My wife and I had an overall wonderful night at the Emerald Theater. Every guest we spoke to told us how beautiful and pleasant the night was. We experienced a few venue-specific h...iccups along the way, but overall I would pick them again. Below are the pros and cons of our experience with Emerald Theater, but the pros far and away outweigh the cons 10 to 1.
Pros:
- Inside the venue is breathtakingly beautiful. Much of the original 100-year-old details are incorporated into the design.
- The drinks, food, day-of coordinator, tables, chairs, linens, late-night pizza, and much more are included in the per-person price, with upgrades available. The price was super reasonable for everything included.
- We liked having access to the staff before and on the wedding day. Everyone was super kind and responsive to every message and call.
- Lots of space for guests. We had around 140 guests + vendors, and it was plenty without feeling empty or cramped. We also had plenty of space for the bridal party to get ready. There were also plenty of places around the venue for amazing pictures.
- They customized the marquee with our names.
- The food from D'Amato's Restaurant in Royal Oak was out of this world. Seriously, the food was on point. The buffet style food worried me at first, but it was very quickly accomplished with 140+ guests and vendors fed.
- No lines at the open bar! I don't know how they accomplished this with 3 signature drinks and the amount of guests we had.
- The upstairs Rock Room sold me (a punk rock guy) on the venue. Cocktail hour was a hit up there.
- They let us set up the venue the day before, saving a lot of time, stress, and hassle on the wedding day.
Cons:
- We worked with four different wedding coordinators throughout the process. We had to explain everything to each. However, we were engaged for 2 years during COVID, so this could be an industry / pandemic problem.
- Prices differed between the provided documents and what the owner told me. We were slightly overcharged, but they let us invite more people at no cost to remedy the situation.
- Towards the end of the night, the security must have taken a break, and a random person wandered around the venue, finally talking to my new bride and me on the dance floor. Several guests and security personnel quietly escorted the person out of the venue without incident. I think it will be a decent story, but they may want to figure that out in the future.
- No elevator in the venue for those with a disability.
- Across the venue, a green tarp covers a giant window on the adjacent building. They don't own the building and can't do much about it, but it's unsightly for guests unfamiliar with the area.
Again, we loved the venue and I would 100% go back again. The security issue is the only reason we are giving 4 stars instead of 5. We plan on returning to D'Amato's every year for our anniversary (same owners).