All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church
4501 Walnut Street
Kansas City, Mo. 64111
816.531.2131
Seating capacity: contact venue
used by ToddysGirl
From: ToddysGirl
D ~~ The minister, Jim Eller, is too nice to give it an F. There were so many things that I didn’t like about this place it’s hard to name it all. Here’s a sample: first, the communication within the staff is terrible. Everyone has different calendars of different activities, none of which match up to the others. Second, they scheduled a Hawaiian Luau on the patio for the same day as the wedding. I was ensured the activities would be in the back part of the patio, away from the entrance where the guests would be coming in. WRONG! That crap was all the way up to the front door. To make it worse, they had a band playing later in the night and they had clothes pinned a bed sheet in between the trees as a backdrop on the “stage”. I was livid! Nothing I could do about it at that point so I took a deep breath and just let it go.Antioch Park
6501 Antioch Road
Merriam, KS
used by Orangina
From: Orangina
Helen Cuddy Rose GardenD- The park is very pretty with ample parking, however, THEY DOUBLE BOOKED US! When we arrived there was another wedding party there with documentation that they had it reserved the same time as us 4-7 pm. Luckily their party was only ~10 people so they let us go first, but they almost didn't. They wanted to call the park ranger and have him figure it out (yeah, like that would've helped). The park gave us all of our money back in the end, but it was a stressful situation and totally unecessary.
Asbury United Methodist Church
5400 West 75th Street
Prairie Village, KS 66208
913.432.5573
used by mrs.p
From: mrs.p
A ~~ The church is beautiful and had sentimental value to both me and DH. The pastor (Steve) was wonderful and did a great job making the ceremony personal. My dad is also a minister and co-officiated (of course I give him an A+…he held it together and didn't cry!). Marilyn is the wedding coordinator there and she was very helpful (especially when we had a huge organist debacle the week of the wedding). The only problem we had was with playing a C/D for our recessional song (all other music was organ & piano). It would have cost $85 to have an audio technician there to play it over their sound system (it is very complicated and only a few people are trained to do it) so I was told to just bring a stereo and it would sound fine (I was told that other couples had done the same in previous weddings). On the day of the wedding, it was somehow determined that that wouldn't work and luckily the audio guy lived nearby and was willing to come over and do it (and FIL paid for it without me ever knowing anything was going on). It ended up sounding great and I didn't even know about the switch until afterwards.Ball Conference Center
21350 West 153rd Street
Olathe, KS
913.322.4980
used by Mrs_W
From: Mrs_W
D ~~ I feel I'm being very generous giving them that good of a grade. The coordinator there is very rude, very unprofessional and very unorganized. The problems began when all of a sudden she called and said "Oops, I forgot to tell you there was an extra $500 charge for a damage deposit and if you don't get it to me by tomorrow at 5 we won't let you in the doors." We probably could have got around this considering it said NOTHING about it in our contract, but we just had her type up a letter saying we'd get the $500 back at the end of the night if there were no damages. She said "I'm not too familiar with all the contracts and legal stuff" WTF!! Why is she drawing up contracts if she has no clue what she's doing???Then, she wasn't even there the day of the wedding - just two random people we'd never talked to. The room was to be set up by 2:00 and I got there at 1:30 to unload my car. I had a few friends with me to decorate and I don't think they got started until almost 3! The florist showed up at 2 and had no where to put anything because the tables were not set up. When the photographers arrived at 3, the cleaning crew were just starting to mop! I had personally drove out to the site and went over every little detail with Mary - what time the room would be set up, what decorations we'd use, etc. All of a sudden, the random guy working that day busted into the room where all of the girls were getting ready - luckily we were dressed! - and he said we couldn't use the hundreds of candles I had bought!!! He then proceeded to tell me he had called Mary to tattle and say "she's using candles!!!" after I had shown them to her - they tried to say they were against fire code. My lovely sister-in-law graciously told him to leave the room because we were using the candles. I was told we could use them, I was using them!!! His next mistake was to tell the bartender and the groom that we couldn't use their ice machine - after I was told we could. Needless to say - we used their ice. Not sure why they kept going against what was written in our CONTRACT!!! About a half hour before the ceremony started the two random employees were no where to be found and a new random person showed up and said if we needed anything he'd be in the office! Problems aside, the building and the ballroom are are beautiful. The worst part of my day was that I didn't get any pictures with my girls or hardly any with my husband!!! My day was pushed back drastically trying to set the room up 2 or 3 hours late and I didn't have time for any pictures until after the ceremony! They finished setting up the room when I was supposed to be starting pictures :-(
Broadway United Methodist Church
406 West 74th Street
Kansas City, Missouri 64114
816.363.4084
used by snoopy
From: snoopy
A+ ~~ Our pastor was Barry Freese and he did an excellent job at making us feel comfortable and making our day special to us. The church was beautiful with stained glass windows and very easy to work with.Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception
used by ErinE683
From: ErinE683
B ~~ It is a beautiful church, but wasn't the easiest to deal with. We had to pay $225 for our prepare exam, while other churches just have the priest do it. We really didn't get along with the woman who was supposed to be the church coordinator, either. Thankfully, my Aunt stepped up to do the day of coordination. They were overall helpful and accommodating, and it is a gorgeous location.Church of the Ascension
9510 W 127th Street
Overland Park, KS 66213
913.681.3348
used by SilverJubilee
Circle S Ranch
3325 Circle S Lane
Lawrence, KS
785.843.4124
used by i_heart_james
From: i_heart_james
D ~~ We had a LOT of problems with this vendor. They were super nice when we looked at the place and all the months leading up to the wedding. However, 3 months before the wedding they called and said they had us booked for the wrong date (the week after the date we had booked) b/c they told my dad that date was booked when he paid the deposit, but they never told me-all those months I had included the date in the emails and they never corrected me. So anyway, they reschedule our wedding for the 17th since we had already bought our invites. Then we find out 5 weeks before the wedding that there is someone else booked in ½ the rooms we had paid for the night of our wedding...they tell us this has been taken care of. 2 weeks before our wedding they call to tell us that the other people didn't move their rooms (like they told us) and they are moving our rooms the night of the wedding and aren't giving us any money back. After hours talking to them they finally gave us some money off our bill and let us pick which rooms we moved.The day of the wedding they were supposed to send two plates of food up to our room since we knew we wouldn't eat much at the reception and they didn't. We were also supposed to get to pick our breakfast menus and we wanted biscuits and gravy Friday morning and they asked the other people what they wanted and served that instead. Then they told us that we couldn't take the rest of the food home with us (we paid for 100 buffet meals and only had about 50 guests actually show up) and then they told the other guests that they were welcome to help themselves to the leftovers in the kitchen. I have never dealt with a more disorganized business in my life and it was absurd! GET EVERYTHING IN WRITING ON THE CONTRACT! We had a lot written in to the contract and I made sure that I kept all the emails that were sent back and forth, but I obviously wasn't clear enough since we still pretty much got screwed. I would NEVER do business with this vendor again...incredibly dissappointing!
Clayview Country Club
100 Blue Jay Drive
Liberty MO
816.792.3500
Seating capacity: 200
Club 1000
1000 Broadway
Kansas City, MO
913.649.0223
Seating capacity: 400
used by Jules54, Rockstar79
The Clubhouse on Baltimore
1228 Baltimore
Kansas City, Missouri 64105
816.221.8986
Seating capacity:
| Room | Sq. Ft. | Theatre | Banquet | Reception |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tudor Room | 4900 | 375 | 350 | 500 |
| Tudor Balcony | 2800 | N/A | 100M | 100 |
| Presidents Room | 3500 | 250 | 200 | 275 |
| Main Lobby | 3500 | N/A | N/A | 200 |
| Florentine Room | 1950 | 200 | 125 | 150 |
| Old Grill Room | 1200 | 100 | 120 | 150 |
| Club Room | 1500 | N/A | 100 | 150 |
| Walnut Room | 3750 | 250 | 200 | 250 |
used by kimboloco
From: kimboloco
Walnut and Grille Room ~~ C+ ~~ Okay, here is the deal. Went to set up at 10AM Friday morning, they should open at 9, I was standing outside in the wind waiting for them to open, took 15 minutes, and she overall ended up being a half hour late. I bought the package, which we understood to include set-up and clean-up. We had to SEARCH on Saturday for people to help us as there was another wedding on the Tudor floor that was much bigger. I think what it comes down to is that they have overwhelmed their people who work there, make promises and can't keep them. With all of that said, it is still a beautiful location, and Tasha tried the best she could. It was clean, in good shape, the bartenders were friendly, and they kept most of the promises that they made to me in my contract, which was full of strangeness due to the last guy who was in the position Tasha is now in. People loved the location, the look, the feel.CMSU Alumni Chapel
Warrensburg MO 64093
877.729.8266
Seating capacity: 220 people
used by missmlt, mrs.peraud
From: missmlt
A ~~ This is such a cute little chapel and it seated just the right amount of guests. I had about 130 people, and there was plenty of room without looking empty. Officially the chapel seats over 200 people. I was able to get into the chapel at 2:00 on Friday so I could do some set up and get ready for the rehearsal and the rehearsal dinner. The only think I wish they woud have done is to vaccum. I actually found a vaccum and did it myself on Friday. But otherwise everything was in good working order.They have a speaker system that you can use, and a baby grand piano and organ. I loved the stained glass windows. All in all I was very happy with it. You do have to bring your own officiant as the chapel is non-denominational and has no house staff.
From: mrs.peraud
A+ ~~ Everything went really well, it was very pretty, and Central's staff was very helpful. This was also our reception site, and that went really well, too. However, if you're in the area and are interested in using the chapel, be prepeared to go it totally alone. They have a "wedding planner" and that's seriously her title, but she did absolutely nothing except let me in to look at the chapel and set up a meeting with campus catering. They have no resources to help you off campus or anything like like that, so just a heads up. The sound system sounded great and everything went well at the reception even though it pretty much went first dance, eat, cut the cake, eat the cake, let's go! But oh well, at least we were prepared. All in all, it was fun!Country Club Christian Church
used by Good09, 2005KcBride, Ashbrat, KS*sparkler*
From: Good09
A+/F ~~ This review makes me sad. I am giving the A+ to the church itself and to our officiants, Rev. Stark-Corn and Dr. Cliff Jones. I grew up at CCCC and have always dreamed of getting married there. It is a beautiful church and it holds so many memories for my family. Rev. Stark-Corn was great about helping us personalize our ceremony and organize it in a way that flowed and made sense. Dr. Jones, who used to be a minister at CCCC and who is a close family friend, gave the statement of intent, communion, wedding homily and benediction. It was a very touching and personal service.The F goes to the wedding coordinator, Michelle. She is a nightmare to work with. First of all, she is never available and takes forever to return emails and phone calls. Even worse, she is disorganized. We had a very long engagement, and I called in July 2007, a year and half before our wedding date, to reserve the church. I was told at that time that it was no problem and that they would reserve our spot. Michelle said she would forward the paperwork from the church but I never received it and she never said anything about us having to complete and submit the paperwork before our spot was “actually” reserved. I called again at the end of September, confirmed that our date and time were still reserved, and asked her to send me the paperwork again. Since our spot was reserved, I didn’t stress about the paperwork and we didn’t submit it until the beginning of December, which was still more than a year before the wedding. A few weeks later, she emailed to tell me that our date was already reserved for a 4pm wedding and that we would have to have a 7pm ceremony, instead of the 5pm ceremony we requested. I complained that it was frustrating that no one ever called me when another couple called about our date, since we were assured that it was “reserved.” We have been members there for years and I would have expected better treatment. She should have told me that the paperwork had to be submitted before the date/time was “actually” reserved rather than just continuously saying that they had us in the calendar. In the end, we still had our ceremony at 6pm on our date, but we were unable to access the church until about 45 minutes before the ceremony began. It worked out, but was just stressful and I felt like she acted like the entire situation was my fault.
What was even worse about Michelle though is her personality. I won’t go into all the details, but she was rude to me throughout the entire process. Then, at the rehearsal, she was rude to our families, and exceptionally rude to our bridal party. She ignored DH’s dad through the entire rehearsal, until he finally spoke up and asked where he should sit, and then she acted like he was in the wrong for not speaking up sooner. She belittled him in front of our entire wedding party and guests at the rehearsal. She yelled at the bridal party because they were in the wrong order (they were in the order I asked them to stand in according to height, which was slightly different than the order she had on her sheet) and then she yelled at me because the rehearsal couldn’t go on until her sheet was corrected. The list goes on and on, she’s wretched. In sum, CCCC is a beautiful, wonderful church. But be prepared to have to work with Michelle.
From: 2005KcBride
A+ ~~ Everyone was fantastic and so helpful. We did the couples workshop (which is required) and although we griped about it going in, it was really interesting and low-pressure and just focused on you and yours as opposed to group discussion (which would have been really bad for us.) Our Minister, Dr. Gordon, is very laid-back with a dry sense of humor, so it was a great fit and helped make for a very special ceremony. Finally, our coordinator Michelle took care of everything-gave our ushers jobs, kept everything moving along and got us all to where we needed to be. Really very sweet and extremely on top of things.From: Ashbrat
A ~~ The church was amazing! Rev. Carla was adorable; everyone loved the things she said! Dale (our minister of music) helped us pick the perfect music, he was great! I loved working with Jodi, however was a little disappointed that she wasn't there to take care of everything (her assistant was there that day). They schedule weddings right on top of each other; so, we were rushed to get pictures done and clear out of the church.From: KS*sparkler*
Expensive, but gorgeous. We were assigned one of their ministers, Catherine Stark-Corn who was absolutely wonderful. She helped us create the exact ceremony that we wanted.Couples Swept Away
Negril Jamaica
used by -cayce-
From: -cayce-
A++ ~ I can't express enough how much we loved this place. Worth every cent and guilt we got for wanting to get married on a beach. We ABSOULTELY have NO regrets about doing a destination wedding. HIGHLY RECOMMEND! The resort is a truly a magical place, and you hon*stly forget all of worries when you are there. Our guests loved it too, and we're all planning on going back in 2 years!! The resort has several awards and the service is outstanding. The food is to die for, and the beach is like a pool in the ocean...clean, clear, and calm. LUV IT!!!Deer Creek Golf Club
7000 West 133rd Street
Overland Park, KS
913.681.3594
Seating capacity: 300
Drexel Hall
3301 Baltimore
Kansas City, MO
Seating capacity: 400 seated
Englewood Assembly of God
816.254.8313
used by little.princess
From: little.princess
A- ~~ I love my church, they really did everything in their power to make things go smoothly, and they let me in the church whenever I needed, and they gave me no trouble with anything; however, our "wedding cordinator" and I don't see eye to eye and she made me cry several times the night of the rehersal, because she was just so rough. She made up for it on Saturday, fortunately, but other than that the church was amazing and it looked BEAUTIFUL!!
The Elms Resort and Spa
401 Regent Street
Excelsior Springs, MO
816.630.5500
Seating Capacity: 300
used by DNelson
From: DNelson
A++ ~~ After much apprehension because it seemed like NO ONE had even been interested in this location, let alone anyone using it, we booked The Elms because I fell in love with it. Even with a few bumps in the road along the way, overall, they completely EXCEEDED all expectations that I had. They made the entire weekend fantastic not only for me, but for my entire family and all our guests. I got SO many compliments on how wonderful the resort was, and how friendly each and every person that worked there was. I was a little put back when I first realized how much gratuity they charged (21% on everything), but now hearing all the feedback from my guests, I think it was well worth it. There was a very small amount of confusion with hotel blocks (very easily solved and taken care of). We also had been working with one woman who ended up quitting in the middle of planning, and had to start over with another. That was frustrating, but no one's fault (the woman had a baby and wanted to move back home with her family). The only other complaint I have is that the girl we worked with, Lacee, is a bit hard to get ahold of. Once you get her in person or on the phone, she's FANTASTIC, but she's just a bit hard to reach.Embassy Suites
220 West 43rd Street
Kansas City, Missouri 64111
816.204.3722
Seating Capacity: 250
used by trayhay
From: trayhay
B- ~~ Okay, I absolutely LOVE Carmen (the coordinator). I also had a really GREAT experience with them leading up to the wedding (except for some problems with the hotel blocks, see more below) -- but, the day of was a little crazy! Here are some examples: Carmen was suppose to let us (the girls) know when to start down the aisle for the wedding. However, when the ceremony was to start, she was no where to be found so we just had to wing it! It all worked out okay, but stressful then! As for the reception, there were 3 other events going on and we were told that their numbers increased suddenly that morning. So, our food was a little late coming out and we had some problems with getting "special" dinners (vegetarian/no milk products). But the food was delicious and we got a ton of compliments. The "big" issue arose about the bar. We had arranged for a special case of boulevard beer for my DH and before we even got to the reception, the bartender had given it all out! The hotel replaced it, so no problems, except she kept doing it! After being told by the manager, us, and a number of other hotel people, and she continued to do it, they had to switch her with another bartender at a different event. So, it all turned out okay (and into kind of a running joke) but again, a little stressful then. We were also promised 2 bars and 2 bartenders, but only ended up with 1, so that kind of sucked, but that’s okay. Overall, everything was beautiful, and I would highly recommend them! BUT, even if Carmen says she’s going to do stuff, just assume she’s going to be super busy and not around. I think part of the problem was she said she would do stuff (i.e., help us with the "cake cutting" for pictures) and then when the time came around, she was no where to be found because she was dealing with other events. It wasn’t a huge issue, because a photographer helped us through it, and if Carmen hadn’t said she was going to help out, we would never have thought anything of it! The only other "warning" I would give is that the reception got a little warm -- but that was when they were still on "heat" instead of A/C, so its hard to say how it would be during the summer! But, again, I would totally recommend them! ALSO, as an added bonus, since we had our ceremony there, as a "surprise," Carmen had them put in flowers to match our colors in the atrium -- it was beautiful! And then, as a "gift," the hotel gave us the flowers!Evergreen Events
15 West Wea St.
Paola, Kansas
785.869.3997
Seating capacity: 300 seated
used by fightthezilla, otis
From: otis
A ~~ I love this facility. Gorgeous tin ceilings, brick walls, wood floors, just GORGEOUS. The staff was wonderful, very professional and efficient. I made a plate of food but then walked off and left it for 20 minutes so it was stone cold and not very good when I ate it but everyone else told me the food was wonderful. My Dad did feed me a couple bites of salmon off his plate that was hot and I thought it was very good. There was only two things that I wasn't completely pleased with, one being the bar ran out of white zinfandel by 6:30 so I never even got a glass L. They later ran out of Crown Royal which is what my crowd primarily drinks. Two, I had to walk through a room adjacent to the ceremony room prior to walking down the aisle and the floor of this room was very VERY dusty. I had to let down my train in this room. My dress needs a serious cleaning. I did talk to Julie about this and she told me the cleaning crew she currently has is Hispanic and cannot understand English so they don't understand her when she complains about that room. She said she is currently trying out new cleaning crews so I don't think this will be a problem in the future. Other than those minor details, everything was perfect. We also didn't have to do a bit of clean-up that night. We all walked out, Julie locked the doors and we all came back at 11:00 the next morning to open gifts, drink mimosas, and clean up.
Site Coordinator - Julie Miller
A++++++ ~~ Julie gets her own review because she was simply that amazing. Over the last year she has always made me feel like the most important person of the moment. She always greets me with a hug and treats me like a friend. In the weeks leading up to the wedding she frequently calmed me down and settled my nerves. The night of the rehearsal she was there until midnight helping us girls set up for the wedding. The day of the wedding she was EVERYWHERE at once. She coordinated the ceremony and ran her butt off during the reception. One of my guests was actually involved in a car accident in front of the building during dinner and Julie just sent him inside and handled everything like she always does. She spoiled my kids rotten, they are still asking me when they can go see "JuWee" again. She is truly an amazing woman and her heart is in her work.
Gashland Presbyterian
used by TaraRae82
From: TaraRae82
A ~~ The church was beautiful and perfect for us! It seats about 275 people and has a center aisle. The only downfall was the coordinator which from what I’ve heard from other brides, that’s pretty typical. She didn’t really know what she was doing. My DOC took over and things went very smoothly. I’d highly recommend this church!Graham Tyler Memorial Chapel at Park University
Note - Currently the chapel is no longer available for weddings
used by Jen748
From: Jen748
A++++ ~~ I have loved this chapel since my Aunt and Uncle got married there. We looked at some other places for our wedding but finally decided to move up our date so that we could get married at GTMC and I am so glad we did! Larry the ¡§Wedding Coordinator¡¨ was there for the rehearsal and the ceremony and he showed us the lights and all that-he was great! The only potential hitch we had was that when Brett called the train people the morning of the wedding to ask them to not blow the whistle during our ceremony-He left a message and they called him back indicating that it’s against federal law to not blow the whistle at an intersection. But when it came down to it-there was a whistle before the ceremony and right after it so it worked out all right in the end!!! :)Grand Loft
425 6th Street
Osawatomie, KS 66064
913.256.2272
Highlands Community of Christ
used by MrsHunter
From: MrsHunter
A ~~ This isn’t my home church, but it was more convenient for our Northland wedding. It’s a new building, not much to look at from the outside, but the sanctuary is very pretty and they are very easy to work with. They provide a lot of décor for you such as hurricane shades, candelabra, tables, pillars, and greenery. The coordinator there was very helpful and allowed us to store our flowers in their industrial refrigerators which made things a lot easier on us. The cost at the time of our wedding was $550 for the rehearsal and all day on Saturday.Hawthorne House
6008 NW Bell Road
Parkville, MO
816.505.1224
Seating capacity: 112 seated or 300 seated
used by cmh1103, Tigersbear07
From: cmh1103
Incredible. They know what they're doing there, and it is absolutely beautiful. Our wedding was Nov. 3, and the leaves had just changed the week before. We were married in the chapel, and had our reception in the Emerson Room. We used white candles in glass hurricanes on half the tables, and 3 square/bowls with small pillars on the other half. Their in-house DJ, Steven Tinsley, was great - even found a couple of appropriate Dave Matthews songs to play during dinner, since they're my favorite band. I worked with Della throughout my planning, and she made everything so easy. I never once worried about them. The food was incredible, and we still get comments on it. We did chicken and beef tips- the beef tips were the best. One thing that was messed up - I rented the huge arched candelabra, and the day-of-coordinator, Melissa, was not on her A game that day. Thankfully I was never planning to rely on her for much help the day of, but she was pretty darn clueless. By the time I noticed the candleabra was not right (this was her job, confirmed multiple times), the florist had already come & gone. They fixed it monetarily, but I hate v-shaped candleabras, and was disappointed in this oversight. But in the grand scheme of things, worse things could have happened. I highly recommend them.From: Tigersbear07
The chapel was so pretty. I was originally going to use the Whitman room, but since no one else booked, we were offered the Emerson room for a small fee. So glad we did!! It was GORGEOUS!! The food was so damn good. We served the garden salad, roast beef, artichoke chicken, roasted new potatoes and green beans. I wish I could eat that chicken at least once a week. I was never able to sample the food, but my family did and they made great choices!!!! Patti was also a huge help during the reception.The DJ messed up a few of my song selections, but no one else knew that. Anyway, I loved the HH! I had the whole place to myself that day!Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Lenexa
used by KUbride06, ricepatty98
From: KUbride06
B+ ~~ Again, pre-wedding was a little too much hassle for my liking (I had to do a lot of the legwork for getting everything organized), but day of, the church was great. Our coordinator kept things running smoothly, even when I felt like I was about to pass out! We go a lot of compliments on the church, too.From: ricepatty98
A- ~~ The wedding was in the small stone chapel. It really was beautiful. Nina, our church coordinator was great! She got everyone in place and made things go smoothly. The were only a few things that I didn't like. The prices seemed to keep getting added to. Maybe it's that much everywhere, but it seemed that there was a fee for everyone involved, plus a nice church fee. Also, once everyone was in the church, it got super hot! Everyone was sweating extremely, Michael could barely get my ring on my finger! I guess they couldn't figure out how to get the air conditioner running. But, all in all, I was happy with the results.Hotel Phillips
106 West 12th Street
Kansas City, MO
816.221.7000
used by shonnaluvsjd
From: shonnaluvsjd
If you are having a smaller ceremony/reception (no more than 150 guests)...you MUST check out this space. There is nowhere in town like it! You can rent the entire mezzanine level (overlooking the lobby) and Crystal Ballroom (on the mezzanine level) and have a reception with two totally different feels. The mezzanine is very "lounge-like" with couches, chairs and a beautiful bar. The Crystal Ballroom is where we had our DJ and dancing. People could mingle on the mezzanine without having to yell at each other over the music or dance the night away in the Crystal Ballroom. I did a little of both. I got many, many compliments on the uniqueness of the space.Lenexa Conference Center
used by MrsJeromy
From: MrsJeromy
A+ ~~ Not one complaint. They help us set up all day long!The Lodge at Ironwoods
used by mothchick, wilsontobe
From: mothchick
B ~~ We got tons of compliments on the Lodge. Everyone loved it. I liked that it was large enough I didn't have to flip the room from the ceremony to the reception. We also like that we could bring in our own caterer and alcohol and that saved us a lot of money. Fortunately they have a full kitchen so my caterer cooked everything onsite the day of. The main reason I gave them a B is they apparently raise their rates every January and you're not locked in at the booking rates. It wasn't a lot higher but still. They do require you pay for a security guard if you're serving alcohol, seems pretty standard with civic owned properties. No rose petal/confetti also bugged me but I got over it.From: wilsontobe
A ~~ One complaint: I booked them in 2004, and once 2005 rolled around, they changed their pricing structure (note I said pricing structure, not prices). It didn’t end up costing us more money, but we were lucky in that regard. I remember there being a few brides on the kn** that ended up canceling with the Lodge because the rental rate went up for them. I just didn’t appreciate the fact that they don’t honor prices at booking (although it does say in the contract that prices are subject to change at any time). Other than that, the Lodge is fantastic. Logan was great to work with, and I love the fact that you can bring in your own caterer and alcohol (which saved us tons!). Plus, the facility and the setting are beautiful, and all our guests loved the outside patio (the weather was gorgeous that day and night). We had so many compliments about the Lodge.Longview Mansion
3361 SW Longview Road
Lee's Summit MO
816.761.6669
Seating capacity: up to 400 (250 seated)
used by mrsmolly*, StephanieandStefan,
From: mrsmolly*
B ~~ Ever since I can remember, I’ve wanted to get married here. It was exactly what I was looking for in a venue and I knew they had been doing weddings for a long time, so I thought we would have no problems. We took our first tour with a new coordinator and booked with her. Later we found out she was no longer there and Marsha would be taking her place. I wondered why they hadn’t put us with Mary Beth, who was a seasoned employee there. But Marsha told me later that she left the Mansion abruptly. Marsha took over our event and we thought she was a very kind woman. The first time I met her I felt like she was really dedicated to making sure everything went perfectly on the day of our wedding. From the beginning we discussed having 175-200 guests at our wedding and the fact that we were set on doing a sit-down dinner. There were no mentions at that time that this was not possible. Marsha and I continued to e-mail back and forth and she was always very quick to get back with me. She was sweet when she needed to be, but also professional and business-oriented.Now, I don’t remember exactly how this all went down, but after an e-mail in late May I was all of a sudden told that they would only be doing sit-down dinners for 100 guests or less. I was heartbroken and sickened by the fact that no one at the Mansion had any explanation or apology for this late notice policy that seemed to appear out of thin air. I know most people would think it’s not that big of a deal. Just do a buffet and shut up! But, it was the principle of the thing. Nowhere was this stated in the contract. I immediately set up a meeting with the GM of the Mansion, the head chef, my parents, my wedding planner and Marsha. The GM was apologetic and was quick to take responsibility for the Mansion’s error. The head chef told me that they had contacted The Catering Co. who was open to doing a sit-down dinner for us at the mansion. Same price, same meal choices. I was so happy that they fixed the problem and made me a happy bride. I had hoped that the Mansion would live up to its’ reputation and for me, it truly did. It was an absolutely gorgeous setting for a wedding. There were bumps along the way, but all was forgiven after the event went off without a hitch. Make sure you get everything in writing and save all your notes. The prices went up after we signed the contract and we made sure to correct them when they charged us the new pricing on things.
From: StephanieandStefan
D+ ~~ They handled us like a paycheck. They failed to let us know when they changed their seated dinner policy (to accommodate 100 people max.). They bounced us between three different coordinator while insisting I did not need to hire a personal coordinator. Because I was persuaded not to hire a personal coordinator, my rented cake platter never made it onto the truck, my mother had to walk through the fountain to place an arrangement on top, my mother had to set up the candy buffet, and my mother had to double-check the placecard placements. We were not notified when our third coordinator quit, and the Longivew staff lied for weeks assuring us that she was still employed, but just worked odd hours. We were told of the situation just two weeks before ceremony. Marsha, the first coordinator that we couldn't work with, had no choice but to take on our ceremony at the last minute. She ran our rehearsal, but let the third coordinator run our ceremony/reception. Because of this, the third coordinator had no idea about details on the day of, and rather than come to the lady with the answers (me!), she bothered the groom on several occasions. They stocked our bridal rooms with booze, then charged us for them-even when we had paid for unlimited beer and wine for three hours. Oh, and they failed to send a box of food home with us like they do for every other couple...but I guess that's what happens when your coordinator is M.I.A. I LOVE the location, but the only way I would recommend this place is if you retain a personal coordinator.Lone Summit Ranch
used by cmsucarebear, lesary
From: cmsucarebear
A+ ~~ Robin and the staff at the Ranch did a FABULOUS job. I couldn't have asked for anything more. Robin took care of EVERYTHING. It was Great. She was filling our glasses, making sure everything was going well, and if we needed anything. The decorations were beautiful, and the table settings were beautiful. I don't think we could have had as great of a day as we did out there. And the whole place has a ton of great places for some beautiful photos! We had the ceremony and the reception in the same room. After the ceremony we moved on to the reception area and mingled with guests. I didn't even notice her staff rushing around tearing down the ceremony stuff, and putting up the Buffet. The Food was Delicious. I didn't get to each much, people kept coming up to our table and talking to me. But what I did eat was extremely good. I heard all positive things about the food from other people. We were very pleased. I was very impressed.From: lesary
A+++ ~~ I cannot say enough about how wonderful our venue was. Not only is it a beautiful and unique setting, but the service, food and ambiance is one that I don't think we could duplicate anywhere else. Robin is the coordinator and was truly a blessing for me from beginning to end. She was very attentive throughout the planning and made things run seamlessly the day of our wedding. The food was also incredible. We did not have a tasting so we didn't know what to expect. They smoke the meats and prepare everything right there at the ranch and it was great! People are still talking about the green bean casserole.Loose Mansion
101 E Armour Blvd
Kansas City, MO
913.897.0482
Seating capacity: 325 seated, 190 ceremony
used by tsunami
From: tsunami
A ~~ This was an excellent choice for both ceremony and reception. The owner herself was there for the entire day. Barb is a truly lovely person, hands-on, attentive, accomodating, and really gets to know the people she's working with. The mansion has an in-house chef for the catering, and the food that we chose was outstanding (the original chef for our wedding left only weeks beforehand, and the next chef that they hired was equally as talented). The decorations blew us away: rich silver and crystal, evergreen and candles, white pointsettias everywhere. A stunning backdrop to our ceremony was the lush mantlepiece decorations on both of the mansion's enormous fireplaces.The only frustration I had was with the bartender, who opened all of the bottles of wine we had. We had an agreement with Gomer's liquor store for a buy-back option (take a certain amount of alcohol, bring back the unopened ones, and pay for what we used only). This completely negated that as they can't take back wine bottles that have had their corks popped. So we were left with wine we can't drink (we don't drink wine personally). The owner stepped right up and offered a solution, so all in all a minor issue.
Loose Park
5200 Pennsylvania Ave
Kansas City, MO 64112
816.784.5300
used by JoelandLayna, sarah
From: sarah
A ~~ The park was beautiful considering the issues they had with the frost earlier in the year. (They refunded my $$ because of the frost so I have no complaints!!)From: JoelandLayna
A ~~ What a beautiful garden! When they called me in July to tell me the roses were dead, they were super sweet about it and refunded half my money back. By an act of God, the roses were in partial bloom on the day of the wedding and it looked great!The Loretto
1111 W 39th St
Kansas City, MO
816.531.3111
Seating capacity: 300 chapel/180 reception
used by gregsgal922
From: gregsgal922
I loved this place and would highly recommend it to anyone! It is on the pricey side but my mom was dead set on not doing any decorating or asking family and friends for help. So, if you are looking for a place that does just about everything for you, this is it. I also liked the idea of having ceremony and reception in one place. We were also able to get ready here, and had the building from 10am to 12am.Mildale Farms
35250 West 199th Street
Edgerton, KS
913.831.3355
Seating Capacity: 250 guests
Our Lady of the Presentation
130 NW Murray Rd
Lees Summit, MO 64081
816.251.1100
used by stephanie6781
The Olde Mill
168 S. Main
Parkville, MO 64152
816.505.2300
Seating Capacity: 375
used by spacekatmel
From: spacekatmel
F- ~~ I had felt we had very open communication with the venue... until the event. I am a very laid back person... but once you have pushed me... I have had it!We had booked the venue from 7pm till 12 am. The owners had told us we could set up on Friday so we did, and I had asked about post party clean up. They had told us they did not have another event till Oct 10th so we could clean up Sunday.
Well. Come about 10 ish PM the staff began cleaning up and taking tables and chairs out of the storage during my reception! Ok so I as a little irritated... but I let it go. I then went upstairs to get my stuff from the dressing area, and get my centerpieces from upstairs since we ended up with just enough people to stay on the first floor.... Well the entire upstairs has been rearranged for their next event... ok no biggie but my stuff has been THROWN on the FLOOR!
Ok now I am a little more miffed! So I go back down stairs... it is around 11 pm now... Then I notice that one of the staff is taking it upon herself to bring all my center pieces off the tables as well as my candy gift boxes and bringing them over to another table, she then takes all the table cloths off the tables then stacks the chairs, she even had the audacity to ask my guests who was sitting in what chairs so she could take them. I HAD HAD IT!
Basically long story short, the owner made if very clear we only had so much allotted time, FINE but you should not be cleaning up my party DURNING my party! After much screaming and tears I Yelled over at my guests and told them we were no longer welcome and to pack it up we were taking the party else ware! At that point the owner made it clear I was not leaving with out paying... Well I yelled across the room "I am well Aware I owe you Fing money! I have every intention of paying, you ass!" The DJ was even a little shocked.. Shocked So would I recommend the Mill.... Only if the don't treat others the way they treated me. Things were fine until I did not agree with the way they were doing things... but they did not care.
Some memorable Dialog, "None of your guests have not complained" And REALLY they shouldn't have to say anything! But in the end did!
"You chose us because of our service" Huh? .."NO I chose you for the appearance of your venue, I had no prior reference on your business practices and service"
Honestly they just yelled at me and made such a scene! My MOH told them in a firm and voice do not say another word to her!
The thing that hurt the most was it caused a big fight between DH and I... He had no idea what had happened and just thought I was making a scene, He was mad at me the rest of the night. Once I explained myself he apologized, fortunately things got better once we got to argosy, but there was still that undertow.
Queen of the Holy Rosary
used by bridezilla411, drewie, ktgolfs
From: bridezilla411
A- ~~ This church was renovated several years ago, so it is beautiful. We got so many compliments on how nice the church was. The only reason it got an A- was because the secretary for the Queen was slightly disorganized so we had meetings later than we should have (ceremony meeting one week before the ceremony, etc).From: drewie
A ~~ This is the church that DH and I are members of, so we didn’t really consider having the ceremony anywhere else. The church is gorgeous, has fabulous lighting, and except for a few problems early on with the crotchety church secretary, they were very easy to work with. Especially considering that the priest we had perform the ceremony is from another church.
From: ktgolfs
A+ ~~ This is the church that I grew up at. Fr. Cullen married us and he was really wonderful. Since we're parishoners there was not a set fee to use the church, just a suggested donation. Kim, the wedding coordinator, was really helpful. She came to the rehearsal and was really great about putting everyone where they needed to be. The guys used the back of the alter area for getting ready, and there is a room in the church basement for the bride. It was convenient! You can't get married any later than 1:00 at QHR - this is b/c of the rules through the Archdiocese of KC in KS. The church looked just beautiful on the day. It was cleaned and everything was there for us. We even got to go in on Friday night and put up the decorations.Paradise Park in Lees Summit
Paradise Park
1021 NE Colbern Road
Lee's Summit, MO 64086
816.246.5224, ext. 105
Seating capacity: contact venue
used by Jillius
From: Jillius
They were great to work with. We booked 6 weeks before. They just went through an 8 million dollar renovation. Beautiful places to take pics, but it was too hot outside.Paradise Pointe Golf Course
18212 Golf Drive
Smithville, MO
816.532.4100
used by golfprosprincss
From: golfprosprincss
Beautiful! I am very partial, of course, but it truly is such a beautiful setting!Parkville Presbyterian Church
used by rose4jc2
From: rose4jc2
This is the church my husband’s family belongs to and we really loved getting married at a church that we had emotional and spiritual ties to. The assistant pastor did our pre-marital counseling and was the primary officiant. The counseling was worthwhile and Matthew was very helpful when it came to putting together our wedding program. His sermon was AMAZING. I cried so many times throughout because it was so powerful and full of God’s truth. We were blown away by Matthew’s words, it was obvious he was very tuned into who we are as a couple and as believers. The church wedding coordinator was very helpful and knowledgeable and despite some initial communication problems, the church pianist really came through for us and the ceremony music was perfect.The Pavilion at Logan Woods
14831 E. 40 Highway
Kansas City, Missouri 64136
816.478.4848
Seating capacity: contact venue
used by snh2piper
From: snh2piper
A ~~ This was a great place for us. We needed a space that allowed outside catering and alcohol, which they did. I also wanted to have the ceremony and reception in the same room and this space allowed me to do that. Emma was very helpful during the whole planning process. Everything was set up on time and looked exactly like we asked. The 2 things that I’m sad about was that the overhead lights were left on during the ceremony in the front of the room (I can’t hold this against her, b/c I never told her that I didn’t want them on) and that I didn’t find out that I couldn’t have a sparkler exit until the day of. Again we didn’t discuss this ahead of time, so I can’t hold that against her either. I had figured that since it would be outside that she wouldn’t care, but I guessed wrong. Lesson Learned: ask your people about everything you plan to do.Powell Gardens
1609 NW U.S. Highway 50
Kingsville, MO
816.697.2600
used by kujess, LoLo2006
From: kujess
A- ~~ Powell Gardens is on the pricey side, but stunningly beautiful. The glass chapel is gorgeous, as well as the Grand Hall and Conservatory, where we held our reception. They are very strict about rental times because it is open to the public, which means decorating must be done hours before the ceremony and reception. This is definitely a downside. However, Denna, the coordinator's assistant, was very helpful and accommodating.From: LoLo2006
Chapel ~~ A+ ~~ Everyone was so helpful at Powell Gardens- the rehearsal and the ceremony were a breeze and everything went off without a hitch!! There is plenty of space in the bridal suite for everyone to change, etc. And everyone that came to the wedding told us how breathtaking it was!! Highly recommend it for a ceremony- the only downside is the hike out there- but we made it fun by renting coaches to transport the guests!Redemptorist Catholic Church
3333 Broadway St
Kansas City, MO 64111
816.561.3771
Seating capacity: contact venue
used by nyyankeeinkc
From: nyyankeeinkc
A+ ~~ Father Shea was our priest and the ceremony was beautiful! We had a lot of time both before and after to get our pictures done, as well.The Rhapsody
2322 E. Rd Mize Rd
Independence, MO
816.795.0777
Seating capacity: up to 500
Ritz Charles
9000 W 137th St
Overland Park, KS
913.685.2600
Seating capacity: 1200 total, 200/room
Rockhill Tennis Club
4520 Kenwood Ave
Kansas City, MO 64110
816.931.1316
used by BrycesBeauty
From: BrycesBeauty
This place was beautiful. I didn't need any flowers because it is surrounded by flowers outside so that saved me money. Stephani, the Club's coordinator was wonderful. My only complaint was that the reason I had it there was to get married next to the pool and then she told me I wouldn't have enough guests to do it poolside since the deck is so big. We had it on the north side of the building and it was still beautiful.The Scottish Rite
used by alliebon0903
From: alliebon0903
Cost: $3500 for auditorium and dining room for the entire day, rehersal was supposed to be an additional cost but they waived it. This fee includes sound guy, light guy, tables, chairs and linens. Auditorium and dining room can be rented separately if needed. Auditorium holds 1500, dining room holds 600 I think.B ~~ The venue is gorgeous and we received tons of compliments on it and it was nice to have everything in one place however the getting to the big day was a nightmare. The coordinator Christy charged us extra for table linens and then ordered the wrong thing, they have a lot of "extra charges" and while the older gentlemen who work there were awesome and very friendly, our experience with Christy really disappointed us. Update, we recieved our entire deposit back and were not charged for the extra linens after all.
Shoal Creek Golf Course
8905 Shoal Creek Parkway
Kansas City, MO 64157
816.407.7242
Seating capacity: 250
used by carliandjonathan
From: carliandjonathan
A- ~~ Everyone raved about the food at both the rehearsal dinner and the reception! Overall everything went very well, but there were two minor issues that occurred during the wedding. The bar started serving off of our tab prior to the ceremony starting. This was something that hadn't even occurred to me would happen, so I never told them not to. And then, we specifically requested that Riesling and Boulevard Wheat be served. Because they started serving off of our tab prior to the ceremony starting they were completely out of the Riesling and Boulevard by the time the ceremony was over. I never even got 1 glass of the wine I wanted to drink all night. So I only had a glass of wine during dinner b/c I was afraid of spilling red wine on my dress. I later found out that they had only ordered 2 bottles of the Riesling. However they did sufficiently make it up to us by reducing our bill.South Park
Lawrence, KS
785.832.7920
used by snookies0608
From: snookies0608
2007 Cost -- $75A+ ~~ We rented it all day, so that we wouldn't have to worry about cleaning up after any other event before ours. The department was really helpful. About a month before the wedding I realized I hadn't made arrangements for the rehearsal. When I discovered it was already booked for a wedding, the directors took it upon themselves to call the other couple and work out a time for my party to rehearse.
St. Andrews Golf Club
11099 West 135th Street
Overland Park, KS
913.897.3804
used by iluvdaisies
From: iluvdaisies
A ~~ We had our ceremony and reception both in the Highland Room. Amanda Ford is the coordinator, she is very nice and had a lot of advice and suggestions to give us.One thing I didn't realize when we booked them is how much Amanda and the staff help out w/ setting up and such. You do pay for it, but it is well worth it and helpful. It took us about a hour and a half to decorate for the ceremony. When we went they had all the chairs set up and tables ready where we needed them. We just had to add the finishing touches. After the ceremony, the staff swooped in to reset the room for the reception. Amanda said it would only take about 30 minutes. I don't know the actual time but while guests were waiting they hung out on the deck. There was a mini-bar (beer and non-alcoholic) for guests on the deck. A lot of our guests were from out of town so they were glad they didn't have to drive to another location. The weather turned out awesome for their wait too. They had everything set up for the reception as I had asked. There were a few minor things. We did our toast at the end of eating and we had to wait a while for them to give us our toasting flutes w/ the champagne. We had to ask a few different people b/f they actually got taken to our table, so that annoyed me. Another thing, I had 2 taper memorial candles at the unity candle table. I only wanted the memorial candles to go on the cake table. When they reset the room they put the unity candle set and the memorial candles on the cake table, but they switched the side candles and memorial candles. And the lights on the arch behind the cake table were blinking which I wanted them still. I think blinking lights are tacky. Nothing major just minor details. The staff at the reception were very nice. Amanda left after the food was served, but her assistant Allison stayed until the end. She was there to make sure the rest of the evening went smoothly and was also nice, easy to go to for things. I was exetremely happy with how everything turned out. The room looked just how I wanted it to. The golf course has lots of opportunities for great pictures.
St Joseph Catholic Church
used by oseven
From: oseven
A++ ~~ Father Mike is awesome. Lots of people commented on how he spoke to us and when he did our vows he had us looking at our family/friends and his back was to them. It is those touches that make it personal. His homily was genuine and warm.
Unity Temple
707 W 47th St
Kansas City, MO
913.381.3670
Seating capacity: 30, 200, 1250 (3 separate chapels, only one wedding at a time)
Studio2131
used by AdamsWifeToBe
From: AdamsWifeToBe
Ceremony/Cocktail Reception LocationA ~~ Was a last minute fix when our original location fell through. They were super easy to work with. Great modern feel. We fit around 180 guests seated in the west room and had the cocktail reception in the east room. Plus, DH and I were able to have a few moments to ourselves in the office off the east room.
Unity Village
used by MrsKCBride06, NargesND, wordtoyourmother
From: MrsKCBride06
A- ~~ Rose Garden ~~ The location is absolutely STUNNING! It is so beautiful, calm and amazing.. we wouldn’t have wanted to have it anywhere else. I think they have been reorganizing their wedding coordinators so they weren’t super helpful and they didn’t really know what was going on.. We had to ask to get some pitchers of water when it was 94 degrees and to get a dolly when we had so much stuff to carry in.. That is what got the – but the location itself is amazing!! Highly recommended.From: NargesND
Rose Garden ~~ Diane was -without any doubt- the biggest flake I had to deal with in this entire ordeal. I was constantly giving her the same information over and over again. It wasn't that bad dealing with her until the day before at the rehearsal she again asked for information that I had given her 3 or 4 times before! She was a complete scatter brain, lined up the attendants backwards and on the wrong side (One of my beautiful girls fixed it without me getting involved). Rehearsed the ceremony out of order and FLAKY!!! My Favorite Aunt was there are got on her like a drill sergeant and finally we ran thru it 2 times in order with everyone where they were supposed to be. On the wedding day - I spent almost the entire time in the dressing room and my 2 best friends (long story of why they're not BMs) we're my day of coordinators and they said that she didn't do anything! People weren’t where they were supposed to be - DH and I almost crossed path 2 or 3 times, but thankfully my coordinators (J-Beck) were totally on top of the ball and things ran smoothly. The ceremony was beautiful. It was SO hot that day, but the Gardens, the Fountains and the Minister were just Grand. I got so many compliments on how beautiful the ceremony was. The Ceremony was everything I wanted plus a lot of sun in one my eye! Oh well…thankful, it was only one eye! If you want to use this place, don't let my opinion of Diane scare you off. She was a sweet Lady, just not all there. Make sure to have a close friend or someone as your own personal coordinator. FINAL SCORE: 4 1/2 bouquets out of 5 - Though Diane did test my Patients, the place was too beautiful and the Reverend (Karen Angeles) too touching for me to grade badly.From: wordtoyourmother
I’m separating these out b/c it didn’t seem fair to give the whole place a low grade.Location ~~ A ~~ The location is beautiful! I admit that the reception site leaves something to be desired (the carpet and walls are UGLY!) but with the right decorations it really turned out nice. Plus it’s easy to get to.
Coordination ~~ C+ ~~ I would NOT recommend that anyone use this facility without hiring your own coordinator. The wedding coordinators at UV were really hard to get a hold of, did a poor job of explaining thing, were poorly organized, and forgot things. I ‘fired’ the first coordinator I had there… but the second one wasn’t much better. They were really nice women but not very good coordinators.
Food & Service ~~ A+ After our experience with the UV coordinator I was terrified of what the food might turn out to be like… but actually it was GREAT! We served the split plate of beef medallion and chicken... it was delicious. The bar service was great... as was the wait staff. Everyone was very cheerful and helpful. Plus for us, the price was right.