Reception

Kels108

Which is nicer Woodwins or Cascade?

SB1512

it probably depends on your defintition of nice?  I've been to woodwinds for a prom and remember it being nice, but that was 11 years ago!  I do know that at woodwinds there is the possibility of more than one wedding going on at the same time, not sure if that bothers you or not.

Mona8

I visited both places when I was looking for venues, and ended up having my reception at Cascade... so obviously that is my top choice!

I think they both have beautiful grounds, but I loved Cascade's ballroom so much more. I also liked that Cascade only has one wedding at a time. At Woodwinds, you may have another wedding going on at the same time as yours, and although there are 2 separate bars, they're still both in the same lobby.

I have nothing but amazing things to say about Cascade. If you have any specific questions about it, let me know.

jjswin

I had the same question as you about a year and a half ago, since I am not from the area. I loved Cascade's ballroom but was worried we would not make the 160 min. We ended up going with Woodwinds in the end because we could get away with 140 min and it just worked out for us. I did just hear from my photographer and dj two weeks ago when I had a meeting with both them that the quality of food at Cascade has gone downhill and some nights it is really good and some nights it is really bad because they don't have an on site chief and out source all food prep to different subcontractors. Not sure how much truth there is to that but I did hear it from two different sources in the wedding business and eat at these places all the time. Hope this helps.

SB1512

In Response to Re:Reception:[QUOTE]I had the same question as you about a year and a half ago, since I am not from the area. I loved Cascade's ballroom but was worried we would not make the 160 min. We ended up going with Woodwinds in the end becausenbsp;we could get away with 140 min and it just worked out for us.nbsp;I did just hear from my photographer and dj two weeks ago when I had a meeting with both them that the quality of food at Cascade has gone downhill and some nights it is really good and some nights it is really bad because they don't have an on site chief and out sourcenbsp;all food prep to different subcontractors. Not sure how much truth there is to that but I did hear it from two different sources in the wedding business and eat at thesenbsp;places all the time. Hope this helps. Posted by jjswin[/QUOTE]

I have heard the same thing regarding food. A lot of proms are held there and I've had some teacher friends disagree about food because one experienced wonderful food one weekend and one had so so food a weekend or two later.

Mona8

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_connecticut_reception-2?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:65Discussion:340f7b64-d60d-4ce6-ba12-4fddf63174c5Post:3a2a3e7d-cd57-4708-8c60-5cd1f6926853">Re: Reception</a>:
[QUOTE]I had the same question as you about a year and a half ago, since I am not from the area. I loved Cascade's ballroom but was worried we would not make the 160 min. We ended up going with Woodwinds in the end because we could get away with 140 min and it just worked out for us. I did just hear from my photographer and dj two weeks ago when I had a meeting with both them that the quality of food at Cascade has gone downhill and some nights it is really good and some nights it is really bad <strong>because they don't have an on site chief and out source all food prep to different subcontractors.</strong> Not sure how much truth there is to that but I did hear it from two different sources in the wedding business and eat at these places all the time. Hope this helps.
Posted by jjswin[/QUOTE]

Cascade definitely has an on-site chef.  I can't say whether or not he works every single wedding, but they definitely have one. The food at our wedding was amazing. It was the only thing my parents cared about ,and they were thrilled. Not only was it good, but there was tons of it.

Carebear62584

I also got married at Woodwinds and have nothing but wonderful things to say.  The girls in the office were so responsive, food was delicious and there was plenty of it, and as the last poster said there were many advantages to having the same owner as Cafe Allegre/Inn at Lafayette.  As for the times being staggered, the only flaw we ran into was that when my girls and I arrived we had to go right up to the bridal suite because the other wedding's cocktail hour was going on.  They also ended before ours and some of their guests tried to come over to our wedding but they closed the curtain and had someone stationed there so they were stopped.  If you have any other questions about Woodwinds feel free to ask.  It's all fresh in my mind as it's been just over a month since my wedding.

bianca1993

you can not even compare the two spaces.. Cascade is beautiful they have a REAL BALLROOM.... CHANDLERS EVERYWHERE IN THE BALLROOM.  huge ceilings  no ugly carpet and beautiful chairs.  and they only do one wedding at a time; Woodwinds has very low ceilings in their rooms No Chandlers and ugly carpet...AND NO BALLROOM.... and they do 2 weddings at the same time...  WOODWINDS also has cocktail hour in the lobby with every one standing around. Cascade has a whole separate room for cocktail hour with table and chairs.. If you are on a budget then woodwinds is the place, IF YOU WANT TO BE A PRINCESS THEN CASCADE IS THE PLACE.... my own opinion woodwinds is very low budget i would never want to share my day with another bride NEVER!!!!!!

redjellybean128

We looked at both and decided on Woodwinds.  Both places are beautiful, and I think hands down, cascade has the nicer ballroom. However, we decided on woodwinds for a couple of reasons. 1) as PP as mentioned, the staff there is amazing- not saying that cascade wasn't, but we definitely got better vibes (and a better tour- we felt rushed at Cascade) from woodwinds, 2) Even though we are doing a sunday, the minimum guests and price per head were significantly higher at Cascades. As much as we liked the place we couldn't rationize paying 20-30 more per head and inviting an extra 40 people to meet the minimum. Also, Woodwinds offered a more impressive menu in my opinion and food was a priority for both me and FI. 

I'm hopeful that because we are on a Sunday, there may not be another wedding there, but who knows. It may be a bit of inconvience, but personally, it doesn't bother us if there is. 

I think it depends on what you are looking for and what you are comfortable spending and what you  want to prioritze. If you haven't already, tour both of them...

HTH!