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Unique Venues that Allow Outside Catering

rebecca.scuderirebecca.scuderi
10 Comments
in New Jersey
Sooooo I had my heart set on having my reception at the Montclair Art Museum, after going home to NJ for a bridal expo with my MOH this weekend, started thinking that maybe I should really hunker down and take some extra trips home to visit a few other venues. I am ideally looking for a bit of an "alternative" venue to the traditional hall and would like to bring in an outside caterer. There aren't too many sites online that really show unique venues in NJ, but I'm hoping some of you are going the more non-traditional route as well and have some suggestions. I am looking to keep it between $2,000-$3,000 for the space with all other expenses being covered by us. All suggestions welcome! Thanks ladies, have a great week!
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Re: Unique Venues that Allow Outside Catering

  • mbcdefgmbcdefg member
    10000 Comments 5 Love Its Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    The Loew's Theater in Jersey City is a classic movie house that can host a reception: http://loewsjersey.org/index.php/rent-the-loews-mainmenu-30

    You would need to rent EVERYTHING - tables and chairs, napkins, caterer and waitstaff, etc. Plus insurance, and you need to pay a fire marshal to be there during the party. And they don't have a kitchen, so your caterer would need to bring in ready-made food and figure out how to keep it hot/cold as needed.

    A guy on this board a while back got married there and the pics looked great. I wanted to look into it myself, but it was a LOT more work than MH or I were interested in. But it seems like it could be an awesome place if you have the patience to take care of every single vendor yourself.

    I think there's a hotel in Asbury Park (The Berkeley, maybe?) where you just rent the space and then bring in a caterer. There are also a number of women's clubs in NJ that do this as well - Ridgewood, I believe.
    image
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  • mcjaysmcjays
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    You can try the Loews in Jersey City. It's beautiful but since it's non-profit, everyone who works on a volunteer basis and it's hard to get ahold of people. But I believe it's $2,500 for the whole day.
    I also read about The Women's Club of Englewood - about the same rate but only fits 100 people for dinner with room for a small dancefloor.
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  • rebecca.scuderirebecca.scuderi
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Nice! Two votes for Loews, I will definitely look into it though it does seem like infinitely more work than just sticking with the museum. I love the Women's Club of Englewood, but they can only sit 100-120 comfortably. We're locking in our guarantees with the caterers for at least 120 having an invite list of 150.
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  • Laurms15Laurms15 member
    2500 Comments Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    We got married at Woman's Club of Ridgewood and I brought everything in and loved it! We also looked at Woman's Club of Glen Ridge. Ridgewood won out since it was so much closer to our church then Glen Ridge and we had 150ppl at our wedding.
    my bio ~Laurie~
    wedding websites
    imageimage
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  • rebecca.scuderirebecca.scuderi
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Ridgewood would be a possibility because it is only a town away from where the ceremony will be taking place, I think though that I'm really looking for something a little more modern. I've contacted Montclair University to possibly use one of their event spaces and South Orange Performing Arts Center to use their loft. It's really difficult finding something that fits exactly the "vibe" that we're going for....if only David Tutera would magically pop up with his magic wand.
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  • Laurms15Laurms15 member
    2500 Comments Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    We took down all the photos and fake shrubery and put uplighting on the walls and had a gobo on the dance floor which helped to transform the space a bit.
    my bio ~Laurie~
    wedding websites
    imageimage
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  • mcjaysmcjays
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    What about the Jersey City Museum (not the Liberty Science Center)?

    I know you want Jersey but I also looked into the NYC Fire Museum - which is in Downtown Manhattan near the Holland Tunnel. It's a blank space and they rent it out for weddings.
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  • rebecca.scuderirebecca.scuderi
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    NYC is convenient because it's really just a short drive from our ceremony, my only reservation is that we have family from Florida, South Carolina, and Texas that are all coming in and might be a little nervous about the big city. Depending on cost though it's a possibility to have a shuttle for the reception. Thanks for the suggestion! I'll check into it =)
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  • Melissa66Melissa66
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    We got married at Ridgewood Women's Club and it was great.  Beautiful venue, we brought everything. It was a great wedding.
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  • gafnatgafnat
    First Comment
    edited December 2011
    newark museum and morris museum have much more unique party spaces.  oakside mansion in bloomfield, berkeley carteret hotel in asbury park, williams arts center in rutherford are different.  also beautiful are The Mezzanine in Newark and Harborside in Jersey City.  If you look at Frungillo's catering, merri-makers, and branches catering websites, they have pictures of the different venues they use. 
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