Hello everyone! This message board really helped me out when I was searching for venues, so I thought I would give a little review for each of the ones I visited to help others. I needed a venue with an area for an indoor ceremony + reception that could fit up to 250 guests. If you have any questions let me know!
Briscoe Manor: Located in Richmond, Briscoe Manor is definitely one of the most beautiful wedding venues in the Houston area. The venue is the middle of several acres of well-manicured grass and consists of a chapel (250+ people), an outdoor patio, and a ballroom. (There is also an area to get married outdoors.) It has a very open, outdoorsy, but intimate feel. The theme is “modern Texas,” and the ballroom has a large circular dance floor in the middle. All aisles in the ballroom actually lead to the dance floor. Food is served at one end of the ballroom, and there is a separate room off of the other end for the bar. In the end, the price and the location made me go with another venue. The nearest hotel is seven miles away, which we did not feel good about with an open bar. If you don’t mind the price or the location, definitely go with this venue!
Ashton Gardens: Located in North Houston at the intersection of 1960 and the Hardy Toll Road, Ashton Gardens is an ideal location for brides who want an outside/foresty feel with an inside wedding. They have the most beautiful chapel that holds 250+ people and a ballroom next door. My biggest problem with the venue is that ballroom is split in half by the dance floor. At any point in ceremony, half of your guests are going to be left out of the fun. Also, the coordinator told me that food was served on the dance floor as well, so I doubt you could do the first dance before the food was served. One cool thing is that there is an air-conditioned outside area off of the ballroom to use during the reception if you need extra space. They told me a wedding of 250 people would fit, but I think it would be a tight squeeze. In the end, the split room, the price, and the foresty feel made me go with another venue. FYI, there aren’t many good hotel options nearby, and there isn’t an area to get married outdoors.
Heights Villa: Located in the Heights section of Houston, Heights Villa is the perfect option for brides that want everything to be do-it-yourself. They only have outside catering, so that can save a lot of money. They have two ballrooms. The first ballroom used to be a church, and now it is a great reception venue for 250+ people. It even has a small balcony that can probably seat about 50 people. The second ballroom is smaller (seats about 150 people), but it could also be used for cocktail hour if you needed to flip the first ballroom from ceremony to reception. As far as price goes, this was the most reasonable. In the end, we did not go with this venue because we will be planning from out-of-state. We needed a less do-it-yourself option. FYI, the venue is owned by a really nice couple, and it is really close to great hotels.
La Tranquila Ranch: Located in Cypress, La Tranquila Ranch is an inexpensive option for brides who still want that grand wedding vibe. Ceremonies are done outside near a small lake, and there is a large ballroom for receptions. If you did the ceremony inside, I don’t think there would be anywhere for the people to go during the flip. Also, 250 people would probably be a really tight squeeze. Ultimately, this venue did not fits our needs (inside wedding, 250 guests), and the location was just too far from downtown Houston.
Le Virage: Located in the western part of Houston, Le Virage is inside of a strip center in one of the busiest parts of town. We were completely turned off by this, so we didn’t even go inside. I have no idea where the guests would park, and this was not the vibe we wanted for our wedding.
Enchanted Ballroom: Located in Cypress, the Enchanted Ballroom is also inside of a strip center, but they try their best to make it look nice. The entrance is very magical, and the venue itself comes out of nowhere. The ballroom is absolutely huge, it has a dance floor that could have been taken right out of a club, and it has huge projectors all over the room to show picture slideshows or videos. It definitely has a party vibe. The ceremony is done in a simple room upstairs to the side of the ballroom. I think stairs are the only way to access this area, so beware if some of your guests are physically handicapped. Ultimately, this was too far from downtown Houston, and our personalities didn’t really match the magical/party vibe.
Crystal Ballroom at the Rice: This is the venue we went with. The Crystal Ballroom is located in downtown Houston within walking distance from several great hotels. The ballroom is used for the ceremony and reception, and during the flip, guests can go down one floor to the lobby or in an adjacent room called the Empire Room for cocktails. The ballroom has a stage area and a large room off to the side that houses all the food for a buffet. Located on the second floor, guests can also access a HUGE wrap-around balcony with views of downtown. The building has great historical significance, as it was the location the capitol building of the Republic of Texas back in the 1800s. The building itself has been restored to its original 1913 design. Since we are not religious, we loved the historical significance of the building and knew it would be perfect for our wedding. It isn’t cheap, but it is not as expensive as Briscoe Manor or Aston Gardens and nowhere near the cost of Hotel Zaza.