Friday, May 4, 2012

Nanina's in the Park






This hall is absolutely beautiful but if you don't have a larger guest list and a big budget, don't bother.
They don't negotiate much on price or minimum head count.

For January and February the minimum was 175 people and the cost was $175 per person.
For the rest of the year they really try to lock you at 200 people at about $250- $275 per person.

They do one wedding at a time and they have a nice look to the place but the reviews on food have been mixed.

For what they are charging they should be flawless and the food should be out of this world
all the time.



Wednesday, May 2, 2012

IL Villagio - Carlstadt, NJ

IL Villagio was suggested a few times an a nice and yet affordable option so we checked it out.
I had been in their small room on the restaurant side last year for a Rehearsal Dinner. The place was nice, the food was very good and the service was wonderful.

The place has been redone recently and is brand new looking both inside and out. It is clean and elegant. While the outside isn't super fancy it is nice.
 It does only one wedding at a time but keep in mind there is a restaurant and small party room on the other side of the building. When walking in you are greeting by someone who either show you to the dining room or lead you to the bar in the lobby where the cocktail hour will start. They have their cold display set up there. The hot foods are in a small room next to the lobby. There is plenty of seating for guests during cocktail hour but they are split between the small room and the lobby bar area.


After cocktail your guests will move to the main ballroom which is beautiful. It is not a huge room but will hold about 200 people comfortablly.
They have it set up with a small raised stage type area off the bar for the couple and/ or bridal party or band.


If you were to have a venetian hour it would be set up in the cocktail hour room (not the lobby).

We were quoted  for saturdays - $165 after taxes and all for April and $195 for May, June, July and September.

We were told the prices would be negotiated once we set a date and that we can expect them to come down a bit but we were still put off by the very high starting price. The cocktail hour in the lobby was something that turned off my sister in-law as well. They would have people coming in and out the front entrance while your guests are eating.




If you can get a good price quote and are having a smaller wedding, I think the food and service here are great.

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Seasons - Washington Towship, NJ

Seasons is beauiful. It is clean and elegant and right off the Garden State Parkway which makes it very easy to get to.
They have 2 weddings at a time one larger wedding downstairs and one smaller upstairs. The upstairs room holds about 200 people. I have personally attended a wedding with 165 people and there was more than enough room both at the cocktail hour and the reception. We danced all night and there was plenty of room on the dance floor.





My personal opinon is that you can't go wrong with this choice. It is owned by the same people who have the Venetian and their reputation for food and service is well known. They don't even offer you an option for a food tasting because they are that confident.
The man we spoke with was not very friendly and he barely gave us a tour or tried to sell the place. He didn't give us a ton of info but he gave us a quote for a Saturday night in April for a minimum of 150 people at $185 per person. He quickly dropped down to $175 with a full venetian hour added in.