Wedding at Black Swan Inn?? Anyone?

[dmarie123]

Well,
For us, we gave up. Heading to an all inclusive in Cancun with about 20 guests this spring!

[Chaka]

Originally Posted by LaBellaDurmiente

Very interested in hearing about your Menger wedding and receiving your spreadsheet if it is available.

How was the food? That is the biggest concern for me.
I eat very well and am worried it will just be average.

Another big concern is the cigar smell that permeates the Menger.
I'm worried that the only bathroom for the Minuet Room is the one in front of the bar and that my wedding dress will reek of cigar smoke the rest of my life. Major wedding day downer!

What else can you tell me about the Menger's imperfections?
I may be able to live with it but, I just don't want to go in blind.

Thanks, Chaka!

LaBellaDurmiente

I honestly didn't notice the cigar smell at all. The location of the bathroom wasn't a problem either. I'm happy to say my dress doesn't smell of cigar smoke years later

Food was above average but not spectacular. It was something I was really concerned about, as I've been to too many events with rubbery chicken and I pride myself on my own meals. I was pleasantly surprised with their food, and everyone raved about it. I wouldn't go out of my way for it, but it was certainly acceptable for this type of occasion.

The management really worked with us and helped out with a lot of little things - like giving us the second room free because we ended up with too many people and we needed another space for the bar.

They also gave us extra time for free (one place I looked into kept fighting on that one, saying we didn't "need" it so wouldn't even let me pay for additional hours. They insisted 4 hours was enough and all our guests would be ready to go.....I knew my guests and I knew that wasn't likely!)

They also worked with us on the bar options. Actually, I think the bartender neglected to charge us for some of the margarita pitchers he made....I was shocked at how low the final bar tab was.

Some bad things - they weren't set up in the morning as they said they would be, and we had planned to go in and decorate (not a lot of stuff, just set up the table decor/place settings) which made it a little stressful.

Also, they were short wait staff. Apparently they had a lot of no-show staff that day. The ones there were great, but there weren't enough.

And importantly, the a/c broke. And it was summer. The bar room (I think it's called the patio room) was freezing, the main room with the dancing was pretty hot, esp. with 120 people dancing . Fortunately, most were dressed for summer in sun dresses and light clothes (we'd told the men not to feel obligated to wear suits, the wedding party would be in Indian attire or guayaberas). Didn't stop anyone from dancing into the wee hours.


This was almost 5 years ago, so staff may have changed, which is the main element, really.

The setting was perfect though, as most of our guests had never been to SA. So the location near the Riverwalk and Alamo couldn't be beat. No one had to rent cars (we'd rented a coach bus to take them to the ceremony at Mission San Jose). They loved the history. My nephews were disappointed not to see ghosts

[LaBellaDurmiente]

Chaka,

This is very helpful!
Those are just the kinds of details I'm interested in.

I was looking at the Minuet Room between the pool and the garden courtyard.

Your post helps my confidence in the Menger.

[Chaka]

Originally Posted by LaBellaDurmiente

Chaka,

This is very helpful!
Those are just the kinds of details I'm interested in.

I was looking at the Minuet Room between the pool and the garden courtyard.

Your post helps my confidence in the Menger.

That's the room we used. I liked the layout and basic decor of it. I really liked that it had a fair amount of windows so we didn't feel cooped up in a windowless ballroom.

We initially thought we'd have around 100 people, which fit very comfortably. Then we got to 115 which was doable...in the end were at 135 which fit but meant we had to move out the bar. (My dad kept convincing his relatives to make the trip down...well worth it, as two of my uncles died a few months later and this was the last time all the brothers were together, though it did mean some rearranging of space.)

Like I said, my experience was some time ago, and it'll all depend upon the current management/staff. I'll need to hunt up the spreadsheet. Prices will be different now, but it may give you an idea of how things broke down (and how Menger was surprisingly less expensive than many other which at first appeared more costly).

[LaBellaDurmiente]

I'd love that but how do I give you my e-mail without posting it publicly on the forum

[smitty12]

Originally Posted by LaBellaDurmiente

I'd love that but how do I give you my e-mail without posting it publicly on the forum

Click on a username and select "Send Direct Message to <User>"

[majormadmax]

Accidentally drove by the Black Swan Inn today on my way back from Matt & Erica's, it looked to be a very nice place and I wouldn't have known anything about it had it not been for this great forum!

Cheers! M2

[wCat]

Originally Posted by majormadmax

Accidentally drove by the Black Swan Inn today on my way back from Matt & Erica's, it looked to be a very nice place and I wouldn't have known anything about it had it not been for this great forum!

Cheers! M2

Maj....you want "haunted".....there it is! But I guess you knew that?