Canada-Ontario

Venue reviews - The Royalton or Hazelton Manor?

Has anyone been to either of these venues recently or had their wedding there? So far these are our favourites but we've never attended events there.

Thanks!

Re: Venue reviews - The Royalton or Hazelton Manor?

  • I was a guest at the Royalton, the food was pretty good and had a great time! I went to Hazelton Manor as a potential venue for myself but didn't get a good vibe from the manager. The venue was beautiful inside but we were going to have 350 ppl and the layout of the actual hall was not accomodating. I later found out from a friend that they double book a wedding there and it was a disaster! I would stay clear from Hazelton from what I heard. We chose Bellvue Manor for our upcoming wedding, been there many times. They have AMAZING food and it is absolutely gorgeous inside.
  • I had my wedding at The Royalton this past November 2012 and it was fabulous! Peter and Mario were super accommodating and also gave great suggestions about how the reception and our wedding ceremony can be laid out.  We had our ceremony out in the foyer beneath the chandalier and the reception was in the Princess Ballroom beside the Silli Lounge.  The food was fabulous and my guests raved about the food.  Check out my review in the Vendor Reviews sticky note at the top of the Toronto forum. 

    Let me know if you have any questions.

    Clare
  • Thanks Bellabosco and Jewel224!

    Was the fact that it's a shared entrance for the ballrooms at all an issue for either of you (as guest or bride)? We're also looking at the Princess Ballroom with the Sili Lounge. We adore the lounge, it's exactly our style but don't love that the entrance and washrooms are shared.

    How did you both find the dinner service? I'd prefer a plated dinner but it's an added cost and Mario has cautioned against this because the food would be prepared the day before. Pretty disheartened about that and not sure why the food wouild have to be prepared any differently than with french service. :(
  • Bellabosco, who did you meet with at Hazelton Manor? Double booking a wedding, wow, that's unnerving and I'm wondering how long it took them to notice.

    We went to see Bellvue but with the changes we made to their package it got a bit expensive but it was definitely a nice venue.
  • The wedding that I went to at the Royalton was reserved only for one wedding so I can't say what it was like to have e venue shared. However, I have been to wedding where the venue is shared and I've never noticed any concerns and I was never disappointed as a guest.
    I can't remember the name of the guy at Hazelton Manor but he was Greek. The receptionist seemed quite disorganized as well, they mixed up our own appointment with another couple. 
    Good luck!
  • mattycammattycam member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its First Comment
    edited January 2013
    I hope the Hazelton Manor has gotten their ducks in a row since that occurance Ballabosco mentioned. I am part of a wedding party in October and the reception will be held there! It is a shame to read about this venue as it's beautiful and I am sure quite pricey.
  • Clarasev,

    Sorry for the late reply - we had the Royalton entirely to ourselves that night.  Our ceremony was in the foyer - had there been another event, our ceremony would have been in another ballroom.  There are washrooms in the Silli Lounge so sharing wasn't an issue and most people spent the night dancing away.  We also made sure that the doors to the foyer were locked so people didn't wander that way and could only go through the Silli Lounge. We booked the Princess Ballroom because of the lounge because it was very me and Chris.   When are you looking to have your wedding?

    As for food - we didn't want a typical sit down plated dinner - we wanted more of a cocktail party style feel but still have lots of food  so people didn't feel like they were stuck at their tables for 3 hours or ended up hungry at the end of the night.  We had live food stations thoughout the ballroom - live pasta, live BBQ skewers, live sliders/fries/poutine station, plus veggies, cheese, cure meats, hor d'oeurves and more!  We also had our cocktail hour in the lounge...people really enjoyed it.

    As to what Mario said - they will likely have to start prepping the day before especially if you're having a lot of people - consider you have a guest list of around 250, plus let's do the average 3 course meal - that's 750 individual plates they have to prepare. Each course takes approximately 20-30 minutes max.  This means they'll need more kitchen staff to prepare each plate, hence the added cost. To ensure that guests receive their meals in a timely manner, it likely means partially or fully cooking some items the day before.

    With French service, the appetizers/mains, etc., are put on large platters where a waiter/server individually puts them on each guest's plate.  The guests can control how large or small their portions are.

    So this really means what kind of service you do really want to have?  If cost is an issue, French service isn't that much of a big deal.  It's still very formal, if that's your concern. 

    Mario and Peter were very attentive to our needs and wants so I can't recommend them enough.
  • edited January 2013
    Hi all,

    I actually visisted both places and am deciding on a few venues.

    I just went to visit the Hazelton Manor and I loved their service. We were actually late for our appointment by 20 mins so the person we were suppose to meet with was dealing with a new appointment by then (which made sense). He told us to walk around and tour the venue. (it was actually nice to see an actual wedding being set up. - (very clean and organized) We had around 10 mins to ourselves and another guy (I forgot their names- I was hopping in between venues that day) served us instead. He was really nice and explained to us that we would only have half the hall (since we only wanted around 200 guests) .

    He took us into the office (which looked a bit messy) but only because they had to remove all their chairs in hall because the couple that was holding their wedding had special chairs for their venue. He took us into his office and explained the whole service and their prices and all that. He was very honest with all his pricing, but at the same time you can feel a bit of selling and praising of the manor. Their dates are booking up fast.... 2014 is the year we want and it is almost fully booked... :(

    Overall, we loved the venue... i don't mind having another party beside us because it has the same amount of space for both sides. They are very new, so all the decorations and tables and chairs were all very sturdy and comfortable. Their washrooms and bridal suite were all very nice and well maintained. I loved the bar area..and how open it is.

    their price was good too, including tax and all it was around the price point we were looking at.

    I also visited the Royalton 3 weeks ago and I must say the enterance was very grand and beautiful. however their service was not was not as great for me. We waited for at least 15 mins for someone to service us. i didn't like how the lobby was shared with everyone if there were 3 weddings taking place.

    I did like the "special" hall where you get your own enterance and lounge (but the price will be bigger)

    Their menu was not bad either, however, I read a lot of their reviews online and I didn't get much positive from Royalton and they have been in business a lot longer.

    One big thing that I did not like about their venue was the washroom. 2 things.. not only is is shared, but it was tight and not nice... it smelled like a club....*gross* I didn't like that and imagine your guests wearing beautiful dresses and trying to make sure they don't get it dirty.....

    Overall, I would perfer Hazleton manor. I have looked at a lot of venues already ,around woodbridge and toronto and so far, Hazleton manor is my favourite... (it replaces the really expense i want to go which is graydon hall manor...)

    hope my insight helped.
  • @Jewel224,

    My turn to apologize for the super delayed reply. We've been running around looking at venues (we're having a separate Hindu ceremony & lunch another day) and planners and just basically going wedding crazy.

    We're looking at either a weekend in May or in June. And yes I just like plated because I think it looks more formal, but French service isn't a terrible option, just not my preference. We're having a buffet lunch following our Hindu ceremony so I really wanted the reception to be as formal as possible, without being stuffy!

    Thanks for sharing the details of your dinner, sounds really fun and interactive. :)
  • jiyoung05,

    Thanks for your insight! I TOTALLY understand your dilemna, wanting to go with Graydon Hall Manor but it just being a bit too outside the budget. My fiance and I love it but with our guest count we'd be spending a lot more money than we want to.

    I don't remember the Royalton's washrooms which is strange because I can remember most other venues' washrooms so now I'm a bit nervous about that. :S The Sili lounge and the beautiful lobby were really want got us, especially the lounge. Our quote was also very slightly lower at The Royalton than at Hazelton.

    Both George and Mario were punctual with our appointments and provided us with all the informaiton we needed. When Mario emailed us our quote it was missing a lot of information we had discussed so I had to ask him to put it in writing.

    We went to these venues almost a month ago and they had our dates available but if you're saying the Hazelton is almost fully booked, yikes, we really need to get on it.
  • In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_canada-toronto_venue-reviews-the-royalton-or-hazelton-manor?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:613Discussion:41c01528-a1da-490a-b261-2c753eea7081Post:3d289d2e-1777-46cf-9496-e0cbff604507">Re: Venue reviews - The Royalton or Hazelton Manor?</a>:
    [QUOTE]... I don't remember the Royalton's washrooms which is strange because I can remember most other venues' washrooms so now I'm a bit nervous about that. :S The Sili lounge and the beautiful lobby were really want got us, especially the lounge. Our quote was also very slightly lower at The Royalton than at Hazelton. Both George and Mario were punctual with our appointments and provided us with all the informaiton we needed. When Mario emailed us our quote it was missing a lot of information we had discussed so I had to ask him to put it in writing. We went to these venues almost a month ago and they had our dates available but if you're saying the Hazelton is almost fully booked, yikes, we really need to get on it.
    Posted by clarasev[/QUOTE]

    Just an FYI, the washrooms in the Silli Lounge are far nicer than those in the foyer but the washrooms are clean.  So if you get the lounge and the Princess Ballroom, you're fine - and they do have the separate entrance for that side, if sharing is a big deal.  And remember, the quote you receive doesn't have to be the final one.  You can still negotiate, especially if another hall or the Hazelton is offering something the Royalton isn't or vice versa. 
  • I attended a wedding at the Royalton this past summer. I am not one for the big banquet halls but I must admit it was excellent! The service and food were amazing.
    The managers working there were  walking around actually looking for things to do to make their guests more comfortable and make sure everything was running perfectly.

    That being said this was in July and they did pay for that kind of service. If you have the budget for it I say go for it!
  • In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_canada-toronto_venue-reviews-the-royalton-or-hazelton-manor?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:613Discussion:41c01528-a1da-490a-b261-2c753eea7081Post:4c1b5a1a-9cbe-4b73-b1bd-aa2d968a7c5a">Re: Venue reviews - The Royalton or Hazelton Manor?</a>:
    [QUOTE]I attended a wedding at the Royalton this past summer. I am not one for the big banquet halls but I must admit it was excellent! The service and food were amazing. The managers working there were  walking around actually looking for things to do to make their guests more comfortable and make sure everything was running perfectly. That being said this was in July and they did pay for that kind of service. If you have the budget for it I say go for it!
    Posted by MelaniaJ[/QUOTE]

    This is the norm, Melania...both Peter and Mario were at my wedding until 11PM to make sure everything ran smoothly.  In fact, I didn't even need a wedding co-ordinator because they took care of everything for me. 
  • Regarding the Hazelton Manor - does anyone know how good is their sound insulation. 

    We're considering Hazelton Manor, but am a bit worried if we share the hall with another party - does anyone know if you can hear the other party during dinner if music is played?

    Thanks,
  • Hello all,
    OMG my fiance and I had an appointment at the Royalton tonight. We arrived there 5 minutes early, the outside and reception area was nice and we figured it out that we had to go upstairs to the office, there was no receptionist and one of the reps was in a meeting with a couple and fully saw us a few times. We waited for 15 minutes and still absolutely no acknowledgement of our existance. finally we just decided to walk out. First impressions are everything and my first impression was pure lack of service. A simple "Hello, we'll be with you soon" would have sufficed. Its all good though we made our way to the next venue early.
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