Pennsylvania-Philadelphia

VENUE NEWS - Cescaphe Event Group Takes Over Down Town Club

Hey everyone, I figured I'd put this up for you brides that are considering a Cescaphe wedding (Vie, Cescaphe Ballroom, Tendenza, Atrium at Curtis Center) or a Down Town Club wedding.  As of a few weeks ago the Cescaphe folks took over management of the Down Town Club.  They will be renovating the place in January and February of 2013 and will open back up March 1, 2013.  How do I know this?  My fiance and I are scheduled to have our reception at the DTC in April of 2013 so I've been keeping up with the latest on the club. 

We spoke with a Cescaphe rep and overall we're excited because we're getting, what they call, a "Cescaphe Wedding" instead of what we were getting with the DTC package.  From what I've seen and heard, that means a ridiculous amount of food and drinks and some very nice features.  We're excited.  In terms of renovations they are planning to knock down some walls to some conference rooms to give full views of the city when you first enter.  They are building a brand new bar in this area and closing off the kitchen entrance to the main ballroom (a definite plus).  This new area will be for cocktail hour.  They will also be replacing the carpet and all furniture (yes, the chairs) as well as draping in the ballroom.  They will be keeping the molding and all the great features everyone loves about the DTC though. 

Even though we thought some features were outdated, we booked this place given the superb location and views across the street from Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell.  We originally ruled out the Cescaphe locations because they were either way too expensive (Curtis Center) or not in what we thought was a prime location (i.e. Northern Liberties).  Combining this location with a Cescaphe wedding seems like a home run.  I'm sure once this announcement is made more mainstream, dates will fill up quickly.  It's neat that unexpectedly, we're having one of the first weddings in this "new" venue. 

Re: VENUE NEWS - Cescaphe Event Group Takes Over Down Town Club

  • That's awesome! Sending you postive knottie vibes that eeevrything is done being renovated by the time you have your wedding. I wonder what they told couples getting married in Feb and March...
    Wedding Countdown Ticker
  • In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_pennsylvania-philadelphia_venue-news-cescaphe-event-group-takes-over-down-town-club?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:105Discussion:fd18453a-930f-4068-b303-b70b5482a271Post:7e19b30c-224b-47f5-a6bd-ee24bc1b3433">Re: VENUE NEWS - Cescaphe Event Group Takes Over Down Town Club</a>:
    [QUOTE]That's awesome! Sending you postive knottie vibes that eeevrything is done being renovated by the time you have your wedding. I wonder what they told couples getting married in Feb and March...
    Posted by BlissPhilly[/QUOTE]

    Yeah...I didn't want to ask her about that.  With it being off peak time, I'm guessing that they offered one of their other venues to the couples scheduled to get married at the DTC in Jan and Feb.  But if their other venues are booked I guess that's why you get insurance?  I do feel bad for those couples though and I hope they are able to find other arrangements. 
  • Crazy... that might explain why i haven't heard from my DTC coordinator in a while...
    Wedding Countdown Ticker BabyFruit Ticker
  • Yeah, I haven't heard from my DTC coordinatior in a while as well. I wonder if Lynne and Mary will be staying on? 
    Anyone have any news on staff changes?
  • I spoke to Genevieve from Cescaphe after broodc's post

    According to her
    The reason DTC was taken over was that DTC was majorly in the red, but Cescaphe decided to rescue it. (I'm glad they did, because I didn't have wedding insurance and I probably would have lost my deposit and my venue if they'd really went bankrupt).

    Lynne and Mary are going to be staying on. The 2013 weddings will be done by Lynne and Mary in conjunction with a Cescaphe coordinator.

    There were no couples slated to get married in Jan/Feb during the renovations

    Cescaphe weddings are 6 hours instead of 5 hours; it includes an ice sculpture, and more food than the original DTC package. The cost and minimum requirement will remain the same as the original contract.  

    They are still talking about what type of renovations they will be doing, when things are finalized we are supposed to get a package of information. After the remodel we are supposed to be invited for cocktails/tour.

    Wedding Countdown Ticker BabyFruit Ticker
  • That's good that no couples will have their wedding plans altered in January and February.  They told us their first event is scheduled for March 1, 2013 so they NEED to have all renovations done by then.  Our wedding is April 13th so I'm really really hoping there are no significant delays in construction.  It's kind of cool knowing we'll probably be one of the first 10 or so events in the "new" venue.  I'm anxious to see what and how they change things though.  Mostly we're really hoping they don't make the place too too modern looking.  We have more of a traditional style and that's why we originally booked the DTC. 

    It is really generous of them and nice that they are honoring all previous deposits and contract pricing.  We worked with Mary on the original package to widdle some things down in order to get the per head cost even lower than what the DTC originally cost (i.e. eliminating the viennese dessert room, tableside wine service, etc.).  In the long run Cescaphe will make a profit on this place but not with our wedding.  Now we're getting all the trimmings associated with Cescaphe weddings but not near the price for what it would cost.  Based on the pricing they are going to establish (which is in the ballpark of the price they charge for Atrium at Curtis Center) versus what we are actually paying we're getting very high 4-figures worth of savings on the entire package.  Not to mention all the extra stuff that the original package didn't include.  So it's exciting but nerve wracking at the same time.

    I didn't know they planned on doing a cocktail reception.  We're planning from out of town so we will probably make the trip up for that if we are invited.   

  • This is amazing news! I am currently looking at Cescaphe venues for my 2015 wedding. Did Cescaphe mention how many guests the newly updated venue will be able to accomodate? 
  • That's awesome! Just got married at one of their venues in September and heard this news. You lucked out and you will have an amazing wedding day. Cescaphe is awesome and top notch in everything that they do. You will have guests talking about your wedding for many years. Best of luck!
  • Any news on what the renovations will entail?  My fiance and I are deliberating on whether we should go with the downtown club or not... we're not really ballroom people but since we're planning for fall 2013 and only just started planning in January our options are getting more and more limited
  • DO NOT USE CESCAPHE EVENT GROUP.
    Joe Volpe and Cescaphe are in breach of contract.
    They had an operational issue at the ballroom location resulting in power and AC failure during our event. The DJ was forced to scream introductions and power went out during our first dance. And the heat was an issue throughout the event as AC units kept failing. I cannot look at my video or pictures without crying.
    They were aware of this issue as we have since found out that this occured at other events there.
    Joe Volpe will not accept responsibility and doesw not stand behind his company.
    We have been asking for return calls, meetings, and return of any profit (not Cost) Profit from the event. Joe continues to ignore this for 19 months. We are now forced to take legal action.
    JoeVolpe's greed and lack of culpabilty is dissapointing, we had very high expectations and Cescaphe has failed to meet any of them.

  • I am getting married there in July... Have you heard any news about the place?  I am curious to see what it looks like in March when it is completed.  I'm dying to head over there
This discussion has been closed.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards