Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

I need to have my wedding on a sat in june of 2006. i have been to tons of catering halls, but nothing has seemed just right yet. I always thought my wedding would be soo special... but a lot of the catering halls seem so blah, corny, tacky. Some of the ones that are decent are very expensive for what they are offering. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to pick a hall? am i running out of time?
Here are some of my picks so far...
--Westbury Manor... very cute, but not as posh and glamourous as i had always imagined. but i like the outdoor area.
--Villa lombardi... my mom luvs it there(says the food is great), the price was the lowest out of all the ones i am considering. overall good package. I liked the big cocktail room. Place was big and pretty. But i dont like the "fake villa" environment... everything is pretty and clean and new, but seems somehow manufactured.
--Glen Island Harbour Club... this is the latest one i visited. My fiance and i luved the water and the boats... inside was ok--nice clean very pretty... but not glamourous either. We dont know anything about the food or the service. The price was a little bit higher than the rest. But so far we really liked this one.
--Tavern on the green... this one is more my style.. i luv the city, luv that we are in central park. The room is ok, everything is luxurious. Pricetag not sooo bad. but food seems to be kinda minimal and i heard that it was really bad (from a friend and from restaurant reviews on the internet). Nothing was tacky.
--Flowerfield... my fiance luved this one. The cocktail room is nice, luved the bridal suite and the grooms lounge. However it is way out of the way and hard to get to. Nothing there seems very expensive or luxurious. Price to me seems way high for the quality of the room and the location.
--Harrison house at glen cove--- seemed to be nice --- had the high class look i was going for. Price is high and i am worried about the food and the service.
--Oheka Castle=== my favorite of course! Should i just beg my parents and suck up the big cost? is a wedding really worth all this money? Is there anything out there that is better?

Please help... i am so confused and this is making my engagement period sooo stressful.
Thanx for those of you who read this long post.

Message edited 2/22/2005 8:32:22 PM.

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

First decide what the tone and size of your wedding will be. Do you want ultra formal with 300 people, or home-like with 100 people.

Decide what time of year and day you'd like it. If it's at nighttime in winter, teh grounds won't matter so much, but for an afternoon in May you'll want beautiful grounds for photos and maybe an outdoor cocktail hour.

Then decide some details that are important to you:

Does it have to be one wedding at a time?
Will you be using the site for your ceremony as well?
Do you want an outdoor cocktail hour?
Do you prefer a country club setting, a mansion, a modern ball room, on a yacht, on the beach?
How many guests can you guarantee?
How many guests will you need room for at maximum?
How much are you willing to pay?
What area do you want to get married in?

After you've answered some of these questions, get the NY sites and services magazine (about $6 or go to the website...google wedding sites and services)

in the magazine it has a page for each of many reception halls in the area. it gives the type of food, # of people, price range, sample menu, etc. Go through the book a few times, crossing out any places that are out of your price range, too far away, not in the right setting, don't hold enough people, have more than one wedding if you want exclusivity, etc. Also cross out anything you just don't like the look of, etc. Go through it a few times, and circle a few that you think are really great, then come on LIW and other sites, check out some reviews and photos from prior weddings and narrow it down to the ones you really like. Then make a few appointments and there you go! HTH

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

I chose mine because the price was right, I loved the rooms, the food was great, couldnt beat the price we got and to top it all off the BM was the nicest person we had met with overall.

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

For us it was the following
1.. Price..we wanted Sat nite in May/Juneand its usually $$ so we needed somewhere that offered a decent price yet let us have alot of food..customized to our liking.
2. Dh wanted skylights and waterview at night
3. A place that had been around for a while

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

i chose mine because it felt perfect

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

When I pulled into the parking lot I just knew it was it!

But you have to think practically about the ones you visit.

Is it in price range?
Is it in a comfortable distance from youself and your families?
How many weddings can they do? Do you want a place that does more than one?
What type of scenery are you looking for, on the water? etc?
There are so many things to think about when you choose, you should right out important questions with your FH

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

Good Luck.....you'll find the perfect place for you!

Congrats & Happy Planning!

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

---

--Villa lombardi... my mom luvs it there(says the food is great), the price was the lowest out of all the ones i am considering. overall good package. I liked the big cocktail room. Place was big and pretty. But i dont like the "fake villa" environment... everything is pretty and clean and new, but seems somehow manufactured.

---

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

Go with your heart, your gut and your wallet!

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

1. $$$

2. $$$

3. $$$

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

It helps to narrow it down by knowing about how many people you are going to have at the wedding and find the places that can hold your maximum -
When you walk into the catering hall for you, you will know it right away -
everyone is different and has different opinions - that is why so many catering halls can exist -
GOOD LUCK - you will figure it out!

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

If you think your parents can afford it, than go for Oheka castle! I would beg and plead..
We definately could not afford it. I don't know if its worth all that money in one night, but the pics look great and its definately a fairytale wedding at the castel.

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

Did you try Watermill or Lombardis on the Sound which is owned by villa lombardis and use to be the port jeff country club--someone I know is getting married there and is brand new. I know these just add to the problem but maybe you will find something you like.

You also said you want it on sat if you want to make it a little cheaper you could look at Friday night. My hall was $40 a head cheaper for fri vs sat.

It wasn't hard for me to pick a place I narrowed it down to 2 Watermill & carlye and after some real thinking my FI and I realized that to have it at the carlye it would be a fortune almost double what we are paying at the Watermill. You have to love the place so don't settle!
Good luck

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

you'll know you're place when you find it, but IMO, do NOT go into so much debt for one night.

the wedding is just one day, and having to struggle in the days to follow may put s huge strain on the relationship.

i've seen this happen plenty of times...

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

I don't know how many people you are having so, some halls maybe to small.

I also found a lot of halls to be very tacky and I was getting discouraged about finding the right hall. Money was a big factor for me so of course I couldn't have the wedding at places I really wanted.(Okeha castle!)

Try Lands End, Lombardis on the sound, Watermill, One of the three Hamlets (Commack, Hauppauge and Mount Sinai), if you like the castle look try, The Bourne mansion, The Vanderbilt mansion, or Louis the XIV. Out of the 20 halls I looked at, I liked these the most. Not one of them were very glitzy or over done, if that is what you are looking for.

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

Have you tried the Bourne?

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Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

We actually chose Westbury Manor because it wasn't "posh". We love the simplicity and warm feeling we feel when we walked in. We love the sound the old wood floors make under the plush carpeting when we walk in the door. This was our only place we seriously looked at. I've been to other places with friends to just "check it out". Those places were "shiny" and actually very cold! Water ponds and fountains inside a shiny marbley (?) building wasn't the feel we were going for. Others, like many of my friends, love these places and these places made their weddings beautiful... I guess what I'm trying to say is...it's your own personal taste, dream, etc. I'm sure which ever place you two choose will be perfect!

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

We chose the Riviera because we wanted to be on the water...we only looked at places on the water and that is the one we liked the best....

Like the other girls said, you need to figure out what it is that you really want for your wedding and then narrow down the choices...

I too loved Oheka, but the price was just not worth one night....I already feel guilty about how much money my parents are laying out....

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

I know it sounds weird, but for me it just felt right when I walked into Flowerfield. I just knew that was where it needed to be. I looked at about 17 places, and kept going back to FF. I think in your heart you just know it. It sounds to me like Oheka is your place.

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

When we were in your situation and nothing seemed quite right, we kept looking and we kept an open mind. I am glad we did!!

I also talked to Tavern on the Green and I thought they gave a pretty good deal, considering their reputation, and it is so pretty there.

Oheka is great, but not if you will go broke!!

I've been to some weddings that were at expensive halls and the people tried to cut back on other things to make up for it. I would not recommend that. For example, don't get married at Oheka and have low end flowers, cheap invitations, etc. JMO!! I went to one that was at one of the more costly places and everything was top notch, and that is something to remember (and I still remember many details)!

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

Honestly, I didn't even realize I had picked. I went to see about I think 6 halls and realized I was comparing them all to the first one I visited. That's how I knew.

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

I just knew it when I saw it. We visited A LOT of places, from temples to halls to gardens, but when we saw our place, we just knew. Keep looking. There are so many wonderful places out there, you'll know it when you see it. I truly believe that.

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

How do you feel about them?? What is your gut telling you??

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

Its sounds like you need to hire a wedding planner who could possibly help recommend venues that you might like.

Re: Help!!! how did u pick a catering hall?

We chose ours based on cost, location, lack of shine and that it's one wedding at a time.

Have you considered some of the hotels in manhattan, such as the Roosevelt Hotel?