HUDSON VALLEY AREA VENDOR REVIEW.......

Hudson Valley Wedding Vendor Reviews

I was married 10/15/11 at Arbor Ridge Banquet & Catering Hall, Hopewell Junction, NY

 Mike is the sales person.  Very helpful.  We got our tuxes at least one week in advance for men’s final fitting.  Tuxes were picked up 3 days in advance, pressed and really clean and neat looking.

Jesse and Yahira Burnett, were amazing.  They have a great contract that leaves nothing out in the open.  They were timely and they took the most amazing pictures of my wedding.  The finished video made us both feel our wedding all over again.  They are very reasonable and will work with you.

Wedding gown alterations.  The most reasonably priced alterations I found.  She does great work.  I had all of the women, including mothers and sisters bring their gowns to Vera and they all were happy with her work.

I had a morning wedding.  Although reasonable prices, you end up paying just the same in the end.  Kevin, the owner/manager is very rude to his staff, curses and yells at them.  The dishes were dirty and the glasses were spotty.    I got a fork that had caked on food on it, asked for another “clean fork” and got pretty much the same.  I got complaints from everyone at my wedding about the dishes, not just the spotty champagne glasses. 

I decided to have my wedding in their garden, although I paid $300.00 for it. He said decorations were up to me.  I had my wedding day coordinator set it up.  I didn’t know however, that my groom was cleaning dirty and wet seats just before my wedding.  This is my groom dressed in his tux.  Someone took a picture of him cleaning seats.  That to me is just horrible. 

Although I had 9 people that did not attend due to a family death, Kevin did not honor that and charged me for 3 extra plates because people came from out of state and were “extra”.  I understand that I had given him a number of 70 people.  Since 9 did not show up to take their cards, the nice thing to do would have been to not charge me at all.  I was honest with him about the numbers of people because he had told me in an email that he would honor and only charge me $5.00 per empty seat.    He does not recall that conversation.

I had my rehearsal there.  I told him when I paid the final payment 10/8/11 that I would be coming to drop things off on the Friday before my wedding and have the rehearsal there as well.  He took the check and yes’ed me to death, but it turned out he was “surprised I was there on Friday” because I didn’t have an appointment and I didn’t owe him any more money.  Another conversation he didn’t remember.

I reminded him about the Bridal Suite, since I was getting dressed there.  He said he had it set up and it was “included”.  Another conversation he did not remember.

He does remember however that he told me that there’s no refunds, but that he is willing to compromise and refund me the amount extra I paid for the champagne toast.  The amount of $139.00.  Kevin claims that no other catering hall ever, ever works with their clients.

I’d like to point out that the Castle in Tarrytown, not only did they work with my cousin, they didn’t charge her the extra 15 people that attended her daughter’s wedding. 

And Villa Barone Manor, in Jefferson Valley, did not charge my sister, and if fact, she got refunded the 8 people that did not show up for her daughter’s wedding.  

I would have been happy with just him not charging me for the 3 people that were not really extras since 9 did not show up.

The room although beautiful, was a disaster.  The T.V. did not work, neither did the Keurig Coffee machine, neither did the Jacuzi.  They have a glass door shower, but if you are getting dressed there and taking a quick shower just before you get dressed by your bridal party, be prepared to show all of your assets.

In the middle of my wedding someone from the Inn came to get me to let me know that they could not find the receipt for my payment, so unless I showed them my receipt, they were going to charge my card again.  I just got married! And my new husband had to leave the party to find the damn receipt for them.  It turns out it was right in front of the pile of papers the receptionist had on his desk.  45 minutes later… ooops, I’m sorry.

There is so much I want to say about Billy, the owner of the jewelry store.   We searched everywhere in the Diamond District, Poughkeepsie and Hudson Valley Jewelry stores to find the perfect rings that would not gouge your eyes out.  Billy had our rings “waiting for us”.  Really, along with the Skaggen watches I gave my groomsmen.  I priced the watches and the rings and each item came about $200-$300 less than every single jewelry out there including the diamond district.  We will go to Billy for any of or jewelry needs.

I had a vision of the mariachi and the cigar guys in the background of my husband and I sitting in a café casually having a drink.   That picture did not happen.  The cigar rollers forgot to bring the supplies to make cigars.   The contract specifically stated I needed them there at 11:00 a.m., they showed up after 1:30, Over 2 hours late and by the time they did show up the cocktail hour was over.  The photographer had left and so had the mariachi.   The way they tried to repair it? To offer to send me little cigars at home while I was on honeymoon.   Nope, I would not recommend them at all. 

They did a great job and had delivered all of the items I ordered within 2 weeks.  I ordered the expresso cups.  I was happy with the Thank you gifts.

He’s a single mariachi.  If you want to see how he plays you can go to Café Maya in Fishkill.  He is there every single Friday night and he is good solo.  Although he can bring with him a whole trio or more, We wanted to go for intimate tropical café feeling for the cocktail hour.  He can do the reception and he is actually very good according to both our mother and many cousins who decided to sing chorus with him.

They are the inhouse DJ’s for Arbor Ridge.  Althought I gave them a whole list of songs to play and gave them my zune filled with music.  They messed up on the introduction songs.  They played all the wrong songs for the wrong people and did not play a song for one of the introductions at all.  They played at the wedding ceremony, but did not announce it at all to stand up when I was getting near the entrance.  I have an all Spanish wedding where I had directed them to play, merengue, bachata, cumbia, salsa, pop and house.  They decided they wanted to play hard rock and Led Zeppelin and Def Leppard.   Although I personally enjoy a little 80’s metal rock every now and then, a wedding, specifically my wedding should have been spared of the noise electric guitar blasting music.