The Historic Gardens of the Community House
$2,000 starting price
Chicago and the North Shore
Service area
151 to 200 guests
Holds ceremonies and receptions
AWARD WINNER (1X)
Thanks to recommendations from couples on The Knot
LOCATED IN WINNETKA, IL, and tucked into a charming neighborhood along the North Shore, this historic building has been hosting social gatherings since 1911 and proudly joined the National Register of Historic Places in 2007. It is also home to an intimate historic garden with a large courtyard event space and is genuinely one of the most timeless and romantic locations in all of Chicagoland - a true hidden gem!
Event Spaces:
The Courtyard - The main courtyard is encircled by historic brick columns, a Tudor-style barn building, and a quiet pergola area. It features a large inlayed bluestone & brick patio great for dining and dancing. At night the courtyard comes to life with ambient spotlighting on the surrounding historic columns and trees.
The Social Gardens & Arch Breezeway Areas- Both of these areas work well for cocktail hours and social gatherings of any size. The iconic Arch Breezeway is the grand entrance into the courtyard and the Social Side Garden features a cedarwood bar accented with string lights. Both areas have space for highboy and lowboy tables throughout.
Indoor Garden Room Banquet Space - The renovated banquet space features natural lighting from a wall of floor to ceiling windows and has 4 sets of French doors that open directly into the Courtyard. Other unique features include beautiful custom woodwork paneling and adjustable ambient lighting.
The Historic Ballroom - Our Historic Ballroom features a high ceiling, brass chandeliers, and tall gothic arched windows. It seats up to 185 for ceremonies or services or up to 80 for a seated luncheon, shower or dinner. This room is included as an indoor backup space with the addition of a ceremony.
Pricing details
Starting prices
Reception:
$2,400
Ceremony:
$500
Bar services:
Contact for price
Catering:
Contact for price
Starting prices don't include service fees, taxes, gratuity, and rental fees. Guest count and seasonality may also affect prices. Peak season for this venue is May-Oct.
Amenities + details
Amenities
Ceremony Area
Dressing Room
Handicap Accessible
Indoor Event Space
Outdoor Event Space
Reception Area
Wireless Internet
Ceremony Types
Civil Union
Commitment Ceremony
Elopement
Interfaith Ceremony
Non-Religious Ceremony
Religious Ceremony
Second Wedding
Vow Renewal Ceremony
Settings
Barn
Farm & Ranch
Estate
Garden
Historic Venue
Trees
Awards and Affiliations
Any questions?
Reviews
4.9
out of 5.025 reviews
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Review Summary
This AI-generated summary is a snapshot of this vendor's ratings and feedback.
Winnetka Community House is praised as a hidden gem with a stunning garden venue that captures natural beauty and charm. Reviewers highlight the exceptional service provided by Kelsey, the venue coordinator, who is described as responsive, personable, and helpful. The venue's indoor and outdoor spaces are appreciated for hosting ceremonies and receptions seamlessly, even managing unexpected changes gracefully. Guests also commend the affordability, convenience of on-site parking, and the overall enchanting atmosphere of the Community House Winnetka, making it a highly recommended choice for weddings.Review photos
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S S
5.0
5/27/2024
Sahra recently took over as the event coordinator and she is absolutely fantastic to work with. She went above and beyond every step of the way to make sure our wedding day was perfect. If you are looking for a unique gorgeous venue. Look no further!!!
Alexis G
5.0
7/10/2023
Kelsey deserves double whatever they are paying her! She single handily made our wedding planning process a BREEZE. She is insanely responsive and detailed and so fun to work with. The venue itself photographs beautifully. We had a 5pm ceremony and by 5:15pm, the area was shaded with perfect lighting. There garden and flowers are absolutely breathtaking. We had about 100 guests and the venue was the perfect size for an outdoor garden wedding. The parking onsite was a great amenity also. I truly wish I could even find to words to describe how delighted we are to have chose the Community House as our venue. Best day ever!!
Any questions?
Alison P
5.0
6/24/2023
Winnetka Community House is such a hidden gem!! This gorgeous garden venue is quiet and stunningly beautiful (they take wonderful care of the landscaping so the natural beauty shines through!). We toured many venues in the Chicagoland area and this was by far the most charming and picturesque. We would highly recommend hosting your wedding or event here!
Sarah R
5.0
6/01/2023
My husband and I got married outdoors in the courtyard garden of Community House over Memorial Day Weekend. Kelsey is the best and I mean BEST contact for a venue I have worked with (and I work in event planning). She is ridiculously responsive, personable, and eager to help. Her and her team are incredible and I would recommend CH to absolutely anyone and everyone. This spot (especially the garden) is such a gem up on the north shore and was the perfect location for our dream outdoor wedding!
Sofia P
5.0
1/02/2023
We held our wedding at the Winnetka Community House in August, and it was such a wonderful venue. Kelsey was an incredible liaison throughout the year-long process of planning out our wedding. She was unfailingly accessible, supportive, vivacious, and above all, professional, fielding all of our questions and requests with kindness and care. The gardens and banquet hall were wonderful. We had planned an entirely outdoor ceremony and reception, but an unanticipated thunderstorm the day of forced us to shift our reception indoors. That the venue permitted us to make that call a couple of hours before the wedding and facilitated the transition indoors (all at no extra cost) was wonderful, and they handled it with such grace that many of our guests didn’t realize that that hadn’t always been the plan! Arranging all of our deliveries was extremely easy- we felt like we were in wonderful hands at the WCH, and would certainly recommend them to anyone else getting married in the area.
Sandra N
5.0
10/31/2022
We had the most amazing wedding and reception at this venue. The outdoor garden space is beautiful. We had our ceremony outside and the dinner inside. It was August so the inside space was perfect on our hot day. Kelsey was so helpful and available with any questions before our big day. We used Northern Fork as our food vendor and they did not disappoint. Our guests talked about the food for days after. Suzette was very attentive and made sure the day went smooth and was onsite for the whole wedding. We could not have had the most beautiful day without both of them there to assist with any issues or questions. Thank You both for a unforgettable day. Sandra & Jim
Alaina A
5.0
10/23/2022
Absolute hidden gem of a wedding venue. Do not hesitate to book this place for your special day. Our photos were so dreamy thanks to the Community House’s stunning brick walls and garden backdrop. Kelsey, the venue manager, was phenomenal and so helpful. You cannot beat this place and especially the price. Loved having a bridal suite to get ready in on-site. Parking was so convenient for our guests. One thing to keep in mind is that it is a fully functional community center, so during your wedding setup time there will likely be other events going on. Absolutely no regrets choosing this venue at all. Highly recommend!
Bekah V
5.0
7/21/2022
The Community House Winnetka is the absolutely perfect venue to hold your wedding. The garden outside is where we held our ceremony and cocktail hour. It is so beautiful and the perfect natural background. Their indoor reception space is elegant and spacious. Kelsey W. was fantastic to work with. She responded timely to any questions we had and she was so attentive throughout the entire process. The Community House let us store our decorations there the night before and pick them up the day after the wedding, which was so helpful. I wouldn't have wanted to get married anywhere else.
Katie F
5.0
6/02/2022
What an enchanting evening! This past weekend we had our wedding reception at the Community House Winnetka and it could not have been more beautiful! Due to covid we had to reschedule the date from last year and the Community House proved to be flexible and understanding. Kelsey and the staff worked with us to make our event flawless and memorable. Many amenities were provided, and our guests were complimentary. We had our Renewal of Vows ceremony and cocktail hour in the gorgeous Courtyard, then headed inside to the Garden Room for dinner and dancing. At night the lights outside were on giving the garden a magical glow. I highly recommend the Community House Winnetka for an amazing venue.
Alec D
5.0
3/09/2022
Kelsey and all staff was great. They were there for us every step of the way. We encountered some issues with the catering group we selected from their approved list and they made every effort to offset those issues. Honestly if it weren't for Kelsey and the rest of the amazing staff then our event wouldn't have turned out as great as it did. Cannot recommend them enough!
Vendor response 03/09/2022
Hi Alec, Thank you so much for the review! We are proud to help couples navigate any chall...
enges that may pop up during planning. So glad that your day turned out to be as amazing as you had envisioned! Congratulations and so happy to have gotten to work with you!
Tiffany B
5.0
1/16/2022
This review is long overdue, but to start Kelsey is an incredible venue manger. She is flexible and accommodating with the venue space. She allowed setup for our wedding to begin earlier than anticipated. The space itself is gorgeous. It is a hidden gem in the heart of Winnetka. We had friends and family literally take the train from Chicago to Winnetka since the train station is located so conveniently. Truly can't recommend this space enough especially if you're looking for a blank slate. The garden space is dreamy.
Elise L
5.0
10/15/2021
Kelsey and the rest of the staff at CHW were very accommodating throughout the entire process. We are so grateful to have landed on this venue during our wedding planning. Weather was on our side, which was super helpful and made things even more beautiful that night. We would recommend to anyone wanting an escape from the city to hold their wedding.
Allie L
5.0
9/02/2021
This venue is absolutely beautiful and yet still very affordable. The staff is very friendly and helpful. We had our wedding and reception in the outdoor garden space, and there’s an adjacent indoor space you can use as well. Very pleased with the community house.
Hannah D
5.0
9/15/2020
We LOVE the community house!! I do not have enough amazing things to say about this venue. We found the community house after our previously booked venue closed due to COVID, while touring the community house we quickly realized how beautiful and welcoming the space was. The staff from this point forward went out of their way to take care of details for us, streamline the process of venue and catering into one, and truly created so much ease and peace for us in such a chaotic season of COVID wedding planning. Our wedding day was perfect, our day-of contact on site was kind and made sure every detail was perfect and all were cared for, catering did an amazing job and the food was so good. We got all of this at such a fair price - my husband and I have continued to be grateful for this space and how they made a wedding we thought might not happen turn out to be so far beyond what we could have hoped for. Best day ever!
Oyin K
5.0
10/28/2019
We had our wedding ceremony on August 18th, 2019 at the Winnetka Community House. The Winnetka Community House is a gem of a venue with a BEAUTIFUL outside space perfect for an outdoor ceremony. I couldn't believe it when we went to visit for the first time and saw the garden/outside space. It is beyond beautiful, a real hidden gem!! The cobblestones and the brick with the trees and all the greenery make it so picturesque!!
We worked with Mark, in particular, to coordinate all the details/logistics for our wedding and he was great! He was so responsive and available whenever we had questions. And when it looked like it would rain on our wedding day, Mark reached out to us to check in about using the indoor space for the ceremony. He was on top of things, making sure that we would have a beautiful ceremony despite the weather. Fortunately for us, the rain stopped before our ceremony and we had our ceremony outside. Our guests loved the space and we loved how everything came out with the decorations. It was perfect and all the pictures we took came out great because of all the natural lighting.
We are so thankful to Mark and the staff at the Winnetka Community house for all the work they did to make our ceremony so beautiful and so perfect.
Jaclyn P
5.0
8/29/2019
The staff at Winnetka Community House truly goes out of their way to make you the happiest you can be. Our wedding from start to finish went so smoothly. We planned this wedding almost completely from out of state but Rachel was so helpful it felt like we were close by. I had all my questions answered within a reasonable time frame... and i asked ALOT of questions! I got so many compliments on the food and the venue. It truly was the best day of our lives.
Jacqueline J
5.0
8/18/2019
We can’t express enough how much we loved having our wedding ceremony at Winnetka Community House! It is such a beautiful, hidden gem! The garden was a perfect setting for our wedding ceremony. It was tucked away and secluded which made it feel more personal. The staff was very accommodating prior to and day-of. The maintenance staff went above and beyond and even provided our guests with iced tea on our hot day. The garden is beautifully kept and the surrounding grounds provided great backdrops for our pictures. Thank you for providing such a beautiful setting for our ceremony!
Lauren C
4.0
11/20/2018
We had both our ceremony and reception at the Winnetka Community House this past September. It's a beautiful venue and our day was perfect. I'm giving four stars because they knocked down the arches and replaced them with wooden beams in the garden without notice or any apology. This was very upsetting because we chose this venue for the gorgeous brick arches and were extremely disappointed when they got rid of them. But overall, our day was still wonderful and the garden was a beautiful backdrop.
Eliana B
5.0
10/25/2018
When we toured Winnetka Community House we fell in love! It has a beautiful garden area which we absolutely adored. The Garden Room (our reception room) was also very clean and has beautiful french style looking doors/windows. The staff was always very helpful. We had to drop off all our DIY decor the morning before and it was easy and painless. Unfortunately, the day of our wedding was a rainy one, but the staff and Catered by Design (caterer for the venue) waited as long as they could hoping it would clear up for our planned outdoor ceremony. It did not, but they were ready to move everything into the indoor space. The only complaint I had was that it got a bit stuffy and warm in the indoor space since I do not believe there was any air on (probably because it was autumn). Nevertheless, the ceremony and reception went beautifully and everyone was helpful and things ran smoothly. It's also a plus that there was plenty of parking available and it was free! I would recommend the venue to anyone looking for a garden feel but also a historic landscape. We loved it!
Imelda M
5.0
9/19/2018
I had the wedding of my dreams at this venue. Perfect outdoor venue just a short drive from the city with breathtaking views along the way and free parking for everyone. Their super friendly staff were very accommodating and made all the process very easy and pleasurable. They take very good care of their facility and keep everything clean and organized. It also includes an indoor venue in case there is bad weather on your special day. I highly recommend it!!
Deblina R
4.0
9/16/2018
My husband and I got married at The Winnetka Community House and we are so happy we picked this venue. The Arches Garden was recently updated to now look a little more modern while still maintaining its charm. The staff were very friendly and assisted our caterers, decorators, wedding party and guest in whatever they needed. Our wedding day turned out to be very hot and humid. The only complaint I have is that the reception area (The Garden Room) did not have sufficient air conditioning and it was stuffy and uncomfortable, especially when everyone was dancing.
Amy J
4.0
8/10/2018
Overall we highly recommend this venue (mostly for the amazing partnered catering company - Catered By Design) but be warned - they did renovations in spring 2018, so the lovely arches in the pictures you see are gone and replaced by plain wooden planks. We were very unhappy about this change because we booked the venue in 2017, were shown the renovated space 2 months before our wedding in July 2018, and it looked different (in our opinion less beautiful) than what we thought we were getting. The WCH staff were inflexible with offering us compensation for providing us with a venue that looked different than the one we signed the contract for.
That being said, we had a FANTASTIC wedding at WCH. It was raining on and off all day and the amazing catering staff was flexible enough to set up our tables indoors and then move it all outside for dinner after the storm had passed. We received so many compliments on the beauty of the venue and the quality of the food. If you're looking for a beautiful outdoor venue that's affordable and conveniently a one-stop-shop with an event space and caterer, WCH is for you!
Michelle G
5.0
10/22/2017
Winnetka Community House was the perfect place for our wedding. The venue is gorgeous and affordable. The staff is personable and accommodating.
The minute my (now) husband and I stepped outside to the Arches Garden, a large courtyard on the south side of the building, we knew we found the perfect venue. While it rained nonstop on our wedding day, we were still able to go outside and take pictures in the Arches Garden as well as in front of a few large doors and under the arches. The pictures I have seen thus far are incredible.
On the day of our wedding, as well as the day after, our guests continuously commented about how gorgeous the venue was and how expensive it must have been. Our guests were blown away when we told them it was one of the most affordable places we found. We could not have asked for a more perfect place to hold our wedding. I highly recommend checking Winnetka Community House out for your wedding. You and your bank account will be glad you did.
Frank K
5.0
9/01/2017
We planned our wedding from out of state. When we found we could have a one stop shop for ceremony, cocktail hour and reception we knew this was the place for us. We really lucked out with a 75 degree day in July which made the outdoor ceremony and cocktail hour in the garden absolutely amazing. We took the idea of the garden and ran with it in our decorations. When we brought everything the night before it didn't look like much in their storage room, but when we showed up for the wedding the next day the staff set everything up beautifully. Our guests complimented us on the food and friendliness of the staff. We had the bar open all evening in the garden which was nice relief for many from the hot dance floor. When it ended at midnight we literally had to tell everyone to go home because no one wanted the party to be over. Everyone at Winnetka was charming, helpful, and gave us the classy wedding experience we wanted from the first tour to the last song.
K W
5.0
10/10/2016
We fell in love with the Winnetka Community House the second we visited the location for the first time! It's a big building with lots of activities going on when you pull up to the front - the last thing we thought we'd find attached to the back is a perfect North Shore reception space with a picturesque garden! Almost every guest at our wedding asked us "How did you find this space? We didn't even realize it was here!!!"
They just renovated the indoor space at the end of 2015/early 2016, so everything looks new and fresh (even the chairs are new - no need for seat covers!). We were not looking for an outdoor space originally, but ended up moving up our wedding date to a warmer month just so we could be sure to take advantage of the charming, private garden. The French doors all along the reception space open up into the garden, making it a perfect location for our cocktail hour, additional photos, and just hanging out during the evening. We had 100 people at our wedding, and the space was the perfect size (they put up a fake wall indoors to make the room a tad smaller, so it didn't seem empty).
The Winnetka Community House exclusively works with Catered by Design for their events - which made the entire process so simple and easy. The person who showed us the space and walked through their wedding offerings, Nikee Fellows, actually works for Catered by Design but has her office in the Community House.
Keep in mind that the Community House does host a lot of events throughout the day (they have a gym, art classes, theater, etc.). So there may be some people in the hallway, bathrooms, and general vicinity of the reception room during your event (depending on the time you have it). The building was a bit crowded with kids when we first arrived before cocktail hour at 4pm, but by the time the band started playing and guests began arriving at 5:30pm everyone had emptied out and we had that portion of the building to ourselves - so no complaints on our part! :)
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$2,000 starting price
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