I know that there are better Sunday Brunches in the USA such as the Four Seasons Chicago but in the metro Detroit area it is hard to find anything brunch-wise other than on a Holiday so...........you should go to here. The food is very good..............no, not spectacular or as good as the old Ritz Carlton in Dearborn at $69.95 but at $19.95 per person at the Knob you will not find a better value Great picture taking on sunny days, one of the highest hills in Oakland County, friendly staff and a beautiful old home to eat in. read more

Beautiful Venue - very well kept, clean, spacious & private. The deck is a nice add in the back. Garden is great for photos!

You know once you have to start insulting the appearance and material things such as their "rusting" out van you really have no class, yourself. What ever happened to simply stating a review, bad or good, in a respective tone and manner? There is no need to insult or be dramatic. That makes your complaint seem unreliable, sad, and discredits your opinion. On that note.. I have booked my ceremony and reception with Pine Knob at the Carriage House and Pavilion. The reason for this is not just because the place is beautiful, but because Angie has been absolutely amazing with her same day responses and her ability to schedule a tour with no issues at all. There were other venues that did not get back to me, or whom actually sent me a message that was meant for another bride. I wonder if that bride even got the message. I tested Angie when I met her in person by memorizing their pricing, website, etc. She passed with excellence and answered beautifully. I have had no issues so far and do not expect to based on my experience so far. They have been great. read more

We just had a wedding here, just the reception. Cannot say enough good things about this venue. Lisa was amazing helping us to coordinate all the details. the staff was very warm, friendly and always ready to help. all of our guests raved about the food, the atmosphere was magical. If you are looking for an event venue check out the Mansion you won't be sorry read more

A+++ venue. The Pine Knob Mansion was a pleasure to work with from the beginning. Kurt, Corinna, and Angie we accessible and always accommodating. The gardens, dining room, and bridal suite are stunning and made for gorgeous pictures. We received so many compliments from guests on the gardens and food! I would pick this venue again in a heartbeat! read more

I am compelled to write this review because I couldn't have asked for better, more personalized service than what I received from my first phone call to Pine Knob to the moment I received my prompt refund of security deposit (within days) at the end. We hosted an engagement party for 90 guests at the Carriage House and brunch for 22 at the Mansion that same weekend for out-of-town guests. Seamless, beautiful, great food presented beautifully by friendly helpful staff, clean, every detail attended to, gorgeous setting, accessible during planning. I am not experienced with event planning. Lisa, event coordinator, helped with every detail along with the lovely ladies in the office, whose names I am embarrassed not to recall. I didn't know what I didn't know and they guided me every step of the way. There was no guessing; every detail was perfect. Lisa managed set up by various vendors. If I tried to find fault, I might suggest they straighten the coat closet..that's about as critical as I can get with this great venue. Seriously...they are terrific. I just became a Yelper! read more

Our family just had easter brunch at the Carriage house. I wish we had made other plans. It was not what we had expected. The price was OUTRAGEOUS! $40 a plate. What we did not know was that drinks were NOT included. They had a drink menu on each table and there were no prices listed anywhere on the list so we assumed that since we already paid an arm and leg to get in, the drinks were included in the price. They seat way too many people. When you go the buffet there is no organization to it. Just table all put out and everyone is bumping in to each other. It was loud and hard to catch up with family that we hadn't seen. I still just really cannot get over the price. People were taking candy from the table on the way out and I overheard the server say "you cannot have anymore candy, we need to save it for the next seating." So with all that money they made off of us, we couldn't take a bite sized 10 cent candy bar home with us. read more