I cannot say enough positive things about the St. Germain team! Carrie was attentive, patient, and…read moreso helpful throughout the planning process. She responded to my questions quickly and was always willing to adjust our invoices or provide recommendations. They are also the most affordable company I've found in the DC area. On site, the catering team went above and beyond to ensure our events went seamlessly. I have never had guests compliment the staff and the menu as much as they did with St. Germain! As the event coordinator, I appreciated that Ceecho, Donal, and Johnny checked in with me throughout the event, quickly adjusted to the schedule changes, and were efficient and helpful throughout the set up and tear down process. I highly recommend Saint Germain for our next catered function in DC! We will be a repeat customer for sure!

Very little meat provided for the sandwiches - too much bread and lettuce- confusion over delivery…read moreaddress as well

the dress I ordered was to big. took over two months to get. I asked for a refund and they stopped…read moreemailing me. this place is a scam to say the least.

Now that I'm more a year out from doing battle with the wedding industrial complex, I can finally…read moreput pen to paper about how much Pollyanna Events helped us with our big day. As a person who has experience with event planning, I knew I just needed someone who wasn't me or my spouse to coordinate some of those last minute details and to keep track of all of the pieces that go into a event (it also helped to have a professional to talk my wedding crazed spouse through stuff and stop bothering me about it). I am NOT one of those women who have been planning their wedding day since I was a little girl, so it was refreshing to talk mostly logistics and best practices without feeling like a bridezilla (I'm looking at you, Macy's registry who kept trying to register me for frilly plates that I didn't want). Sarah met with me for coffee to walk me through the range of day of coordinator versus full wedding planning packages, and I felt instantly comfortable with her. Since we were approximately six weeks out from the wedding, we did end up going with day-of coordination. Sam was my day of coordinator (with an assist from Kate), and they did such an excellent job. Prior to the event, Sam definitely talked me through one of my freakout moments when the venue "unapproved" our seating chart the day before and wanted to exile a table to 150 feet away from everyone else. Sam ensured that we stayed on schedule and that I had food, and remained professional and calm throughout the whole event. Seriously, I cannot recommend Pollyanna Events highly enough! Note: Pollyanna Events explicitly states that they're feminist on their yelp business description, and their literature with their package pricing was literally one of the first wedding industry items where I saw LGBT couples, interracial couples, and older couples. I was also determined to try to direct my wedding business to women owned or minority owned businesses, and I'm so happy I found such an excellent one.

Living Social had a deal where you would pay $100 for a personal chef from Insatiable Bites to come…read moreto your home and prepare a 3 course meal for 2 people that included wine. I thought, gee, this sounds pretty awesome, let me give it a whirl. The personal chef, in this case it was the owner Rakita, comes to your home with her own ingredients/food and prepares the entire meal for you. They do use your pots/pans and cooking utensils. The only thing they require of you is a working stove and oven, other than that, you can sit back and relax and have them cook and CLEAN UP for you. Yes, you read that correctly, they even wash the dishes and clean up after preparing the meal. They serve you the wine and all of your courses, so you literally can sit back and relax. Who's the genius that thought of this idea because I can truly get used to this!!!! I was able to choose my menu from her various selections of a prefix menu. I decided on the "Southern/Cajun Influenced" dinner. This included: Appetizers - Deviled Eggs Main Course: Smothered Chicken with Braised Collard Greens and Seasoned Potatoes Dessert: Signature Pound Cake. Everything was delicious! Granted a few issues occured with the potatoes and chicken not being cooked thoroughly, but Rakita promptly corrected the issue. The portions were plenty for 2 people to devour. I would've loved bigger slices of cake (it was jammin' on the one) but I'm a little on the greedy side when it comes to delicious desserts, so what would you expect from me! If you plan on booking this catering company for an occasion, you must BOOK EARLY! Weekends are understandably their busiest time, but if you plan well in advance I'm sure they will be able to accommodate your schedule. Also, after you do book your catering experience, make sure you request a confirmation/reminder email from the staff because I experienced some confusion on the date of my dinner. Keep in mind that they serve Hyattsville and surrounding areas. Check with IB to make sure they serve your area. They not only cater romantic dinners for 2 like I requested, but they also cater private events/celebrations, teach culinary demonstrations and wine/food pairings. IB also has gift certificates available. All and all I enjoyed my personal chef experience. Rakita was a very friendly, professional and down to earth person, who just so happens to be able to cook her tail off! Kudos to Insatiable Bites, a creative idea that I'm sure will continue to grow and grow!

Chef Rakita was wonderful! She arrived on time and was very professional. We learned how to make…read moremuffins which went along with our diet and she tailored the meal to fit our diet as well. She also gave us some great cooking tips. We had a great time chatting with her. The food was delicious and we will be incorporating all of her dishes to our meal rotations! Great idea for a tasty meal prepared in the comfort of your own home. She also did all the cleaning up afterward - leaving our kitchen in better shape then she found it.

My friend celebrated her birthday here and we really enjoyed ourselves. This night they held their…read morespoken word night event with an after party to follow. We paid $30 to park and parked right outside the venue. The staff were friendly. We reserved 3 tables near the stage which provided a phenomenal view of the artists performing. Karma had two options for food by way of a food truck and a Jamaican catering company. We ordered the oxtails, peas and rice, and cabbage. The food was delicious. I would definitely recommend Karma DC to those who want a nice night out with friends or that special someone.

Before You Even Get In The location is completely…read moreunappealing: It's in a shady neighborhood, with broken glass and homeless people. Expect a thorough pat down upon entry; the security screening makes airport security feel relaxed by comparison. Inside the Club: An Abysmal Bar Once you manage to get inside, the bar selection is absolutely abysmal: No Wine: Zero options--no white, no red, and no bubbly. Cocktail Disaster: They either lack the basic ingredients or the staff has no idea/doesn't care to check how to make even a simple cocktail. The only choice is essentially beer or a crude mix: "point to a bottle of hard liquor and then to a juice/tonic to mix it with." The sound quality also leaves a lot to be desired. The Scam of a Seating Section If you decide to pay extra (in our case, double the ticket price) for a table, just forget about it. The club is a single-level space. Depending on the event organizers, there is a very good chance you are paying a premium for a loveseat located behind a standing crowd. Our designated seating section was closer to the bar, half-blocked by pillars. On top of that the organizers refused to put up barriers or enforce different zones for different ticket holders. People who were supposed to be in the standing area kept walking in and standing right in front of our table, completely blocking the view. The organizer's response: "we can't do anything". Sounds to me like, "We won't do anything because we already scammed you".

I am so glad we had Tara help us with our wedding, even though it was relatively small and not that…read morecomplex. She gives you options about her level of involvement and is very clear about terms, costs, etc. of her services, always checking in before doing something if it's going to cost more. She was amazingly pro-active and thought of things I never would have (and didn't care to) in terms of details and liaising with our hotel, caterers, etc. It took about a week of working with her before I realized I genuinely didn't have to worry about much as I knew that if I didn't think of something, she would, an in time to take care of it. She also went above and beyond in terms of prepping things like creative menus, cute ways to display seating charts, etc. She's also personal and supportive and lends an air of "this is under control" to the planning and event.

We hired Tara as our day-of wedding coordinator and she was fantastic. She also helped us with…read morechecklists and advice prior to our wedding day...a great resource! Tara was a great go-between for us and the staff at our venue, who were not always on the same page as my husband and I. She stood up for what we wanted and made great decisions. A traffic accident caused long delays on the route to our venue and Tara called all of our venues to notify them of the accident and suggest they leave extra time to arrive. We ended up only delaying the ceremony by 10 or 15 minutes. I definitely recommend Tara and Emerald Engagements!

TL;DR Troy's events are much more than ordinary events. They're for those who live for the…read moreunexpected moments and making unexpected connections. When we go to events, most of us generally have expectations of what they normally entail. Some of us will begin to dismiss the possibilities of the unexpected. In my own observation and experience, Troy's events are not those events. Troy is not the planner you collaborate with when you want a normal event. He specializes in the unexpected. However, there are those of us that understands that every waking moment is unexpected. Everyday, we meet all kinds of people. But what is it about meeting them at a networking event, holiday party or wedding makes the unexpected come out of some. You will meet these people at Troy's events whether out of familiar faces or out of strangers you are soon to meet. If you're a event's professional in DC and you're not attending these events, you're missing out on making lasting connections. These are the kind of connections that propels personal and professional growth. In my past experiences. I've partied through the stroke of midnight with friends I made that evening at his Studio 54 DC New Years Eve Party. Set at the Blind Whino artistic venue, this event was a step out of reality and memorable. At the MES mixers, I've caught myself in the a truly diverse mix of DC young professionals ranging between artisans, techies, musicians, natural-born hustlers and jet-setters. The connections I've made so far can be best described as relationships fused between business and friendship. If you're a DC professional networker, a couple planning your big day, or living for those truly unique experiences, check out Troyal Events.

We hired Troy about eight months before our event, when it became clear our wedding was becoming…read morelarger than we were capable of handling. He helped us design the entire day, and the result was more beautiful that we could have ever imagined. We definitely felt he took the time to create a personal, individualized reception for us, as opposed to just pulling from a usual "bag of tricks." Troy was also invaluable by running our ceremony and rehearsal. He made sure we were calm, prepared, and stayed on schedule. We knew we didn't have to worry about any details besides sharing the day with our friends and family. The peace of mind was tremendous, and we couldn't have done it without him. Troy's professionalism and passion for his work is unparalleled, and I highly recommend you consider him to be a part of your next event.