Ocean House - Watch Hill, RI Reception

sbertin1 · July 2012

I am seriously looking at the Ocean House in Watch Hill for my wedding reception. We have a summer house in the area and we have gone to the Ocean House a handfull of times for brunch and lunch. Is anyone else planning a wedding at this venue? I have looked at a few other places, but the Ocean House has always been my first choice. The wedding package they give you seems very restricting as far as what you do and it seems as though they encourage using anything that the Ocean House can provide instead of using outside vendors. They have a variety of ways that you can set up how you decide to serve your meal. I am just wondering what other people are doing for their weddings there and how they like working with the Ocean House. My experience so has been wonderful. Do you suggest hiring a wedding planner still?

Thank you!

i2012do · July 2012

hi, I haven't looked into the Ocean House, but we just attended a wedding there
It was beauitful location and they used the chapel for their ceremony- which was adorable...

I felt like the service was good and that you can't beat the view.

We caught a horribly windny day and could not make use of the outside terrace-- which was unfortunate and a loss because we were all huddled between two wstaircases under the terrace in order to stay out of the wind.
At one point someone put a wine glass on the table and the wind swept it up and it shattered in the air, landing on guests- the cocktail tables were flying all over. But aagain- this was beacuse of the weather.

The bride and groom chose to do a buffet. It was set up in a sepearate room.
The food was excellent and there was No line for the buffet-- however, There was very little food out, they had to keep replinishing it- and then people were left "Waiting around "for food. especially the popular items like the beef filet and the salmon.
I am not sure why they just don't use larger serving trays but the tray that the caprese salad was on was the size that i use when i have a cookout wth 20 people

I will say that just because I am a bride myslef, and my friend was recently married- we said that it seemed like they just had a "package" for their wedding.
They seemed like the Ocean House just said you do a, b, c and d and they said "ok". There wasn't any originality or anything. It didn't seem like the band reflected their taste in music or that the food wasn't w hat was served at 100 other weddings. It lieterally seemed like they were liek "well take that that that and that" and called it a day.
I assumed this was becauase my girlfriend had a short 6 month engagement, but from what you posted above, maybe that is how it works there.
Also, there wasn't any food at cocktail hour. I SAW people eating food but I have NO idea where they got it because I did not ONCE see a waitress. When I finally sat in my seat at the table one waitress came over with a little puff pastry and she had two left on her tray so my fiance and I split one, and the couple next to us did the same. So I'd be sure to ask if they can be sure to have ENOUGH for everyone and spread out the waitresses.

It was a beautiful locationa dn I think that was the #1 selling point. No one could stay in the rooms because they were over $800 a nigt (other than the bride and her family) but many people stayed at a near by B+B and they had a shuttle bring people over to the ceremony and reception.

The room itself was really nice and the staff seemed to be accomodating.

calindi · July 2012

I considered it, as we got a decent discount since my Dad was part of the team who set up the financing for this hotel. It still wasn't cost-effective for me - I'm getting married at the Branford House in Groton (so just over the CT border), and we're bringing our own caterer. We got a lot more choice since it's a venue-only facility and we bring in our own caterer (no restrictions). Branford House is a gorgeous Newport-style mansion on the water with a lighthouse. It's stunning! We hired Emily's Catering, and I couldn't be more pleased with the combination of a gorgeous venue and a fantastic (delicious and great service) caterer. We're paying much less than we would have at Ocean House, where we would have had limited options.

sbertin1 · July 2012

This is good to know. I also thought that the price was much higher than equally nice places in the area, including Newport! I am also planning on looking at the Branford house, so I am glad to hear all of your positive thoughts about the place! It looks gorgeous! I hope everything for your wedding is going smoothly.<div>
</div><div>In Response to <a href="http://newport.weddings.com/Sites/Weddings/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_rhode-island_ocean-house-watch-hill-ri-reception?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:122Discussion:0282ab3f-5120-4b4d-ad4b-fc6c9050c801Post:57c832f3-9f75-4b90-834a-c4dbac28bcb5">Re: Ocean House - Watch Hill, RI Reception</a>:
[QUOTE]I considered it, as we got a decent discount since my Dad was part of the team who set up the financing for this hotel. It still wasn't cost-effective for me - I'm getting married at the Branford House in Groton (so just over the CT border), and we're bringing our own caterer. We got a lot more choice since it's a venue-only facility and we bring in our own caterer (no restrictions). Branford House is a gorgeous Newport-style mansion on the water with a lighthouse. It's stunning! We hired Emily's Catering, and I couldn't be more pleased with the combination of a gorgeous venue and a fantastic (delicious and great service) caterer. We're paying much less than we would have at Ocean House, where we would have had limited options.
Posted by calindi[/QUOTE]

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sbertin1 · July 2012

This is incredibly helpful, because you brought up everything that I am worried about. They do offer packages for food, so I am sure it is very easy to just choose a couple things and be done with it. I know that you can customize the packages, but they tack on extra money for every small thing and at somepoint it just gets to be too much! You have to spend a certain amount per person for a wedding, which can be met without going for cocktail hour food, so they might have limited the food at the cocktail hour to save money? I think the terrace where the cocktail hour is held is one of the most beautiful parts of having the wedding at the Ocean House, so it must be upsetting when it is too windy or cold to use it! Thank you for all of your thoughts, I appreciate it and I will be thinking about your pros and cons when I make my decision! I hope your wedding planning is going well!<div>In Response to <a href="http://newport.weddings.com/Sites/Weddings/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_rhode-island_ocean-house-watch-hill-ri-reception?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:122Discussion:0282ab3f-5120-4b4d-ad4b-fc6c9050c801Post:7dd3fcac-25a5-4d96-a9e3-b60a28df4fdb">Re: Ocean House - Watch Hill, RI Reception</a>:
[QUOTE]hi, I haven't looked into the Ocean House, but we just attended a wedding there It was beauitful location and they used the chapel for their ceremony- which was adorable... I felt like the service was good and that you can't beat the view. We caught a horribly windny day and could not make use of the outside terrace-- which was unfortunate and a loss because we were all huddled between two wstaircases under the terrace in order to stay out of the wind. At one point someone put a wine glass on the table and the wind swept it up and it shattered in the air, landing on guests- the cocktail tables were flying all over. But aagain- this was beacuse of the weather. The bride and groom chose to do a buffet. It was set up in a sepearate room. The food was excellent and there was No line for the buffet-- however, There was very little food out, they had to keep replinishing it- and then people were left "Waiting around "for food. especially the popular items like the beef filet and the salmon. I am not sure why they just don't use larger serving trays but the tray that the caprese salad was on was the size that i use when i have a cookout wth 20 people I will say that just because I am a bride myslef, and my friend was recently married- we said that it seemed like they just had a "package" for their wedding. They seemed like the Ocean House just said you do a, b, c and d and they said "ok". There wasn't any originality or anything. It didn't seem like the band reflected their taste in music or that the food wasn't w hat was served at 100 other weddings. It lieterally seemed like they were liek "well take that that that and that" and called it a day. I assumed this was becauase my girlfriend had a short 6 month engagement, but from what you posted above, maybe that is how it works there. Also, there wasn't any food at cocktail hour. I SAW people eating food but I have NO idea where they got it because I did not ONCE see a waitress. When I finally sat in my seat at the table one waitress came over with a little puff pastry and she had two left on her tray so my fiance and I split one, and the couple next to us did the same. So I'd be sure to ask if they can be sure to have ENOUGH for everyone and spread out the waitresses. It was a beautiful locationa dn I think that was the #1 selling point. No one could stay in the rooms because they were over $800 a nigt (other than the bride and her family) but many people stayed at a near by B+B and they had a shuttle bring people over to the ceremony and reception. The room itself was really nice and the staff seemed to be accomodating.
Posted by i2012do[/QUOTE]

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