Help! Venue question!

[QueenG]

Hello fellow Brides... I have a somewhat silly question. How does one actually figure out what venues exist in their area? I am living in suburban Philadelphia and looking for the perfect place for the reception but don''t know where to start! I assume people look in bridal magazines, but what I''m looking for is something perhaps a little different, not necessarily THE places that people in this area would typically have their reception at. F is an artist-type and is looking to be more creative, and really he has NO idea what''s out there. At. All. Are there websites/books/magazines that cater to this problem? I just need some lists/pictures/information other than the typical hotel (not that a hotel is necessarily "typical", but we''re looking to branch out a bit and see what''s out there). Thank you so much in advance!

 

[meresal]

Lioness, have you thought about museums? You can usually call or go by and pick up their packets.

 

[Octavia]

Yay, I love having Philly people here! Probably the best website for venues around here is Partyspace, which covers the city and surrounding areas. There are tons of non-traditional venues around this area so you can pretty much take you pic of old mansions, museums, galleries, arboretums...so much to choose from!

If you're looking to be in the city, PAFA is gorgeous. It was a bit too expensive for us, and we wanted to have our wedding in the suburbs, but I still think longingly of it sometimes. The Penn Archaeology Museum can be rented, as can the Constitution Center, Independence Seaport Museum, the Mutter Museum (if you're feeling macabre), the Art Alliance, the Artesano Iron Works Gallery (which is relatively new as a wedding venue, I think), the North Waiting Room at 30th Street Station, and more.

In the suburbs, Tyler Arboretum in Media is beautiful. Right next door is Ridley Creek State Park, where you can rent the gardens and mansion, but they don't advertise so you have to actually contact the park office for info. The woman at the Community Arts Center in Wallingford is really nice, but I didn't actually get a chance to check it out before we booked our venue. The Abington Arts Center was also on my original list. There are also a number of farms and barns around that have been renovated to be great venues. And if you're willing to pay the asking price, the Phoenixville Foundry and Winterthur are both awesome venues.

There are also some fun venues in Delaware, like the Delaware Center for Contemporary Arts, the Horticultural Society, and a number of vineyards. Depending on which suburb you're in, Wilmington isn't too far (and no sales tax!).

Let me know if you need any more Philly-centric wedding help, I'm always glad to share my experiences so far. Congratulations, and good luck with the planning

 

[PilsnPinkysMom]

I''m not sure if you''re game for this, but a lot of wedding coordinators offer a "venue finding" service. They''re usually aware of ALL possible reception & ceremony locations, many of which are not easy for the ''general public'' to find.

Just a thought

 

[QueenG]

Thanks, meresal! I am so new to this game that I din''t even consider just stopping by area museums and picking up info packets.

 

[Clairitek]

I found venues in the area where my wedding will be by googling caterers in the area (Rhode Island) and then looking at the list of venues where they have worked. This was pretty fruitful tonight as I added 15 more possible places to my list!

 

[QueenG]

Octavia! You are a G-dsend! I am actually pretty close to Media (which means I''m not too far from Delaware either), so I will definitely look into those options. PAFA IS amazing! I saw a former classmate''s wedding photos recently... what a gorgeous venue. It''s a shame about the huge site rental fee, plus the fact that the event can''t really start until 6:30 (and I''d probably have my ceremony there too). I actually "proposed" to my now-fiance before we started dating by asking him if he''d marry me at the Mutter Museum, but I think he''s not into it now since his mom will think it''s "disgusting". I kind of love it. Where are you having your reception, if you don''t mind sharing.

I would love any other advice you''d be willing to give! Our #1 is food, so any leads as to where to amazing food is would be great.

 

[Octavia]

Lioness, we're having both our ceremony and reception at Ridley Creek. It's completely DIY, so not for people who are looking for the typical "country club package," but we love it! One of the nice things is that we had free reign for caterers rather than being locked into an exclusive caterer or small list. We're using Sage Catering, they're based in Berwyn and have been fantastic so far. Our tasting was soooo good, and the event coordinator I've been working with, Darby, is a real sweetheart. We weren't thrilled with the other tasting we did, although that caterer gets good reviews, so I think it was a personality thing. People also seem to rave about Shackomaxon Catering, but it was so hard to schedule tastings on our crazy schedules, that when we loved Sage so much we just went with them instead of trying to set another tasting up.

One thing to be aware of is that many of the venues in the area are basically run by catering companies, so you don't have any choice about who to use. Glen Foerd and Knowlton are run by Conroy Catering; Jeffrey Miller is the exclusive caterer at Aldie Mansion, Tyler Arboretum, and a few others. The Old Mill in Rose Valley also has an exclusive caterer, I don't remember the name though. If food is your top priority, you may want to consider a venue that gives you at least a couple choices for your caterer, since IMO the food isn't as good when a caterer has a lock on the venue.

If you have an idea of your number of guests and things that are important or dealbreakers, I can probably suggest some other venue possibilities -- I feel like I've surfed through practically every venue in the tri-state area at one point or another!

 

[tropiqalkiwi]

Date: 12/2/2008 11:33:16 PM
Author: Clairitek
I found venues in the area where my wedding will be by googling caterers in the area (Rhode Island) and then looking at the list of venues where they have worked. This was pretty fruitful tonight as I added 15 more possible places to my list!

This is great advice! I just hit what I thought was a dead end in looking for my venue, but I''m finding so many new places by searching the venue list at area caterers. Thanks so much for sharing your idea!

 

[galvana]

the knot will give you a ton of venues in your area - i would also google it.

 

[Sparkalicious]

Along the same lines of asking a caterer or wedding planner - if you have any other vendors either booked or that you are interested in, you may consider asking them. Also, you can try searching The Knot or Wedding Channel.com for local venues.
Good luck!

 

[daught3rofEve]

I just found the most amazing website for pennsylvania weddings.

I searched through the Knot for wedding cakes and found this vendor, based out of Pittsburgh.

They have a list of all the places they deliver to, and it has a detailed list of over 75 venues.

Surely you could find something from this list that might at least give you a push in the right direction.

http://www.bethelbakery.com/wc3.asp



Hopefully this helps!

 

[sunnyd]

eventective.com is an...interesting site to look. It gives a lot of spots that aren''t on typical wedding websites (like theknot) but it doesn''t have links to the sites. An extra step, oh well.

I''ve found some of the best in local wedding mags though. They have a 10 page spread for Seattle!

 

[QueenG]

Thank you all so much for the helpful advice! I have a feeling that PS is going to be VERY helpful during this process!

 

[QueenG]

Octavia -- your caterers are a dream! I need to look into venues that they have contracts with b/c I have yet to have seen a comprehensive menu as delicious-sounding, diverse, and capable of catering to diverse dietary needs.

I also fell in love with the Artesano Iron Works in Manayunk. They are tied to Jeffrey Miller Catering... they seem to have QUITE a few venues all locked up. Do you know anything about them? Their options are a bit restricted, it seems. They also are tied to Culinary design Associates. Any thoughts on them?

 

[Octavia]

Yep, Jeffrey Miller seems to be everywhere. The only time I've had food from that company was this past summer when I was a guest at wedding at Aldie Mansion. I thought the food was good but not memorable. I was a little surprised that the passed hors d'oeuvres were kind of lukewarm and limp, since they have a full on-site kitchen right around the corner from where we were and it was 80 degrees out. For dinner, the couple offered a duet (beef and salmon) but I chose their vegetarian option (ravioli), and while they tasted good, it still felt a little uninspired. BUT this is only one wedding, and could be attributable to the couple's food choices as well as the caterer. If you go on The Knot, people always rave about Jeffrey Miller, so maybe I'm overly picky.

I don't know anything about Culinary Design Associates, but it's certainly worth checking them out. Tread warily if you look at a venue that uses Restaurant Associates, though (they mainly do large arts/cultural/museum venues, like the Kimmel Center). I've had a couple less-than-stellar experiences with them, albeit a few years ago. And (also a couple years ago) an organization I'm a member of had an event at one of the Finley Catering venues and I found them very difficult to work with. From what you said, I don't think their exclusive venues are your style anyway, though.

If I think of anything else, I'll let you know!

 

[Bex215]

Hey All! I''m also in the Philly area and having some issues with reception sites-they are all SO EXPENSIVE! We are on a major budget and have only 60 guests. I''m considering the Art Alliance because I am in LOVE with the space, but I''m going to break my budget to do it. Anyone have any non-traditional venue ideas for smaller weddings? I''m open to anything at this point...

 

[Octavia]

Hi Bex! Can you give a little more information, such as whether you plan to have the ceremony on-site, roughly how much your budget is, and whether there are any must-haves or must-not-haves for the venue? Also, would you consider renting out a restaurant (or part of a restaurant), which is usually cheaper than venue and catering? I''ve heard amazing things about Simon Pearce, but it looks like their private room only holds up to 40 -- but you could always call to ask! Another restaurant that I know does weddings is Pond. Also, if you''re willing to consider a Sunday wedding, you could do a brunch rather than dinner, which is a major cost-saver at restaurants! I''ll see if there are other great restaurants with space for private parties...and some of the BYOBs in the city will actually close to the public if you rent them out for the night, so that''s another option that might be relatively affordable.

I hope this helps a bit