Rhode Island

Reception Venues in Providence?

We're having a really simple ceremony in Roger Williams Park and would love to have a reasonably-priced reception in downtown Providence or somewhere else close to the park. (~$50 per person or less is what we're going for, but I understand that might be tricky to find in downtown Providence.) We're not picky about exactly what type of venue it is, as long as there can be dinner and some dancing! I'm going to look into some restaurants and some hotels, but would love any suggestions you guys may have!!

Re: Reception Venues in Providence?

  • Approximately how many people?
  • Oh right, that's important, haha. Probably 75-100 people.
  • RoyalOrientRoyalOrient member
    First Anniversary Combo Breaker First Comment
    edited May 2012
    You have quite a few options including hotels and restaurants in the downtown area. Bravo Brasserie has a private function room upstairs and the food is pretty good too. Also Cav has a function room avilable too.

    Wedding at Cav restaurant below
  • for that amount of people, you should check out Cafe Nuovo--very beautiful place, perfect for that number, and food is very good.  Also, try waterman grille too. Best wishes!
  • Cafe nuovo came to my mind as well, not sure on pricing but they have great space. Hotel Providence may be another option. I'm sure other girls with chime inn with great ideas.
  • We checked out the Dorrance before they were done for renovations - gorgeous space but it was more than $50 a person. I would check out Hotel providence to see how the price is.
    Wedding Countdown Ticker
  • Thank you guys so much! Now I'm trying to decide between Cafe Nuovo and Bravo Brasserie... Nuovo is beautiful and I'm in looove with the location, and the people are nice and flexible and willing to drop the price per person down to mid 40s... But Bravo is obviously cheaper (price pp in the 30s), and it's relatively nice... not quite such an obvious space for dancing, though. With Cafe Nuovo we'd probably creep a little past our budget, which was basically a random decision since I have the money to pay a little more, but I just feel guilty 'cause I want it to be a simple, intimate day and not some unreasonable show...

    Any advice?
  • I'm not sure what you mean by "show."  It's your wedding day so you should do what makes you happy, what you enjoy.  That doesn't mean you are putting on a show if you can afford something and you pay for it.  If it's something that makes you and your future husband happy then who cares what other people have to think anyway?  So, I would go for Cafe Nuovo because the place is stunning and the food is delish.  If it's a little past your budget but you really like it, you can cut corners in other ways.  I think the venue, food, and entertainment are the most important. 
  • edited May 2012
    I guess the only thing I'm concerned about with Cafe Nuovo is that it might feel too fancy. Our ceremony is going to be in a park under a tree, very minimalistic. We're somewhat nontraditional... no bridal party, no DJ (just a hooked up iPod), no big introductions, no planned speeches, etc. We want the whole day to feel really intimate, simple, and relaxed. (But I still want to be able to dance - we love to swing dance - and Bravo looks pretty squishy for that...) I don't plan on doing much (if any) decorating of either venue, except maybe simple centerpieces like candles or something.

    So anyway, do you think Cafe Nuovo can fit with that down-to-earth vision? Or is it too ornate? Any ideas for maintaining a relatively casual feel in such a grand space?
  • ACTUALLY, we visited Bravo today and felt soooooo much more comfortable there. It's our top pick now! Thanks for the suggestion, RoyalOrient!!!
  • In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_rhode-island_reception-venues-in-providence?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:122Discussion:af09af6f-bd83-476b-a0cb-13cdcbfef36ePost:610ea6e5-d029-4091-a0d2-c0cc56faa44e">Re: Reception Venues in Providence?</a>:
    [QUOTE]I guess the only thing I'm concerned about with Cafe Nuovo is that it might feel too fancy. Our ceremony is going to be in a park under a tree, very minimalistic. We're somewhat nontraditional... no bridal party, no DJ (just a hooked up iPod), no big introductions, no planned speeches, etc. We want the whole day to feel really intimate, simple, and relaxed. (But I still want to be able to dance - we love to swing dance - and Bravo looks pretty squishy for that...) I don't plan on doing much (if any) decorating of either venue, except maybe simple centerpieces like candles or something. So anyway, do you think Cafe Nuovo can fit with that down-to-earth vision? Or is it too ornate? Any ideas for maintaining a relatively casual feel in such a grand space?
    Posted by RobinThePerson[/QUOTE]

    Yes, in my opinion, I think that Cafe Nuovo could fit your vision because anyone can make a space the way that they envision it.  If you have your wedding thereon a Sunday, the entire space is yours (for as long as you want) so that you can either have your wedding in the rotunda room or the restaurant space, or both.  Also, I believe you can have your ceremony their too.  You can achieve a casual feel if you had it in the restaurant space if you kept everything else really simplistic.   Also, have you checked out watermen grille or Gracie's yet? I heard that Gracie's just started doing weddings there and I know its more casual.
  • Thanks for the input! We can't have it on a Sunday, so we can't use the restaurant. Otherwise I definitely would have considered it. We already have a perfect, simple ceremony spot. Everything else was already going to be really simplistic, and I've finally decided that to try to force a casual vibe on a fancy $2-million-worth-of-marble space would be more effort (and we're no-fuss minimalists, so we don't really want to have to "make" a spot anything) than to just pick a place that feels comfortable to begin with.

    Waterman Grille is booked on our date and even more expensive than what we were going to pay at Cafe Nuovo. But I just gave Gracie's a call and will hear about pricing on Tuesday, so thanks for that suggestion!
  • I'm thinking you might like Gracie's based on your vision.  If not, have you tried the botanical gardens? Since your having your ceremony there it might go nice with the whole nature/outdoors theme!  GL!

  • The botanical gardens cost $4,000 just for the space! Noooo way, haha.
  • Try Hillside Country Club in Rehoboth, MA they are 10 to 15 mins out side the city and have great pricing!

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