Receptions under $50 pp

Sharon&Paul

I am not from the area, so I know this may be hard to ask for something in this price range. We would like to have the ceremony and reception onsite. We are looking for the $50 pp to include all the food, not necessary an all-inclusive reception. We would prefer an outside wedding if possible. We are not city people. We also don't mind travel anywhere in NJ, even into NY or PA.

Can anyone recommend a location that we could get within our budget?

smw42

Someone below just mentioned The Forge- that may be a good starting point. They include a lot in their packages so if you wanted to lower the price you might be able to pull things out. Good luck! PA may also be a good option to lower the cost.

www.forgenj.com

Julephenia

It's going to be really hard for you to find something in the New York Metropolitan area for under $50, unless you are looking at a tiny party, or perhaps a restaurant. You might want to try the South Jersey or PA boards, as well as upstate NY.

How big of a party are you looking at? Also, are you willing to compromise on season and perhaps go indoors?

More information will help us help you!

Sharon&Paul

Any season, preferably a little warmer so it can be outside. The party size is 100-150people. We are not set on any location or state for that matter. Our family is spread out from NJ, NY, MA, to NH.  We are open to the Poconos, southern NJ  or Hudson Valley, NY. Most of our guest will be travelling to the event.

mbcdefg

If you want a "typical New Jersey reception" (meaning, full open bar, big cocktail hour, four-course dinner, dessert buffet), then you're not going to be able to get anything under $50pp in North or Central Jersey. 

A lot of halls charge maybe $5-10 per person to hold your ceremony on-site, so that would eat up a big chunk of your budget. Plus, if you have to rent a tent and then the other stuff (tables, linens, china, whatever), that's also going to deplete your budget. AND, a lot of "traditional reception halls" around here make you guarantee a minimum of anywhere from 75-150 people, so if you have a small guest list then you're going to be hard-pressed to find a hall.

The closest NJ wedding I've seen on this kind of budget was a Knottie who has since left this board and her bio is gone. She booked The Riverview Pavilion in Belmar for about 50-60 people for a Saturday 12-4 p.m. reception, and talked them down to a budget of maybe $40-50pp. That was for an open bar and for a modified cocktail reception ... fruit, vegetables and cheese for cocktail hour; a few hot chafing dishes and a carving station for dinner; cookies for dessert and she brought in a wedding cake from elsewhere. The ceremony was held in a gazebo near Lake Como that was maybe something like $250 to rent.

I think there are a few things you can do to try and find a place:

* inquire at restaurants with private rooms. If you just get a nice meal without all the wedding-related bells and whistles (champagne toast, cocktail hour, multiple courses, etc.), you might be able to swing it. Salad, an entree and a piece of cake is plenty. I personally think this might be your best bet.

* definitely look into Pennsylvania and New York State, and maybe South Jersey as well. if you stay away from metro city areas, you will pay less. Ask on those local boards for Knottie help.

* would you be willing to rent a VFW hall or a firehouse and bring in an inexpensive caterer? You could get food from a local casual restaurant, or a deli or a supermarket. Or go casual serve something like barbecue, pizza, sandwiches, or just serve cakes and coffee.

* Offbeatbride.com is very useful for finding non-traditional weddings that are still very classy and cool. A lot of those brides don't have fancy weddings but everyone is still happy.

* there's a Budget Brides Board on the Knot, so pop over there. But be aware that a lot of them would consider $50pp to be a HUGE budget since they're from non-metro places and therefore prices are automatically lower in their area. But you can still get some good ideas.

* A Friday or Sunday wedding, or a Saturday afternoon, will be less expensive than Saturday night. December-March prices are usually lower than the rest of the year. If you can plan in under a year, a lot of places offer discounts since they otherwise wouldn't book those dates (The Tides Estate and Bridgewater Manor come to mind).

What kind of reception do you want to have ... level of formality? Type/amount of food served? How many people do you need to host? If you can tell us these details, maybe we can be of more help.

saraid

I am doing a brunch wedding on a Sunday at Rutgers Gardens.  It's under $50 pp with the preferred caterer.

smw42

I've heard great things about Rutgers Gardens! Congrats

Reilly626

I think you would have the best luck in PA.  But I know Panatagis in Scotch Plains NJ is around there. 

rachaelb16

Parts of PA have great prices, but the Poconos can be pricey.  How far into PA are you willing to go?  My sister lives way out in PA, about 3.5 hours from here.  She rented a tent for about $500, spent about $600 on alcohol and the food, linens, dishes and glasses cost $18 pp.  No exaggeration, the food was the best food I have ever had at a wedding.  Huge buffet with many choices and people working at the stations. 

TuffysMommie

What about a women's club where you hire a caterer?  (Glen Ridge or Ridgewood, for example)  If you found a caterer to do a limited cocktail hour, buffet dinner and beer & wine, you might be able do it in that price range.  Mbcdefg had great ideas - time of day, non-open bar, etc. are good ways to cut costs. I don't know if those two particular women's clubs do weddings on site, but it is worth calling and finding out.

I also attended a wedding at Biaggio's (or is it Biagio's?) in Paramus in their private room that I believe was in/under that price range. It was a set sit down dinner with salad, pasta, the main dish (choice of chicken or eggplant parm) and then cake.  That wedding also did not have an open bar, but if that is important to you, you can see what wine/beer/champagne would cost. To me, cutting out the cocktail hour was no big deal. The couple was on a budget and their event was just as pleasant as if it had been a huge, expensive affair.  They were still "just as married" at the end and all the guests were as happy for them as if it had been at any other location.