Brunch Wedding & Reception in the Twin Cities

Question:

Hello Reverend,

I came across your site today and was very impressed!

I am recently engaged, and am wondering what you know about late morning weddings. Do you have any suggestions on venues for a ceremony and brunch reception in the Minneapolis/St. Paul Metro?

I appreciate your help and expertise!

Take care,
Early Rising Bride




Answer:

Good evening, E.R.B.,

Great question! Very classy idea. How many guests are you thinking of having?

Warm regards,

Rev. Tomkin Coleman



Follow-Up From Early Morning Bride:

We are thinking no more than 200 people.

-Early Rising Bride




Answer:

Good morning, E.R.B.

Ah, I'm so glad I asked! When the number of guests is over 20, then the event is too large to be in a restaurant. With hundreds of guests, only a reception hall can feed that many people.

So this is good news! Virtually any reception hall (whether a mansion, hotel, museum, farm, amphitheater, or historic site) can accommodate a 10:00 am wedding. I'm thinking out loud, but the schedule might be something like the following:

• 10-10:30 - Wedding
• 10:30-11:30 - In an evening wedding, this time would be named the "Cocktail Hour", but since it's a morning wedding, this period might be termed the "Social Hour". This is the time where you're accepting congratulations from guests, and guests are moving from their seats at the wedding ceremony to their seats at the reception tables
• 11:30-12:30 - Brunch reception
• 12:30 till end (2:00 pm?) - In an evening wedding, the post-dinner dancing would be during this time, and then the reception would end, but for a brunch wedding, there probably wouldn't be any dancing, and this would be a time that the guests, now finished eating, would wind up saying their goodbyes.

With these thoughts in mind, I'd suggest looking through my list (which you've probably already been looking at) of premiere wedding reception sites in the Twin Cities, Minnesota. It's not an exhaustive list, but any of them would be able to host a brunch wedding reception.

Plus, with a morning wedding, you'll have more dates to choose from than a bride who wants an afternoon/evening wedding. Most Saturday afternoon/evenings in 2009 at the premiere wedding reception sites in the Twin Cities are already booked (except for the Historic Concord Exchange in Saint Paul, MN, which just opened), but all of them will have most Saturday mornings available.

I hope this answer helps!

Warm regards,

Rev. Tomkin Coleman
Minnesota Wedding Officiant & Planner