Ft. Thomas Community Center

clearheavens

Has anyone had their reception at the Ft. Thomas Community Center in NKY or has experience with them?  I'm looking into them because I want to be able to have both Asian and American food and choose my own caterer.  The caterer I was looking into is a favorite sit-down Chinese restaurant called Uncle Yip.My biggest worry is that the Ft. Thomas Community Center website tells no detail of how I would get the flatware, plates, etc. and then how I would clean up.  All I know is that they do have a kitchen.  I don't even know if Uncle Yip even offers flatware and plate rental.  I guess I could rent them elsewhere but what a pain that would be.Choosing a reception hall is very hard!

IG.muse

I have no idea about that venue, sorry. But I think you might be able to negotiate with a venue/caterer combo place to serve some food that's brought in from outside. There are places willing to add a buffet of ethnic food or serve it family style. (I don't know about plated portions though, but if that's what you want, it' worth asking about.) If you're looking for a KY place, try the Madison. When I was looking for a venue I had a similar challenge and the Madison was one of the places willing to accommodate my requests. The other places I talked to were in Cinci and Columbus. I needed a caterer who, in addition to providing their own food, would serve some Russian food I would bring in. If you go with a venue that doesn't have an in-house caterer you can hire a caterer and have them serve both the American food they prepare and Unle Yip's food. They'd provide the dishes and everything necessary for their food and the extra food. There might be an additional charge, though, for extra dishes and time spent plating. At least that was my experience when I was getting a quote from a caterer. If Uncle Yip's hasn't done outside catering, it might be better not to be their guinea pig, imo. But you can still have them deliver the food and have another caterer serve it. Again, that's just my opinion, please get other opinions as well. How do other Chinese people do this? I know it's really hard to figure out this multicultural situation for kids of Russian immigrants. Also, if you go with a venue that has in-house catering, you probably won't have to pay extra for any extra dishes you'll need for the Chinese food. And I've heard of Skyline delivering midnight buffet food to venues so I don't think having Uncle Yip's deliver extra food is any different. Hope that helps (and makes sense). Sorry it's just a jumble of thoughts. Good luck. : )

Audge.Podge

That's where I'm having my reception next year.  Basically, for the rental fee you are renting the space, the tables and chairs and that's about it.  You can rent tablecloths (around $6) and napkins (25 cents each) through them.  Everything else (incl. bar and bartender) is bring your own.  So you would have to either rent or buy the flatware, plates etc.  My caterer provides this as part of our catering.  Some will provide paper products, others have actual china.  Also, your caterer should clean up the food and china for you.If you go for one of their Thursday night visits, they will have someone there who will answer all your questions.  Or just give them a call and ask them how it usually works.  They have been very helpful for me.  Let me know if you have any other questions about the space!

irishbrideandgr

I had my wedding reception there and LOVED it. Most of your questions were answered above, we used one of the bartenders that FTCC had on their list and negotiated for them to do most of the clean up. Some of my family also pitched in with this, but it was worth the added $50 bucks. We rented all of our linens through them, you cannot find it cheaper or easier and did our dinner ware through the caterer (a combo of some china and some paper/plastic). I just met a FTCC bride yesterday (May2010) and I told her one of the best things I did (well-my decorating crew) was to use white christmas lights twisted in tulle along the entire baseboard. In combination with the decorated trees they already have, it put a really nice light glow in the space. I also had candles in all of the windows and on the tables, but I think they have new rules about what can go in the windows. GL planning

Audge.Podge

Irishbride - where did you get the bartender list? I haven't seen one of those, and I think it might be easier than trying to find a friend of a friend to do it for us. Plus the cleanup afterward sounds like it would be worth it! Did you do your ceremony there also? if you want to email me, you can email knotsarah at gmail dot com. I haven't found many other FTCC brides, so I'd love to hear your thoughts, advice, etc. on everything.

kam2210

I have been to a couple of weddings there and they were great. If I hadn't gotten such a killer deal on the place I booked, it was next on my list.