A beautiful park! It was the perfect place for the Head of the Riverfront Regatta wasn't pleased…read morewith the parking situation but that had nothing to do with the park. When the crew races are there it is extremely packed so it's not really a good time to take a leisurely stroll as there are literally thousands of people there. Beautiful place to take pictures by the water or the boathouse especially at this time of the year with the leaves.

What a hidden gem within Hartford! I was here for a low-key corporate picnic. The Boathouse sits…read moreright on the Connecticut River and functions as both practical boathouse (lower level) and event space (upper level). The parking was incredibly convenient and directions to the Boathouse itself were very clear. We did have a small spot of difficulty finding the door to go to the upper level however. Once upstairs, the view of the CT River, East Hartford, and Hartford was spectacular. The late summer afternoon sun plus faint breeze made for a perfectly comfortable time. People mingled at standing tables and around the benches on the upper deck (and there were a respectable number of benches, which isn't often the case). Inside the event space were polished wooden floors and high ceilings. A coworker noted the restrooms were somewhat oddly placed behind a long hallway closed off by a door and there were some cobwebs in the window frames, but otherwise the space was quite nice. The staff at the bar on the deck poured wine just shy of the adjective "liberal" which was great. However, some other coworkers had to request adjustments of the food arrangement to prevent cross-contamination for those with allergies (adjustments were made promptly). The food - seasonal tapenade for appetizers and build-your-own pasta bar for the main - were well done otherwise with a good array of options. On the whole, a respectable event space on a scenic river. There were other groups actively using the rowing space/lower level, but you could barely tell because the upper level was high enough away.

Went with a friend for the 90min archery class held at the Glastonbury Boathouse. Learned aiming…read moreand positional bow techniques which were quite helpful. Was a fun and different activity to try! The instructor was friendly and the class size was small.

I come here pretty frequently to take a stroll and/or get some work done…read more There is a second story to the boathouse with outlets!! I believe this closes at sunset but I've been out here at sunrise and it's been pretty quiet until 9:30 am or so. There are a few walking trails and the docks/front of the boathouse (the cement areas) do flood during heavy rain. Definitely a Glastonbury community symbol... :) Lots of kids fishing on the dock/by the river. Playground on the premises & then the Glastonbury parks and rec manages the fields behind the clubhouse. I've been here when there was a wedding and it seemed intimate and romantic. I'm a big fan of this spot!

4.5 stars Overall I had a great experience working with the…read moreowners of this place and booking a bridal shower for my friend being out of town. I called, they gave me a quote and several days to decide. Once I decided, they send me a contract through email and I mailed back the contract with the check. The place is amazingly beautiful. The room was decorated very nicely. The staff were all very young, probably high school students and greeted us outside in the cold. Once everyone was inside, they service our food. The scones were delicious, tasted home made and the jams and creams were equally tasty. The sandwiches were okay, a little dry but the deserts were just as good as the scones. My only beef about the whole experience was that they used Stash tea bags for the afternoon tea. I mean anyone could buy those tea from the supermarkets. If you go to a place designated for afternoon tea, you would expect at least some loose leaf teas allowing the customers to smell, appreciate, and enjoy all the different tea flavors. If they had loose leaf tea, it would elevate the whole experience ten fold. Also, they had some sort of punch on the side, with no explanation and the punch pitcher did not work so guests couldn't really enjoy it until the very end. The house can host two parties, one on the second floor and the other one on the main floor. The owners live in the same building. There are plenty of parking at the house and also across the street because the owners own that too.

Was looking for a venue for my bridal shower that would have a "tea party" theme. With all my…read moresearching, this was one of the first places to come up! I had no idea this place existed and I am so glad I found it. We ended up having a Bridal Brunch on a Sunday and it was perfect. Mimosa table right as guests walked in, omelet station, etc. My bridesmaids were able to do all the decorating themselves, but you don't need much with the character in this historic home. Everyone was impressed when they walked in. Great venue for a bridal shower, baby shower, etc. Parking is a bit of a mess but staff is very helpful when guests arrive.

Belongs to the town of Manchester. Take that Umesh! Great place! Has shows all year around and the…read moregreatest fourth of July fireworks in the state. Been going there every since I was a baby. And NO ONE will EVER put a stop to that! Mark my words!

I held a family reunion at the Keney Park Pond House. I feel it was the ideal spot the fee was…read morevery reasonable I got a clean facility with restrooms, the use of two rooms,all the tables and chairs I required. There was a freezer, a warmer for trays, a very nice kitchen with a fridge, and sliding doors that led to a beautiful view of the pond. There was a nice wooden platform in front of the pond which was perfect for a family picture. I believe there's also a little Bridge. People fish out in the pond, the park has a public swimming pool,there are little grills and tables for people to cook out there. I had plenty of room to put up my full volleyball set, to put out a horseshoe set,for the teens to play football, for double dutch, etc. Although Keney Park sometimes gets a bad rap, we felt safe. Outside of people who were interested in possibly renting the place, or the occasional person knocking on the locked door, who might've wanted to use the bathroom, we really weren't bothered. And the facilities manager tells you that you are not required to allow people to use the bathroom because it's personally rented for your use it's not for public use. I felt it was perfect for our event, I was comfortable. Just leave the place the way you receive it. Theres a dumpster outside. Book in advance, I was only able to get a Sunday because this place books up quick. A great venue in Hartford.

Attended family baby jack and Jill here. Very nice place with excellent staff and food.read more

"Back in the banquet line Some get the gravy"…read more( Joni Mitchell) We attended a "Year In Review" celebratory dinner for a charitable organization we've supported for years, and the good folks at Farminton Gardens served well over 100 guests flawlessly in their banquet room. We started off in their gorgeous atrium bar for a glass of wine and chit chat before we were seated in their main banquet room. The room was quite large and easily accomodated our group. There was a podium up front and two video screens to display slide shows and the like. The sound and video systems were excellent. The dinner buffet line was set up in the rear of the room and we were called up table by table. We were very impressed by the variety and quality- rolls, salad, asparagus spears, mushroom polenta, salmon, short ribs, and cipollini onions. Dessert was individual trays of pastries and a single creme brulee for each table. This was my first visit to Farmington Gardens and I walked away very impressed with the way they handled our event.

I spent most of my youth growing up in Bristol and I think I only went to the Carousel Museum one…read moretime. Now, as a grown adult who lives thousands of miles away in Los Angeles, it was time to revisit this place on a recent trip back to the nutmeg state. My wife and I ended up coming here on a Wednesday morning because we collect museum magnets and we figured Bristol was a fun little spot to grab one of these. The building itself is insanely beautiful and gave me some wild flashbacks. From the moment we walked into this place to the second we left we are surrounded by hundreds of beautiful vintage carousels from the 1800's up to more recent times. On top of having the carousel's themselves they had binders with info on everything so you could absolutely learn every possibly detail about these things and that's so cool. On top of the carousels, they had a big section dedicated to Lake Compounce which is where I practically lived as a kid. It was super interesting to see photos from the original park, old photos of the Wildcat Coaster from back in the day, and a ton of old photos and memorabilia from old rides and the park itself. Are we done? No, they also had a fire museum upstairs and even though it's not something that really interests me, it was still a cool little bonus at the end of our tour. Overall, The Carousel Museum is such a cool spot and definitely somewhere everyone in Connecticut should go to at least once. It was really cool getting to see some of the same pieces I saw as a little kid 30+ years later. This was a wonderful time.

What a cool place! I loved learning about the carousel making process, admiring all the cool art…read morepieces, and getting a little history at the same time. I never realized how much work goes into making a carousal ride and character happen. You can see so many unique pieces from horses to lobsters! There's even a real carousel from Italy that kids and adults and ride and a really robust kid play area. The museum does hold events although I must caveat the overall vibe can be a little creepy. Not in a ghost way, but more like the artists can give a bit of that old school odd feel. Make sure you visit before booking an event, but there must be a venn diagram between people who love the vibe here and people who love halloween / eccentric things! There's a smaller event space downstairs (up to about 30 people) and the large event space upstairs must hold 150+ people comfortably.

One of the professional organizations I belong to had our end of the year meeting and awards…read moreceremony here tonight. It was my first visit to the Gallery and I walked out pretty impressed. We were in a big room with a bar off to the side, a big central area for the dining tables, podium and speaker, and a big alcove off to the other side for the buffet dinner stations. Dinner was terrific- salad and pasta and potatoes and fish and chicken and vegetables and two carving stations. Dessert was a big slab of vanilla ice cream cake with a chocolate crust and chocolate syrup drizzle. The servers and bartenders we encountered were all very professional and pleasant. I spoke to our group member that organized the dinner and was pleasantly surprised at the very reasonable cost for our meal. I'm pretty sure we will book a few more meetings there for our 2018-19 year.

Today we celebrated my sister bestie Mrs. Waynette Best 50th Birthday. The Gallery prepared a…read moredelicious buffet dinner. Chicken Picante, mixed veggies, baked potatoes, penne pasta with ala vodka and bake cod was tender and scrumptious. They also had a carving station with bake ham & roast beef was banging. Ok got to go there's ooen bar. Check out the pics.