~*~***QOTD - 12/16/09***~*~

HAPPY HUMP DAY!!! Half way there ladies!!!

What made you choose your RH & what are some of the things you LOVE about it??

I was in a fashion show there when I was 12 & remember coming home saying, this is where I want to have my wedding. We have gone to functions there over the years, & always went to the restaurant and I'd stare in awe at the hall just wishing for it one day. Knowing this place is way out of our budget I didn't even consider looking there. Why?, so that I could walk out crying & disappointed? It would have been so upsetting. FSIL's SIL works there & had convinced us to just go as a last minute appointment one night to just get a quote. FH & I both liked a few others but couldn't agree on one hall, until then. They ended up giving us the best price & the most for our money. From that moment on, my dream was about to come true!

I love the over all elegance & marble floors, especially the dance floor. The chandaliers..as I am 100% Italian I can proudly admit to loving the 'gaudiness' haha. Also the fireplace in our room, the beautiful mural on the opposite wall reminds me of Italy, & my Grandma & Grandpa who passed away. Last but not least we LOOOVE THE FOOD!!
We left the showcase like 'wow! everything we put in our mouth was amazing even the cakes!' and we were even happier with our choice

I was just wondering where your QOTD was! lol Thinking about the fact that you said you were a night owl, as am I.

Anyway, Russo's was my first choice before we started looking, Iwe had ben to a party there and I was OBSESSED with the Tivoli terrace, which I still find stunning. However, once we started looking, I realized I really wanted an outdor CH, but we never found a place that had such impeccable service and food the way we wanted ... so when we balanced everything including FH's new found love of Russo's and the fact that I had loved it before we booked it.

SO, the terrace for CH, the impeccable reputation, the CRAZY CRAZY menu, so sophisticated are the things I love about it. I also love the fact that i's on the water. It's also relatively close to our Church in BK and FH is all about that ginzo granite and mirrors look, which is actually the thing I like less about it, but it's all right. It's beautiful in it's own right, I appreciate that, it's just not necessarily my taste, which differes drastically from FH's. I think my tastes have changed over the past few years as I've gotten a little older. When I was 20, I wouldn't have even looked at another hall after Russo's!



Let me tell you though,FH used up all his decision making power on the venue. After that, I have total control

ETA: Interesting, FH is 100% Italian as well. From BK, no less.

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Posted by JLWSJC

I was just wondering where your QOTD was! lol Thinking about the fact that you said you were a night owl, as am I.

Anyway, Russo's was my first choice before we started looking, Iwe had ben to a party there and I was OBSESSED with the Tivoli terrace, which I still find stunning. However, once we started looking, I realized I really wanted an outdor CH, but we never found a place that had such impeccable service and food the way we wanted ... so when we balanced everything including FH's new found love of Russo's and the fact that I had loved it before we booked it.

SO, the terrace for CH, the impeccable reputation, the CRAZY CRAZY menu, so sophisticated are the things I love about it. I also love the fact that i's on the water. It's also relatively close to our Church in BK and FH is all about that ginzo granite and mirrors look, which is actually the thing I like less about it, but it's all right. It's beautiful in it's own right, I appreciate that, it's just not necessarily my taste, which differes drastically from FH's. I think my tastes have changed over the past few years as I've gotten a little older. When I was 20, I wouldn't have even looked at another hall after Russo's!

Let me tell you though,FH used up all his decision making power on the venue. After that, I have total control

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aww Jamie that's great! I've never been ther but my gf went there for her ex bfs xmas party & OMG it was all she would talk about how awesome that place is!! LOVe ginzo-ness!! haha Are you coming out of the floor?? haha that's the place that has that right?..lol

Yes I am a night owl..FH just went to bed & he's like 'aww so many responsibilities ur bride of the week'..haha yes it's all a big joke to 'regular people' not us 'Liwedding-ers' is that even a word?? not really, I just made it up though! haha..ok I'm delerious..need sleep..see you all & your responses in the morning! I stalk from work on my phone but can't respond..so annoying..

GOOD NIGHT

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Posted by ellie424

When I walked into OFC I knew that this was where I would love to have my reception. I just love the whole ambiance of the place. I love that my RH is very simple and elegant. Love how it on the water and has hardwood floors throughout the ballroom. I also love the high vaulted ceilings, french doors, and simple chandeliers. They also only have one wedding per day, which I am very happy about. I truly love everything about it!

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Alicia every time you talk about OFC I get so jealous. It sounds like the perfect place for me, but it was just too far away from church to make it freasible so we didn't look. Sounds so nice!

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Posted by JLWSJC

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Posted by ellie424

When I walked into OFC I knew that this was where I would love to have my reception. I just love the whole ambiance of the place. I love that my RH is very simple and elegant. Love how it on the water and has hardwood floors throughout the ballroom. I also love the high vaulted ceilings, french doors, and simple chandeliers. They also only have one wedding per day, which I am very happy about. I truly love everything about it!

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Alicia every time you talk about OFC I get so jealous. It sounds like the perfect place for me, but it was just too far away from church to make it freasible so we didn't look. Sounds so nice!

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Thank you Jamie!! I'm sure your hall is also perfect for you! I'm a little bit of a distance from there too (I'm in Nassau) so I knew I had to have a Saturday wedding (although I die when I think about the cost ) because I was really stressing about all the traffic for the guests coming from Queens, Westchester, etc. Most of our guests aren't from Suffolk. Where is your church located??

i picked the inn because it was perfect!... we first went looking cause fmil's best friend works there... i was scared to book it at first cause it is expensive.... but when u put it into perspective.... its practically family making sure everything about your wedding is perfect and i knew there wouldn't be any hidden fees or extra last minute charges...anyway i also picked it because:

1~i LOVE the bridal FLOOR... haha its a whole floor a living room a dining room a little room to fix makeup and a bathroom it was amazing most places had a little closet size room that i was supposed to squeeze 15-20 people in>

2~ I like that im the only wedding and that i won't have to worry about bumping into another bride or other guests.

3~ The room is Huge!! 2 bars so no one has to cross the dance floor to get to the bar.... the dance floor has a cool feature where its loud when you are on the dance floor and when u step off , onto the carpet its quieter so you can hear people talking to you

4~ the chandeliers are amazing!

5~I Love that outside its almost like a backyard at a big mansion.... small gardens and a few water fountains, a stone gazebo, and a brick patio

6~ Ive never been to a function there and no one i know has gotten married there ... so it made me feel like its MY RH!


haha i could go on forever!! I Just LOVE the inn !!

I picked my RH because it was everything I wanted. It didnt make me feel like I was in a Catering Hall or anything like that. Not to mention, it's GORGEGOUS! I knew it was where I wanted my wedding from when FH and I pulled up and saw the mansion. I didnt even have to look inside!

The bridal suite is HUGE! I could fit my BMs and then some!

The food is awesome! And every month they have a tasting!

When I saw the grounds, I pictured myself walking down the aisle outside with FH waiting for me at the other end. I knew it was PERFECT!

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Posted by soontobemrsi

i picked the inn because it was perfect!... we first went looking cause fmil's best friend works there... i was scared to book it at first cause it is expensive.... but when u put it into perspective.... its practically family making sure everything about your wedding is perfect and i knew there wouldn't be any hidden fees or extra last minute charges...anyway i also picked it because:

1~i LOVE the bridal FLOOR... haha its a whole floor a living room a dining room a little room to fix makeup and a bathroom it was amazing most places had a little closet size room that i was supposed to squeeze 15-20 people in>

2~ I like that im the only wedding and that i won't have to worry about bumping into another bride or other guests.

3~ The room is Huge!! 2 bars so no one has to cross the dance floor to get to the bar.... the dance floor has a cool feature where its loud when you are on the dance floor and when u step off , onto the carpet its quieter so you can hear people talking to you

4~ the chandeliers are amazing!

5~I Love that outside its almost like a backyard at a big mansion.... small gardens and a few water fountains, a stone gazebo, and a brick patio

6~ Ive never been to a function there and no one i know has gotten married there ... so it made me feel like its MY RH!

haha i could go on forever!! I Just LOVE the inn !!

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Wow I couldnt have said it better myself. I knew it was the place the first time I walked in. I loved the look of it and the fact that its new. I felt like so many other place just looked old and dirty.
They also included a lot of things that other places chaged extra for.
I loved that they have 7 menu options ( i wanted at least 5)
And that no one in my family has gotten married there, I have 27 cousins just on my moms side most of whom are married and no one has had an event there

My RH was the last one I visited. I had called to make the appointment and was told that the date I wanted was already taken! I was super pissed about it - b/c in my head, I really wanted my wedding there.

I had never been to a function there - but I knew people who did so I only saw pictures but something about it just called my name.

I wanted a place on the water - I didn't want a huge place that would have so many things going on at once and I wanted a place my friends haven't been to a wedding yet as of late LOL since we seem to go to a lot lately.

When FH and I walked in - our mouths just dropped. Just before we were in the parking lot saying 'well, its good to just check it out so it can help us negotiate with other places' we really didn't think we would love it that much to change.

But we did - we loved Michelle and ended up sending at least 2 hours there shooting the breeze and in the end we changed our date.

The place is beautiful - it has this old renissance feeling to it - its on the water - the food is great - so far the service has been awesome and I LOVE the bridal suite and how it has its own deck to go outside.

FH and I only saw about a half dozen places, and our RH is actually the first one we'd seen. We loved the event coordinator who met with us there - of everywhere we looked, she was the only person who was not rude to us, and she was so HAPPY every time I spoke to her. That was really important to me - to have the person managing our day be happy all the time.

Of all the other places we visited, we thought Fox Hollow was the most convenient location for us. We're having an afternoon reception, and want to take pictures before the church ceremony, so we will be able to be on the grounds from the morning for pictures - I liked that they had plenty of options for outdoor pictures (which I'm not so concerned about having anyway), pictures inside Fox Hollow, inside the Inn, and then also they keep a nice room as a 'studio' for indoor pictures. This worked for us b/c between the church & the RH, I didn't want to go to a 3rd location for photos.

We loved the bridal suite, too. It's tremendous, and we're looking at having almost 20 people in there before the reception, so it's perfect for that...it also has a private outdoor patio, in case the weather's nice.

And then the food...I guess since Fox Hollow does like 3 weddings at a time, their kitchen can manage more options...they offer guests 7 entree options, which I thought was nice. I also liked the versatility of the CH menu...my sister got married recently at a Greek hall, and my cousin at Lombardi's, and the CHs were very much in those genres of food. I'm glad that ours will be a little different b/c there's a ton of different ethnicities to pick from...I'm already looking forward to the stomach ache I plan on having from it!!

I originally found the Woodlands on LIW (so thank you to LIW and all the past Woodlands' brides reviews!) I know this is so simple, but I loved seeing the photos on the fireplace mantels - it's really your home for the day. I just thought that was so cute and the fact that its an old mansion and not a catering hall feel - love that! I fell in love with it over the internet. Since I'm OOT, I called a lot of places just to get quotes over the phone so I wouldn't have to waste my time checking them out if they weren't in my budget. I called The Woodlands and it was def out of the budget, but I was telling FILs about it and they said 'you sound so excited about it, it looks gorgeous (i showed them the website), why don't you just check it out so you can see for yourself?' I decided to make an appt, but I went into the appt hoping that I'd hate it in person and at least I could stop obsessing over it in my head. FH went in and treated it as a normal appt and when we left, he was like WOW I love it!!!!!
The things I love about it are
- its doesn't look like a catering hall, its a charming old home with some history
- its secluded on the golf course and I feel like I'm in another world when I'm there
- love the fireplaces and the warmth of the place - the lighting & all that
- there are nice places to take pix inside and out (its on 120 acres) - so many places that we visited, I'd love the outside, but not so much the inside and I was like 'well what if we have bad weather?'
- the reviews RAVED about the food
- it was a place I haven't really heard of and most of the ppl I tell about it, haven't heard of it either - we definitely wanted something different

I can go on and on, but this is long enough!!!! I really am so excited

what first intrigued me about the Riviera was the fact that I had never heard of it before. When I worked as a wedding photographer in LI, I had pretty much been to almost every RH there is and I had never once heard of or been to the Riviera. The good thing about being able to have seen all these places, as beautiful as most of them were, I was able to tell right off the bat which ones weren't what I was looking for.

One day while out with friends, Dana (DWKSwed) and I were talking about wedding stuff and I had mentioned how I really wanted something on the water, something different, and hopefully held one event at a time. She immediately said 'The Riviera, go check it out'. As soon as I looked it up on the website, I knew this was exactly what I was looking for (THANKS DANA!).

I had first visited the RH with my mother because we attended a showcase there. My mom is a tough critic and not at all worried about openly expressing her opinion. As soon as we stepped in, we were both like 'Wow this is a great place'. We even got to taste the food which completely sealed the deal for us, it was delicious! The outside CH was exactly what I wanted.

About a month later, I went back with FH to show him the place and he loved it instantly. FH trusted my opinion about not having to visit any place else and we decided this was it. A little while after that, we bought his parents to see it and signed a contract! I just love how cozy it feels there and the second I stepped in I could just picture everyone eating and dancing, I could picture the decor, us having our first dance, and it just made me smile

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Posted by WeezyGirl2354

My RH was the last one I visited. I had called to make the appointment and was told that the date I wanted was already taken! I was super pissed about it - b/c in my head, I really wanted my wedding there.

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Did I take your date??? LOL

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Posted by FutureJOC

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Posted by WeezyGirl2354

My RH was the last one I visited. I had called to make the appointment and was told that the date I wanted was already taken! I was super pissed about it - b/c in my head, I really wanted my wedding there.

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Did I take your date??? LOL

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LOL no you didn't - I originally wanted the Sunday, 5/29 - but that would have been really funny LOL

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Posted by WeezyGirl2354

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Posted by FutureJOC

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Posted by WeezyGirl2354

My RH was the last one I visited. I had called to make the appointment and was told that the date I wanted was already taken! I was super pissed about it - b/c in my head, I really wanted my wedding there.

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Did I take your date??? LOL

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LOL no you didn't - I originally wanted the Sunday, 5/29 - but that would have been really funny LOL

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::wipes sweat from brow:: that was a close one LOL

When me and FH walked into EW we knew it was the one! When we went on the tour we fell in love!! The manager went to get us some waters and I told FH maybe we should push our wedding till 2012 so we can afford this place!! Then when he sat us down for the prices they were right in our budget! Well a little on the high side but not by that much!! I am so excited we went and booked it! We werent even going to go there because its pretty far from the church but ppl can just **** it up and drive!!

I heard so many great things about WM from many of the wonderful girls on the boards, so when fh and I visited we already knew alot about it. When we stepped in we knew we didn't have to look any further. I love the grounds at WM. The beautiful peacocks and parrots. You also have a choice of an outdoor coctail hour and ceremony. WM doesn't look anything like your typical reception hall. It has a warm feeling, kind of like home. I just love this place . I go every chance I get just to see it again.

I <3 CLM, The view is absolutely gorgeous, the food is incredible and Nick is the greatest guy and the biggest help.

When FH and I heard of this place it sounded to good to be true, my mom had mentioned it in passing. We saw it online and were in Awe. So on a complete whim we hopped in the car in the middle of the night and drove down to see it at night, and let me say it was breathetaking. So we grabbed the first available appointment with Nick and booked almost immediately after viewing it formally.

What made me love it more is that Our Ceremony is at 630, so I get to the whole back with the awesome Ocean view blocked off until 8, so I get the awesome Sunset on water photos. I'm ultra excited!

I am also getting married at the Inn and couldn't have put the other post better myself!
But just to add a few things: They put so much detail into every aspect of this RH. The ceilings in the RH are hand craved! It is exquisite. The lobby with the dark cherry wood and fireplace is stunning! It also has a grand piano which is a beautiful bonus. The Bridal Suite is nothing short of ammmmaaazzing!! and the minute I saw the CH I was sold! It is replicated after an Italian Trattoria! It is so gorgeous. I cannot wait to host my wedding here!