BEWARE!!!!
I found it odd on the Knot how Davians has very positive reviews from 2010-2014 and won the 2012 “best of weddings” award --- however, there aren’t any reviews that I came across since 2014. Perhaps it is because things have maybe go...ne downhill there in the past few years!! Anyway, we were dumb enough to choose them for our wedding reception, and I’d like to share our experience with you so that you can be smart and steer clear!! When you pay thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars for a venue, you expect things to be correct. It wasn’t just one or two things that were slip-ups on our big day….it turned into quite the list. Some of these items really aren’t a big deal, but it’s the fact that it was a growing list that really is what made the situation frustrating.
We had our reception there in Dec 2017, and these are a few of the things that happened:
1) The delay between salad and dinner was honestly downright embarrassing. Thank GOODNESS we had an awesome DJ (shout-out to Downtown Harrison!!) that kept the crowd going!
2) I was standing in line behind my aunt at the bar when she ordered a Miller Lite around 9pm. The bartender charged her for the beer, even though that was one of the beers we chose to be included in our package. I immediately spoke up, and we then realized that the wrong beers had been on tap the entire night, so our guests were being charged for what should have been included.
3) Our best man wasn’t served his dinner. He had to go hunt down the server to get his meal.
4) We frequently had people coming into our room from the other hall and enjoying our open bar. We let Jeanette know this was occurring at one point, but the issue continued.
5) The taco bar (our “late night snack”) was VERY poorly tended to. We heard multiple guests complaining that there weren’t any chips, silverware, etc.
6) The “free” photo booth that they seem to often promote is ABSOLUTE garbage. It was broken the majority of the night, and not a single guest had their picture printed for them. We completely understand that things happen with technology, but I’m just warning you.
7) To make the photo booth situation worse, even pictures that were taken during the limited time the photo booth was operating still have not been given to us as promised. The flash drive they put them on was mailed to the wrong address, and Jeanette from Davians is now not responding to my emails or returning phone calls.
8) Our photographer wasn’t pleased when he tried calling Davians to find out what time he could come into the venue to take pictures and never heard back from them. Very poor customer service all around! So if you’re looking for a venue that will provide good service, cooperate with your other vendors, etc., Davians just isn’t the place for you!!
To say we’re disappointed in them is an understatement at this point in time. The day after our reception, when we went to collect our items from the hall, we politely made Jeanette aware of some of these issues. My husband and I were VERY nice about it and made it very clear that we weren’t seeking anything but just wanted to provide some constructive criticism and make them aware. The fact that we STILL don’t have our photo booth pictures (2.5 months later…) and are not getting ANY response from them is what prompted me to write the review.
The greatest “pro” for them is that the hall was decorated very nicely. Other than that, I don’t have many positive things to say about this venue.