"There's a beautiful full moon rising
Above the mansion on the hill"
(Bruce Springsteen -Mansion on the Hill)
We went to a wedding at this mansion on a hill yesterday, and walked away pretty darned impressed.
The mansion is a 12,500 square foot Italian Villa built back in 1907. Some of the features include a beautiful back lawn and semi-covered patio, a big room that hosted the wedding ceremony, and later on the DJ station and dance floor, and a very large and elegant dining room for our plated dinner.
After the wedding reception. A cocktail hour was held outdoors on the patio. There was a full bar on the left side, and trays of hot and cold appetizers on the right side. I especially enjoyed the meatballs, bruschetta, and stuffed mushrooms.
The outdoor component of the wedding was quite lovely -lots of scenic greenery, some opulent classically themed statues, seating on the patio, and an outdoor bar.
Dinner was served in the big dining room for about 150 guests. We started off with big fluffy rolls and a nice strawberry, tomato, and goat cheese salad. Next up was the pasta course of mushroom ravioli and ziti with tomato sauce.
The meal was three entrees (chicken, beef, and eggplant rollatini) and roast vegetables. The chicken was great -very moist and tender, and the eggplant was simply delicious.
We really enjoyed our experience here, and the only quibble we had involved the huge portable vents that ran from the outdoor AC equipment into the room where the ceremony was held. They blew a tsunami of arctic air into the back of the room that was so cold, people literally relocated their chairs away from the frigid blast. read more