Mini review from a wedding I was in this weekend.
I was a bridesmaid in a very close friends' wedding this weekend. I figured I'd give the bridesmaids' version of a review since she used a lot of LI vendors.
Reception Hall- The Riviera:
The hall was beautiful. Robert Jay was out WC, and he was fabulous. He was attentive to everyone's needs and made sure everything ran smoothly. He made sure not to bother the bride and groom with certain things and came to us first so they could enjoy their day and not have to worry about anything. He was great to all the guests - if you're having your reception there, I'd definitely ask for him as your WC. The food was great- they had the chocolate fountain at the Viennese table, and it was SOOO good. The guests loved it. Our waitress was also great- we never had an empty drink in front of us, and she was constantly checking with us to make sure everything was ok.
Limos- US limo:
I haven't heard too much about them, but their service was great. They had ordered a Rolls for the bride and groom, 2 limos for the bridal party, and a mini bus for the hotel guests to get back and forth from the reception. They called about 1/2 hour before pick up time- the A/C had broken in the bus, so they sent 2 limos and a van for the guests instead. The A/C had also broken in the Rolls- they rushed around to get it fixed in time because the bride had her heart set on the Rolls. They came through and had it waiting for us when we walked out of the hotel. We had Lina as a bridal attendant and she was great- from helping get the bride's veil to sit right (We couldn't get it!), to arranging for everything to get back and forth between stops, carrying our stuff, getting us drinks, doing anything we needed- she was fabulous. I want to book her for our wedding. Their cars were all clean, on time, the drivers were great, and our A/C was kicking!
Makeup/hair- James Royce Salon:
We all had our hair and makeup done here. Several different girls did our hair, and they all came out really well. We had a lot of different styles- updo's, half up/half down, 3 year old flower girl's hair, and all different looks. The hairdressers were good about listening to what we wanted- if we were unhappy with anything they gladly fixed it. The makeup was done by 2 different women. One definitely went for a more subtle look, which I liked better. The one who did my makeup liked a bit more of the dramatic look, and for me my makeup was a bit heavy and over done. Everyone said it looked good, but it was a bit much for me. FH was a little shocked by it, too! I don't usually use foundation, and my face has broken out a bit from it so I'm not too happy about that, but the makeup did last all day long. The other girls were ok with their makeup, but no one thought they looked perfect. The bride liked hers, which was subtle, but she was also worried that she was a bit too made up. I'd recommend their hair services, but probably not for makeup.
Flowers- pedestals:
Our bride was not happy with them. She had her sample centerpieces redone 2 or 3 times because they wouldn't create what she wanted. She did like the bo-ks for her and us, but she thought ours would be bigger. They made a pomander for the FG, but used ivory tulle instead of white. The mother's bouquets were very small, and she was very unhappy about them. They were also supposed to provide 2 throw away bo-ks, and only sent 1, but sent over an extra corsage. Some of the roses in the BM bo-ks were getting black around the edges and the hydrangeas were barely open- even by the end of the night. I know a lot of people love pedestals on LIW, but I wasn't impressed!
Hotel rooms- Huntington Hilton:
The staff here was very accommodating. They let me check in for the bride and groom while they were getting ready and all the bus boys were great. The rooms were nice, but the A/C was not working well. MOst had free standing A/C units brought in, which then had to have the window open to pull in fresh air though a tube. But because of that, there was also a space left open where all the hot air could come into the room, too! The units didn't work too well for the big suites and we were pretty warm in there. They hotel also gave away the groom's grandpa's room! They had secured the room with a credit card for late check in, and didn't try to check in until after the reception. When they tried to check in, the hotel had given away the room and they were sold out! After about 45 minutes, they found a room somehow for them, but at 1 AM, his grandparents were tired and NOT happy!
I've got to head off to a meeting, but I'll post more later!
Reception Hall- The Riviera:
The hall was beautiful. Robert Jay was out WC, and he was fabulous. He was attentive to everyone's needs and made sure everything ran smoothly. He made sure not to bother the bride and groom with certain things and came to us first so they could enjoy their day and not have to worry about anything. He was great to all the guests - if you're having your reception there, I'd definitely ask for him as your WC. The food was great- they had the chocolate fountain at the Viennese table, and it was SOOO good. The guests loved it. Our waitress was also great- we never had an empty drink in front of us, and she was constantly checking with us to make sure everything was ok.
Limos- US limo:
I haven't heard too much about them, but their service was great. They had ordered a Rolls for the bride and groom, 2 limos for the bridal party, and a mini bus for the hotel guests to get back and forth from the reception. They called about 1/2 hour before pick up time- the A/C had broken in the bus, so they sent 2 limos and a van for the guests instead. The A/C had also broken in the Rolls- they rushed around to get it fixed in time because the bride had her heart set on the Rolls. They came through and had it waiting for us when we walked out of the hotel. We had Lina as a bridal attendant and she was great- from helping get the bride's veil to sit right (We couldn't get it!), to arranging for everything to get back and forth between stops, carrying our stuff, getting us drinks, doing anything we needed- she was fabulous. I want to book her for our wedding. Their cars were all clean, on time, the drivers were great, and our A/C was kicking!
Makeup/hair- James Royce Salon:
We all had our hair and makeup done here. Several different girls did our hair, and they all came out really well. We had a lot of different styles- updo's, half up/half down, 3 year old flower girl's hair, and all different looks. The hairdressers were good about listening to what we wanted- if we were unhappy with anything they gladly fixed it. The makeup was done by 2 different women. One definitely went for a more subtle look, which I liked better. The one who did my makeup liked a bit more of the dramatic look, and for me my makeup was a bit heavy and over done. Everyone said it looked good, but it was a bit much for me. FH was a little shocked by it, too! I don't usually use foundation, and my face has broken out a bit from it so I'm not too happy about that, but the makeup did last all day long. The other girls were ok with their makeup, but no one thought they looked perfect. The bride liked hers, which was subtle, but she was also worried that she was a bit too made up. I'd recommend their hair services, but probably not for makeup.
Flowers- pedestals:
Our bride was not happy with them. She had her sample centerpieces redone 2 or 3 times because they wouldn't create what she wanted. She did like the bo-ks for her and us, but she thought ours would be bigger. They made a pomander for the FG, but used ivory tulle instead of white. The mother's bouquets were very small, and she was very unhappy about them. They were also supposed to provide 2 throw away bo-ks, and only sent 1, but sent over an extra corsage. Some of the roses in the BM bo-ks were getting black around the edges and the hydrangeas were barely open- even by the end of the night. I know a lot of people love pedestals on LIW, but I wasn't impressed!
Hotel rooms- Huntington Hilton:
The staff here was very accommodating. They let me check in for the bride and groom while they were getting ready and all the bus boys were great. The rooms were nice, but the A/C was not working well. MOst had free standing A/C units brought in, which then had to have the window open to pull in fresh air though a tube. But because of that, there was also a space left open where all the hot air could come into the room, too! The units didn't work too well for the big suites and we were pretty warm in there. They hotel also gave away the groom's grandpa's room! They had secured the room with a credit card for late check in, and didn't try to check in until after the reception. When they tried to check in, the hotel had given away the room and they were sold out! After about 45 minutes, they found a room somehow for them, but at 1 AM, his grandparents were tired and NOT happy!
I've got to head off to a meeting, but I'll post more later!
