Suggestions for a Eco/Modern/Affordable NJ Venue Needed!

jroxx

(I apologize if this has been asked before, I'm new & am having a horrible time searching on this site.)

My fiance and I are looking to book our venue for a summer 2012 wedding.  We're looking for something non-traditional (either ultra-modern like Morris Museum or rustic farm like one of the NJ vineyards- Valenzano or Unionville maybe).  The issue is, we need a caterer who will source local, organic, sustainable (in season) ingredients.  We're not sure what type of reception we want, maybe just wine/beer and hors d'oeuvre or buffet style.  We're open to suggestions on what to do.  We'll have between 50-100 guests, likely not more than 80 and are looking to pay around $100pp for the venue and food.

We're located in the greater Princeton area and would perfer to look south west before north east for venues, so Central Jersey/Trenton area.

PS. Has anyone been to a wedding at the Trenton Museum?  Am I right that that location was featured on Four Weddings last year?

PPS. I've seen Grounds for Sculpture mentioned here a lot.  My fiance and I love it there and we realize it's likely out of our price range, but I understand having it at GFS and through Rat's Restaurant are completely different.  Correct me if I'm wrong?

mbcdefg

Maybe you would be interested in the Loews Theatre in Jersey City. It's a classic movie house and they allow you to rent out the site for weddings: http://www.loewsjersey.org/

I wanted to look into this for my own wedding, but you have to rent out EVERYTHING to have a wedding here ... an outside caterer (which you said you want anyway, so that's a plus), every table and chair, every fork and napkin, etc. There's not a kitchen on-site, so your caterer will have to prepare everything ahead of time and get it there ready to be eaten. And you have to hire a fire marshall to stay for your whole event. My husband and I were just too lazy and impatient to go through with all that, lol.

I've seen photos of weddings there and it looks really nice, and a guy was on these boards a while back who got married there and said it all went well. Plus you can get married on the stage and have your name on the marquee, which is cool. It seems like a great venue if you don't mind putting in some legwork.

I don't know any eco-friendly caterers, sorry. I know that Market Basket gets a lot of good reviews here.

golfrgal

Try the Stone House in Warren. They have some sort of affiliation with Dancing Goat farm or something and the style is very modern, yet slightly rustic.

Also, Montclair Art Museum can be rented out for weddings.  I looked at it, but didn't want to deal with the hassle of bringing in an outdoor caterer.

cooper8759

You can have it at GFS and use their people for food. Looked at Rat's at it was $180 a person.

jroxx

I made a list of a couple hopefuls:

The Inn at Fernbrook Farms in Bordentown

Grounds for Sculpture in Hamilton

Valenzano Winery in Shamog

Problem with Fernbrook is they work exclusively with Main Street Catering which starts at $110pp with a 100 person min on Saturdays.  So with a high venue fee, that would be out of the question, unfortantely.

GFS is just extensive to begin with.  I might just have to be content to take engagement photos there.

And Valenzano only works with a list of approved caterers, none of which really appeal to me.  I contacted a couple who are willing to work with me.  But they basically came out and said it's expensive for special requests and to feed under 100 people.  I never thought having a smaller guest list could cost me more.

So I think I'm going to start with the caterer and look to their recommended locations.  I'm liking Chambers Walk in Lawrence and Emily's Cafe & Catering in Pennington.  Anyone have any experience with these two??  Or can suggest someone similar?

akenny

I know the winery can be VERY expensive.  We look at Laurita Winery, it was at least $175pp.  Our dreams of that ended very quickly!

Does Princeton University have anything? Or is that not really your style? I think it's a beautiful campus, and if it's over the summer you don't have to worry about the students... 

allisonsjoy

Hi - I was originally looking at GFS/Rat's and the pricing is just way out of our range. Plus, I really didn't like the way the reception would be set up in all different rooms. We just booked Sayen House & Gardens in Hamilton. Beautiful gardens and a quaint home which fits about 110. The facility fee is one of the cheapest I have found and they work with Emily's Cafe & Catering, which has very affordable options. Has anyone had any experience with them? good luck!!