Alexandria, MN wedding reception sites

Question:

Dear Rev. Coleman,

I'm wondering if you have any suggestions for wedding sites outside of the Twin Cities, MN area? I really appreciate your amazing reviews of historic wedding reception sites in Minneapolis and St Paul, but I'm from Alexandria, Minnesota, and we would love to have a wedding somewhere near that area. However, I'm really struggling to find a place that meets our needs. We're looking for a place that can host the wedding and the reception, is affordable, lets you bring in your own caterer AND is original and unique (not your typical ballroom or event center). We have about 200 guests. Any suggestions?

Thank you so much for your advice!

Alexandria Groom



Answer:

Dear AG,

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding!

I'm sorry, but I've got bad news...

Now, I've been wrong before, but in my experience...well, that sort of site doesn't exist even in the Twin Cities (sorry!)

There's two big sticking points in your request:

1. Most wedding reception sites make most of their income from the catering, so they don't rent out the site for you to do your own catering. It's too bad, isn't it? Their rental fee is just a fraction of the money they need to break even (and then make a small profit)...most of the money is from the $8-10K food/beverage minimum. Those big sites just have huge taxes, repair bills, labor costs, advertising...and so they charge a bundle. The site rental fee is just a fraction of that...most of the money comes from catering...(sorry!)
2. Outside of the Twin Cities, MN metro area, it's extremely hard to find a wedding reception site that isn't a reception hall. There's only 10-12 in the Twin Cities (museums, mansions, historic farms, historic sites, and such...virtually all of the premier wedding reception sites in Minneapolis/St Paul are listed on the reviews on my website)...and outside of this Minneapolis/St Paul urban area, a historic/unique/original site like that is as rare as hen's teeth...exceptions such as historic old river towns like Stillwater, MN (with its beautiful historic Washington County Historic Courthouse, available for weddings) and Red Wing, MN (with its historic St James Hotel, or nearby Falconer Vineyards) are the exceptions because they're very old towns.
   

But hey, I could be wrong - I've been wrong before. But I'd be really surprised if what you are looking for exists. (If it does, please let me know - I'd love to tell the world about it!)

That being said, if you:

• are willing to take a banquet hall (which can be quite nice, like the Arrowwood Resort & Conference‎ Hall, pictured above)
• are willing to use their catering (after all, catering for 200 loved ones is incredibly difficult)

...then there are definitely great choices. I have not been to these sites, but they host wedding ceremonies:

• Arrowwood Resort & Conference‎ Hall (shown in the picture above), 2100 Arrowwood Ln NW, Alexandria, MN‎ - (320) 762-1124‎
• Broadway Ballroom‎, 115 30th Ave E, Alexandria, MN‎ - (320) 763-6565‎
• Alexandria Country Club‎, 2300 N Nokomis St NE, Alexandria, MN‎ - (320) 763-3604‎
• Minnewaska House‎ Banquet Facility, 24895 State Highway 28, Glenwood, MN‎ - (320) 634-4566‎
• Prairie Event Center‎, 201 W Main St, Parkers Prairie, MN‎ - (218) 338-4115‎
  

For what it's worth, I hope this answer helps. I wish you the very best with your wedding - and with your new life together!

Warmly,

Rev. Tomkin Coleman
Minnesota Wedding Planner & Minister

p.s. I WAS wrong! I just thought of one that fits part of the bill - the Carlos Creek Winery in Alexandria, MN rents out their site for weddings. I wouldn't think that they'd allow you to bring in your own catering, but they have recommendations for licensed caterers in the area.

Follow-up:

Good morning Rev. Tomkin Coleman,

I just saw this posting and I want to thank you for recommending Carlos Creek Winery for weddings in Alexandria, MN! I am the Director of Events out at the Winery. We do host a lot of weddings out here and it definitely is something different than your typical ballroom!

I would love to talk with you more about event planning and coordinating to learn more from you. You seem to know quite a bit about events.

Director of Events
Carlos Creek Winery
michelle@carloscreekwinery.com

Muddy Paws cheesecakes - for weddings, how cool!

At the recent Minnesota Bride magazine awards event, Minnesota wedding singer Diane Martinson introduced me to the owner of Muddy Paws cheesecake - Tami Cabrera Weinmann. Tami was super-friendly, and told me about how they offer 200 kinds of cheesecake, and love serving them for weddings! Popular ways to serve them are:

• An assortment of cheesecakes displayed on a cake or dessert buffet table
• Tiers of cheesecake set on a traditional wedding stand
• A cheesecake on each table as a centerpiec

I checked out their website today, and they have pages and pages about their wedding cheesecakes, including this main page, as well as these pages of pictures: pictures #1, (the images here are from this page), and pictures #2. This City Pages article talks about how most of their business is now for wedding receptions.

In our conversation, I got to ask about the derivation of the name - as a dog-lover, I think Muddy Paws is a great name! It turns out that Tami was originally interested in being a veterinarian, but so many people requested her amazing cheesecakes that she wound up doing it full-time. She came up with the name just in fun as she started out, but then once the business got big, it was too late to change - everyone loved "Muddy Paws" too much to consider changing it!

If you're at all interested in a unique dessert or wedding cake option in the Minneapolis, Minnesota area, I highly recommend Muddy Paws!

Sincerely,

Rev. Tomkin Coleman
Minnesota Wedding Officiant

Hinkley, MN wedding reception places

Question:

Hello, Rev. Coleman,

My sister is getting married soon. I love how helpful your website is for couples looking for wedding reception places in Minnesota, and I was wondering if you know of any places for getting married and for receptions. Our location is in Hinckley, MN. We are willing to travel about 60 miles. Can you help???

Hopefully Helpful Sister,
Sent via BlackBerry from T-Mobile




Answer:

Dear HHS,

Congratulations on your sister's upcoming wedding!

I don't know the wedding reception centers outside of the Twin Cities, MN area very well, so I haven't personally been to these, but the following banquet halls are fairly close to Hinkley, Minnesota:

• Audubon Center of the North Woods‎ (the building pictured above...)
  54165 Audubon Dr., Sandstone, MN‎ - (320) 245-2648‎
  

• Northern Lights Ballroom & Banquet Center‎
  Highway 169, Milaca, MN‎ - (320) 369-4622‎
  

• Cassidy's Restaurant‎
  327 Fire Monument Rd, Hinckley, MN‎ - (320) 384-6129‎
  

• Grand Event Center‎
  2025 Rowland Rd, Mora, MN‎ - (320) 679-1000‎
  

I hope this answer helps!

Warm regards,

Rev. Tomkin Coleman
Minnesota Weddings with Rev. Coleman

Historic Concord Exchange for wedding ceremonies

The Historic Concord Exchange is a huge mansion in St Paul, MN. While it's usually the nightclub, Valentino's, it is available for wedding ceremonies and receptions. I've never performed a wedding ceremony there, but got a tour of the site this spring. Here's pictures and notes!

• The 3rd floor has a dozen hotel rooms, which can be rented for special wedding guests (optional)
• The 2nd floor features the balcony above the ballroom - it's amazing. The balcony has plenty of room for tables, and includes a bar.
• The 1st floor has the main ballroom, with cherry wood and elaborate ironwork.
• The lower level has a restaurant, which is perfect for a rehearsal dinner.

The balcony of the Historic Concord Exchange, above the main ballroom can seat guests, plus there's a couple more bars up there, as well as more rooms in which guests can mingle.



Down below is the head table and the main tables. The ballroom tables are then cleared for dancing after dinner. If you have your ceremony at the mansion, they set up chairs and a riser. There's other rooms on the main floor for guests, as well.


The stairways of the Historic Concord Exchange feature gold trim and cherry wood.



Chandra, the wedding coordinator at the Historic Concord Exchange in, shows off one of the main hallways on the first floor.

The Historic Concord Exchange, at 200 Concord Exchange North in Saint Paul, is unique
among Twin Cities mansions in that it will soon offer optional hotel rooms for guests to stay the weekend. It designed by the same architect who built Grand Central Station in New York City. The Concord mansion overlooks the Mississippi valley in South Saint Paul, just north of 494. It's unique in that soon you will have the option to rent up to 15 hotel rooms in the mansion, which are on the third floor, so that guest don't have to drive home after drinking. Once the hotel rooms are built, your loved ones can spend the weekend there, so they'll be visiting with each other, even before and after the wedding. The Bourbon Street Steakhouse is in the very lower level, which can be used for a rehearsal dinner. They have a built in sound system for the whole building and are also equipped for live bands.

The Historic Concord Exchange can seat 250 guests for dinner and they provide the catering. Their rental fee is $2500, and their food and beverage minimum varies depending on the time of year. For availability, call 612-233-6619 and ask for Chandra.

Minnesota Arboretum for weddings

Question:

Good Afternoon Rev. Coleman –

I found your website and I must say I am very impressed with your site and your obvious passion for helping new couples navigate what can be a very stressful time for them –the wedding planning (cue ominous music).

I would be happy to give you a tour of our gardens & facilities at the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum at a time that is convenient for you. In 2009 we have 102 weddings booked – a record for us. We are often asked about officiants and would be happy to promote you as well.

Please let me know what we can do to become one of your premiere wedding destinations of Minnesota. I look forward to speaking with you!

Lindsay Sypnieski
Visitor Services & Reservations Manager
Minnesota Landscape Arboretum
3675 Arboretum Drive
Chaska, MN 55318
Direct: 952-443-1427
Fax: 952-443-3018
Email: lsypnies@umn.edu
Website: www.arboretum.umn.edu


Answer:

Good afternoon, Lindsay,

Thank you so much for your wonderful email - you made my day! Sorry it took so long to get back to you (I was on vacation).

You have a gorgeous and special space, and I would love to promote the Arboretum - thank you! I've performed many wedding ceremonies at the MN Landscape Arboretum, and love your site. I had no idea that you offered a space for wedding receptions, too - that's terrific! May I ask you a few questions? (If there's some formula, or something, an approximate number is totally fine, just to get a rough idea).

Note to readers: Her answers are provided here.

• What is the fee for renting a spot for just a wedding ceremony, on a Saturday in the summer?
  --- The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum has several gardens we use for wedding ceremonies they range in rental cost based on the number of people it can hold. Our smallest is our Japanese Garden (holds max. of 12 people) for $500 up to our Nelson Shrub Rose Garden (holds max. of 250 people) for $1,000 (includes shuttle bus to and from the visitors center for guests).
  
  
• What is the rental fee for using the hall for a reception on a Saturday in the summer?
  --- The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum has 5 spaces that range in size for receptions – our Tearoom & Terrace (holds max. 50 guests) for $1,050 room rental up to our MacMillan Auditorium (holds up to a max. of 300 guests) for $2,000 room rental. We also have food & beverage minimums to reach based on the room size.
  
  
• Just to give couples an idea of prices for wedding receptions, may I ask what's the price for, say, a chicken dinner? (This info, placed on this comparison chart, can be really helpful for couples!)
  $20.49 plus tax and 18% service charge

Note to readers: Kudos and many thanks to Lindsay of the Minnesota Arboretum - it is so gracious and generous of her to provide these answers for readers. I love performing wedding ceremonies at the Arboretum, and highly recommend it for both wedding ceremonies and receptions!

Rev. Tomkin Coleman
Minnesota Wedding Minister & Planner

Spelling error

Question:

Dear Rev. Coleman,

I was checking out the Minnesota History Center page and followed a link to your Minnesota Wedding Venue page.

The second paragraph's first internal link contains a homophonic spelling error. The word should be "premier" instead of "premiere".

Just thought you should know. Although I'm confirmed Catholic and my wedding is likely to take place in my girlfriend's native central Wisconsin I found your inclusive message of love to be very refreshing.

Wisconsin Groom

--
"Love is the first feeling people feel, because love is nice."
--Honest to God Asian Kitchen fortune cookie fortune cracked November 3rd 2007


Answer:

Dear WB,

Thank you so much! I really appreciate your e-mail (and my error has now been corrected). I appreciate your kind words - you made my day.

Best wishes for your wedding and with your new life together!

Warmly,

Rev. Tomkin Coleman
Minnesota Wedding Officiant