We just had our 55-person wedding at Grand Oaks and they absolutely blew away our expectations through their unparalleled service, great event management, great vibes, beautiful grounds, and an affordable price too! We had an amazing experience all around. We booked on fairly short notice after another venue canceled (because of Covid). Margaret at Grand Oaks helped us plan our wedding, and made sure we were relaxed and taken care of every step of the way! The venue staff put a TON of care into every event - they clearly love what they do, they know the wedding business, and the good vibes are infectious.
We ended up having the entire wedding outdoors under a really nice, big tent (the Knot needs to be updated), decorated with lights. The views are super beautiful. The golf greens are immaculate. The drive there from Brooklyn was nice! Quite a pleasant drive through Staten Island as we neared the venue. (We totally underestimated the importance of a pleasant drive). Aesthetically, it’s a beautiful venue. We hadn’t spent much time in Staten Island before - and now we are huge fans of the borough :)
We can’t say enough about the service- maybe the most important and underrated aspect of our vendor search. We now appreciate the importance of great service - and Grand Oaks is exemplary. Our Maitre D John was incredibly professional, friendly, and worked so hard to make the wedding go smoothly (and to make sure we never went hungry or thirsty on a hot summer day). We were all sweating on a 90+ degree day, and John made sure we had everything we needed. Our bridal assistant, who we met the day of, was so attentive, friendly, and professional. Our entire wedding party fell in love with her - great vibes, a calming presence. She made sure the bride was taken care of every step of the way, which is so important. Always there with a cup of water, and a hand for the dress. 5/5! Grand Oaks promised white glove service and absolutely delivered!
Our wedding guests had glowing reviews for not only these two (our maitre D and bridal assistant) but also the bartender and entire serving staff - another factor we hadn’t thought about much during planning. The staff were super friendly, attentive, efficient, and they just let the party breath! We and our guests SO appreciated the staff- we really didn’t have to think about anything. We were in great hands - smooth sailing all night. Grand Oaks, you run a tight ship!
Food was great - it beat our expectations! I highly recommend brides and grooms eat the food! Otherwise you’ll end up with nicely packed leftovers, as we did (haha). One of the reasons we picked Grand Oaks was the “all inclusive” experience (food and cake). We got to weigh in on the menu and we customized our cake too. Kids loved the chocolate and raspberry cake. Unless you have some really specific food vendors you want to work with, go with the Grand Oaks kitchen- they will not disappoint! Our guests were fans. One thoughtful touch- we have a tier of leftover wedding cake in the freezer now, waiting for our first anniversary. The staff decorated the cake box with hearts and a really sweet hand written congratulations note. Just speaks to how thoughtful the staff are, and how much they really love the wedding business.
GO TEAM GRAND OAKS! They might be Staten Island’s and NYC’s best kept secret.