Housing Works Bookstore in Soho

I only have positive things to say, and I can be a harsh critic. You get so much for the money; and you can take that money off your taxes! The cause is a great one. The store completely transforms for a venue (but is still, clearly, a bookstore). We had a great number of guests say "this is amazing!" and we completely agree.

You're going to spend money on a venue anyway-- why not make the money go to a good cause! Housing Works made the planning process so easy, especially for a DIY wedding with first time planners! Tomasz (the venue events director) was so friendly and helpful, always trying to guide us towards staying within our budget. Very queer friendly place too and beautiful-- we had both the ceremony and reception here.

My husband and I absolutely LOVED getting married at Housing Works Bookstore! The space is stunning and it felt like such a special place to have our big day. Our guests couldn't stop talking about how much they loved our venue. Tomek, the events coordinator at HWBS, is a pleasure to work with - he's friendly, professional, and efficient, and we felt like we were in good hands throughout the whole process. We also loved that Housing Works is an organization that's doing great work in New York and we were happy to support a good cause via our venue choice. I'd highly recommend HWBS to anyone looking for a slightly unconventional venue.

Our wedding was always going to be unconventional and Housing Works was the absolute perfect venue for what we wanted. We had about 135 attendees (invited 160) and did a cocktail style dinner. Tomasz was extremely accommodating to our many requests, flexible to our needs and responsive throughout the process. The staff was amazing -- you truly can't beat the location, service or ambiance for the venue price PLUS your venue fees go to a wonderful mission and cause.

We had a wonderful experience hosting our wedding at Housing Works and would 100% choose them again. It was already a special place to us, and through all the wedding planning madness they were calm, helpful, and gave tons of great suggestions. We worked with Tomasz and felt completely supported throughout the whole process. And the bookstore is gorgeous on top of that!

Housing Works Bookstore is an incredible place. I was so excited to come across it during my online venue research. Firstly, they do amazing work to uplift the homeless living with HIV/AIDS. And I’d you choose this venue, the rental cost will be a donation to their mission. What’s better than that?! Working with Tomasz was effortless. He’s professional, kind, organized, and just a genuinely good person. All the vendors HWBS and works with are on another level. Our guests were in awe and pleasantly surprised of how beautiful and magical a wedding can be inside a bookstore. Choose HWBS! You won’t regret it!

We couldn't have asked for a more wonderful venue for our reception! Tomasz went above and beyond every step of the way for us. Thank you so much!

We had our wedding at Housing Works and could not recommend this venue and their team more! The bookstore makes for an absolutely magical setting. Between the books, candles, and string lights almost no other decor is needed. Everyone we worked with at Housing Works was super communicative and friendly. They were on top of all of the details and made sure the event was executed flawlessly. Their recommended vendors list is spot on- we worked with Zoe Deleu for catering and Gillian Todd as the day of coordinator, and with Tomasz at HWBS, it was a dream team. HWBS handles the bar. We didn't pay extra for table service or a champagne toast, and honestly you don't need it. Could not speak more highly of the venue and the team. They never tried to pressure us into upgrading things. There were no surprise costs or anything like that. Plus, having your wedding here helps to support the bookstore and its mission, so what more do you need? <3

100% recommended, and yes we are going to return here for our 5/10-year anniversary!! We had our wedding recently (both ceremony and reception) from 7PM-midnight and writing to express huge thank you to Tomasz, our contact and event captain from the housing works bookstore. We met Tomasz for the first time when he showed us the venue for the tour, and we fell in love with the place and the people. The bookstore is beautiful, especially at night after being repurposed for the wedding. For ~100 people wedding, the bookstore is perfect-sized (we had 75 guests). We loved the missions of the housing works, and the bookstore fitted with our wedding theme and our goal. Tomasz is very organized, and he makes sure you have absolutely beautiful day through multiple meetings, and he is 100% present on the wedding day by making sure the day flows smoothly. We also found the housing works bookstore rate is extremely reasonable, and rather affordable given the convenient location and what the venue offers. The bookstore offers the liquor, and we found, at first, wine selection is a bit limited, but later we noticed they are quite delicious. Guests often commented how unique the venue is, and how pleased they were with the whole experience. Highly recommended, and if you are not hiring for the wedding, please visit during the day (either bookstore or thrift shops) and support Housing Works!

Oh wow - where to begin! First of all, as a New Yorker, Housing Works has renowned immaculate vibes. Not only is it a wonderful organization doing the good work of fighting homelessness and HIV in NYC, it's one of those magical New York places that just *feels good* the moment you walk in. You know? It smells like old books, the floors creak a little, it's been the home to many a famous open mic and intimate concert - it's the real deal. History, romance, and purpose are all vibrantly present in the space. For anyone who is looking to make their wedding unique and special (and who maybe doesn't vibe with the traditional pomp and circumstance of big, formal weddings), this is your place. You get to be married surrounded but art and stories. The staff is absolutely incredible and will help you design an evening that feels authentic to you. Pro tip - they know what they're doing! Listen to their suggestions - I promise they aren't trying to upsell you, they just want you to have the best experience ever. I'm really glad that we took all their advice an worked with their perferred vendors. Everyone who was a part of our celebration was a delight and went above and beyond to make sure we were taken care of. Our wedding was fun, no stress, joyous, and exceeded all our expectations. Can't recommend HWBS enough - I wish we could get married all over again!

I don't even know where to begin... but because I have to start somewhere, let's start with the space itself. if you're considering HW, hopefully you're familiar with their mission (the nonprofit), the incredible book collection, the string lights... Gorgeous space all around, which also helps you save on superfluous lights, flowers (we had none, we didn't feel the need... we spent more on food!), etc. The space is the draw! We were married privately earlier in the pandemic and postponed our renewal ceremony and party at HW when we hoped things would become simpler, safer. Fast forward to our pandemic, blizzard wedding of ~90 people, navigating proof of vaccination, an extra hour of party time and late night bites so people wouldn't have to venture out after hours... Our wonderful HW people were there every step of the way. While we originally signed with Josh (who is so lovely), Josh ultimately left HW and handed us over to Tomek, who I would, honestly, follow into hell because he gets it. You want to work with someone who doesn't get rattled by spreadsheets and last-minute safety changes, pandemic or not. And that's what you get at HW: a uniquely beautiful place, an incredible list of preferred vendors who also understand and respect HW (the space and the mission), and staff who make you feel seen. Our all-start support system: our coordinator Gillian, our photographer Kelly, our bartenders, our caricature artists (we had caricature artists! Not a preferred vendor and HW completely handled this dream of ours), our caterer (Comparti) -- it was all somehow exactly as I would have hoped, and that's with a difficult pandemic with a lot of important red tape and a blizzard. HW is special. It may not be for everyone, but if it's for you, you'll cherish the experience forever.

Housing Works was the perfect venue for our intimate (24 guests) wedding ceremony and reception. Dad walked me down "aisle" accompanied by bagpipes on the balcony; our Unitarian Universalist (and occasionally funny) ceremony brought a tear to all eyes; and our cocktails and superb dinner were flawlessly accommodated. Josh and his team know what they're doing -- we'd recommend it to any/all!

We had our September 2021 wedding reception at Housing Works and to sum it up in one word: it was MAGICAL. After covid-related issues left us with multiple wedding dates and having to make a total change from our original plans, Josh just made things easy. The venue is a special place in every way and a great spot for any celebration. The candles, the bookshelves, the location, the spiral staircases....I could go on and on. It was beautiful. Josh and his team at Housing Works helped make it a night we will never forget!!

We cannot say enough good things about Tomek and his team, or the venue itself. Planning a wedding at Housing Works was easy, efficient and fun at every step of the process. Tomek is incredibly professional and invested in making sure every detail is to your liking, and all the bartenders and event staff were friendly and super capable. A couple of especially great things: 1. Your wedding can be as simple or involved as you like, since the bookstore and Tomek are really flexible; 2. No need to go crazy with decor, since the store is already one of the most beautiful interior spaces in New York; 3. The venue pricing is eminently reasonable, and you can feel great about what you do spend, since the proceeds function as a donation to Housing Works' homelessness and HIV/AIDS efforts. Top to bottom, an amazing experience.

Our wedding ceremony and reception took place at Housing Works Bookstore on August 28, 2021 and we had the best time! Our original date was back in June 2020, and HW was extremely helpful and easy to work with as we changed our date multiple times throughout the pandemic. The clear dedication and passion of the staff we worked with gave us every confidence that our wedding would be beautiful, and they worked seamlessly with our other vendors and our day-of-coordinator. The space is already beautiful and full of life during their normal business hours, so the ambience cannot be matched for a unique and beautiful celebration. We would very highly recommend Housing Works Bookstore for anyone considering that type of space for their big day.

We were married at Housing Works Bookstore on 3/7/2020, and I still cannot believe how warm and magical our wedding was. Choosing Housing Works as our venue was the best decision we made in the whole planning process--Josh is a dream to work with, and has great relationships with vendors. We basically followed all of Josh's recommendations for vendors and were delighted with how easy (and fun!) the process was from there. No drama, no problems, just awesome professionals who all care about supporting Housing Works and fighting the twin crises of HIV/AIDS and Homelessness. Getting married at the Housing Works Bookstore is a way to make sure the money you spend on your wedding supports a good cause--and it is really well-priced for Manhattan! We had a cocktail-style receptions, which I would absolutely recommend. I was a bit nervous about how it would work beforehand, but it was fantastic! Everyone was drinking, eating, talking, and dancing the whole night without being interrupted for sit-down meal service. The appeal of getting married in a bookstore means having bookshelves as your backdrop, plus Housing Works provides electric candles among the books, string lights, and even has book bundles you can use for centerpieces. With all that, it really doesn't require extensive décor, we just used additional candles and small bud vases for the tables. I highly recommend attending one of their open houses so you can see how gorgeous the space looks when set up for an event. If you get married at Housing Works Bookstore, I promise you'll have a wedding your guests will never forget, all while supporting a great cause!

We celebrated our wedding (both the ceremony and reception) at the Housing Works Bookstore at the end of October. From the time we started working with Housing Works through the end of our event, we couldn’t have been happier with our experience. The space has an absolutely unique vibe that can’t be matched elsewhere, with books, string lights, and a balcony encircling the main area. There was something truly magical about being surrounded by loved ones during our ceremony. It’s hard to believe that a venue this wonderful also has such an excellent mission behind it, and we were thrilled that our venue cost was a donation to Housing Works’ mission. Josh, our event coordinator, was kind, funny, detail-oriented, and extremely professional throughout our planning process. He offered his expert recommendations whenever we had questions about the space and was extraordinarily accommodating, from bar setup to venue access to planning meetings to vendor collaboration. He was there on the night of the wedding to ensure that it was a perfect, effortless, and unforgettable evening for us. Thank you so much, Josh and Housing Works, for making our wedding such a fantastic event!

What really made HousingWorks spectacular for us was the staff. The whole day functioned as a well-oiled machine! Every detail was thought out and excellently cared for. The planning process was straightforward and we always knew our options and the due dates. For a ceremony and reception venue in Manhattan, we found the rates they offered really competitive, especially given what excellent service we received. Everyone at the wedding remarked what a unique and beautiful venue it was and every single person I've run into who has been to a wedding there still remembers it years later! If you want a memorable and unique wedding, do yourself a favor and book with HousingWorks!!!

Working with Tomek was awesome. He was very professional throughout the entire process. He was quick to respond to all our emails and answered all our questions. We met several times to discuss our vision, including attending an open house event that housing works offers. We felt very confident that the venue was going to look perfect the day of and it did. Thank you Tomek for all of your help. We highly recommend HWB and Tomek for your event!

Can't recommend highly enough. Our wedding in August 2019 was beautiful and went so smoothly, and the venue was affordable without looking like we'd compromised at all. Tomasz and his colleagues were wonderful to work with, so gracious and helpful at every turn. Thank you, Housing Works!

A storybook wedding we will never forget! It was PERFECT! I am from California and my Husband is a New Yorker, it was the best way to show our out of town guests a true New York experience. Josh and his crew really made the process so easy and fun. Any questions or concerns I had were met with promptness and always solution oriented, which meant so much to this super nervous Bride. I also loved Josh’s enthusiasm for our out of the box ideas and worked together to find the best way to make it all work in the space, from our balloon decor, Ben and Jerry’s scooping ice cream and a barista set up, it was all done with ease! Our guests have not stopped talking about how much they loved it and how it was a day they will never forget. Thank you Josh and Housingworks employees for making our storybook wedding come true!!!

My guests wouldn’t stop talking about how much they loved this venue! A quaint bookstore by day—with book-lined shelves and spiral staircases leading to an upstairs gallery—at night transforms itself into something quite magical. Dozens of votive candles, soft string lighting and warmly draped walls created a most inviting atmosphere. The staff was very accommodating and professional throughout the process—which made it all so easy to plan. And it’s a block away from an F train stop!

We had our wedding at Housing Works. It is such a special place. You won’t find any venue in New York with more charm and character — or a more important mission. Tomasz and his team were a delight. We recommend them, and this wonderful organization, to anyone thinking about getting married in New York. They are just the best, and we feel so lucky and proud to have held our wedding at Housing Works.

We got married at Housing Works this May and we are so happy with the decision on every level. Working with Tomek and his team was great - they're responsive, professional, have very useful advice/suggestions based on how you want your wedding to go and executed everything flawlessly the night of. The venue itself is a lot of fun - we had 115 people with a cocktail-type set up with seating for 80 and it worked great with the space. It wasn't too crowded but was comfortable and had people up and mingling everywhere you looked. The layout worked great for food as well as for dancing and we got rave reviews from friends and family alike for the unique set up.

Amazing venue with such great help! Everyone just keeps saying how magical it was for them and it was for us too! Josh makes everything so easy and he's wonderful to work with! Definitely worth it if you're looking for something intimate, different, and philanthropic as well! Thank you!!

Tomorrow is our second wedding anniversary, and I finally have the time and impetus to sit and sing my praises of Housing Works. Housing Works gave us the wedding of our dreams! We are ardent bookshop goers and this establishment really encapsulated our couple vibe. The books, the lighting, the decor, the food, the music - it was all so wonderful that I can't even begin to describe. Josh was so easy and accommodating to work with - thanks for dealing with my million emails adjusting the guest count! I still receive complements about our wedding from family - even my cantankerous aunt said it was her favorite wedding. I have such fond memories of that night that I wish we could relive it over and over again. Thank you Housing Works for allowing us to use your space as the backdrop to the beginning of our married life!

Great location for a wedding. Friendly, competent, attentive. Tomek and his crew do a wonderful job and the venue itself is warm and friendly. And Housing Works is a non-profit organization and a good cause! Highly recommended.

AMAZING VENUE! Very affordable option and the place is magnificent. I would highly recommend this venue for weddings or any other kinds of ceremony/party.

Housing Works was the perfect place to have our wedding. Our guests were blown away by the setting and the venue staff were amazing. They didn't just make everything run beautifully and smoothly, they actually shared in our joy. Five stars feels too few!

I cannot recommend Housing Works enough. The space is beautiful and unique, and Josh and his team were seriously beyond impressive. Everything ran smoothly, the staff was attentive but unobtrusive, and the food was great. Josh was such a wonderful point person, and helped us feel calm and assured that everything was taken care of. The day went off without a hitch, and the team at Housing Works was a huge part of making it happen. Thanks!

Josh and his team are nothing short of miracle workers. They are incredibly responsive and work hard to make sure your event is utterly tailored to you. They are also an absolute joy and blast to work with. All of our guests cannot stop raving about our venue and the food. It was such a special day and we have Housing Works to thank for that.

My husband and I would highly recommend Housing Works to anyone as a wedding venue!! Josh and his staff were endlessly kind, helpful, and professional — they made every step of the planning process easy and enjoyable and they took AMAZING care of us on our big day. The venue is absolutely beautiful. All of our guests were blown away by the space and the decor, as well as how friendly the staff was. And the food is SO delicious and unique. We went with the cocktail style option for the whole night, and our guests all had more than enough food and kept telling us how delicious it was. If you're looking for an intimate, personal, memorable wedding venue, look no further. Thanks you, Josh and company, for making our night so perfect!

The experience from start to finish was INCREDIBLE. Amanda helps you plan and map out your event and Josh works his magic the night of to ensure top service. I don't have adequate words to express how wonderful the venue, the event planners and The Works Catering team are! The venue is magic. Honestly, it surpassed every expectation I had. With books, hanging lights, and candles everywhere, it is a very romantic and authentic New York experience. Every single guest was raving. And the food was AWESOME. Best part? The proceeds of the event go to support the fantastic Housing Works charity that supports New Yorkers battling with HIV/AIDS and homelessness. If you are considering this venue for your wedding or event, do it!! You will be so happy! Best night of my life!

I got married at Housing Works last December and could not have been happier with the experience. The prep leading up to the day was easy and communication with Amanda and Josh was seamless. The wedding day itself was gorgeous- all of our guests are still commenting on the beauty and magic of the bookstore. The food was also excellent- I really liked the buffet set up to ensure our guests were well fed and could get seconds or thirds. I've been to far too many weddings where I come home foraging for snacks. If you are looking for an intimate, nontraditional, beautiful wedding in the heart of New York City, you'd be hard pressed to find a better setting or team to work with. I would especially recommend this venue to brides like myself who wanted to do as little extra work as possible- I wasn't interested in flowers, table settings, photo booths, or other details. You can absolutely do all of that at Housing Works, but if you're a lower key bride, the venue provides essentially everything.

My husband and I are from the UK and we booked Housing Works as our wedding venue without ever having been there ourselves. We knew we wanted somewhere different from the norm and the reviews and pictures we found of Housing Works were amazing! When we visited we weren't disappointed, it's such a beautiful venue. Before we even got there we had the most helpful correspondence with Amanda who made us feel at ease even when we were arranging our wedding so far away. Amanda, Josh and all of the staff we met were so friendly and professional and just wanted to help us have the best day! The venue doesn't need a lot of decoration which was great for us, all we needed were a few personal touches and candles to give it more of a 'wedding' feel. Everyone at our wedding said it was the best wedding they've ever been to! The food was amazing and there were so many choices to cater to everyone's tastes. We knew our wedding was going to be great but having it at Housing Works made it perfect!

Planning our wedding at the Housing Works Bookstore was incredibly stress-free. Amanda and Josh were so sweet, patient, and helpful during the whole planning process. They were very responsive and organized with every single detail worked out and anticipated. They seriously thought of everything! The day of our wedding, everything went smoothly from start to finish thanks to the phenomenal work of Josh and The Works Catering staff. The food was delicious and the staff could not have been more helpful and fun. Most brides and grooms say they don’t get a chance to eat at their wedding, but the Works Catering staff made sure my husband and I had plates, and even made sure we ALWAYS had our favourite drinks in hand! The venue itself was stunning - our fall wedding was so magical and unique and our guests loved it! Housing Works truly exceeded our expectations and on top of it, a portion of the proceeds went to such a great cause. Would highly recommend Housing Works bookstore to anyone interested!

Everything was absolutely flawless. The entire event staff was incredibly easy to work with and made us feel so special during our entire wedding. The food was delicious and they were incredibly accommodating of the multiple dietary restrictions we were working with. The space itself was gorgeous and so memorable. We received so many compliments on the venue and how helpful the staff was. Highly recommend throwing any type of event here, especially an unforgettable wedding.

Housing Works is a great venue, with great food, and will be host to great memories. I can't recommend it highly enough. The space is beautiful. I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. The event planning staff are great- they listen, work to accommodate your needs, and will work with you to get what you want. Perhaps because Housing Works is a nonprofit, they don't try to up-sell you unless they genuinely believe the more expensive option is what you're looking for. The Works, the mandatory in-house caterer, makes delicious farm-to-table seasonal fare. Try the duck. The charitable mission of the organization is a huge draw, but you can read about that elsewhere.

Where do we begin?! Could there be a more perfect wedding venue for two professional word nerds living in NYC? Nope, there's no place more fitting. We feel so grateful to have found it! Honestly, we could on and on about all the virtues of getting married at Housing Works Bookstore: the romantic backdrop from every angle; the awesome, professional yet personable staff and EXCEPTIONAL event planners, who actually care about how special this day is to you, your spouse and your family; the delicious food by The Works Catering (and we mean delicious and plenty of it!) that was adjusted to our tastes and our party vibe; how everything is handled out of one venue (food, linens, tables, chairs, staff, bar, schedule, etc.); how you'll only deal with a couple of people from beginning to end; and maybe most of all, the fact that you are donating to an exceptional cause. Yes, there is still more we could rave about, but you get it. If we could do it all again (we kind of want to), we would do it at this bookstore, no question. It will be a part of our hearts always!

We absolutely LOVED Housing Works Bookstore—it's a wonderful alternative to the wedding industrial complex. Your fees partially go to support Housing Works AND they don't treat you like a customer. They instead treat you like a long-time member of the community, a relationship that they hope to grow instead of end with your special day. The space was beautiful and they did an entirely vegetarian wedding for us. They even made up an appetizer on our request! Totally gay-friendly. Highly recommend.

From start to finish we could not have been happier. Planning with them was fun and easy. The price could not be beat and the convenience of having the caterer and rentals included and on site made coordination a breeze. They quickly and effortlessly addressed any question that came up prior to the event. Their recommended DJ exceeded our expectations. The food and service were superlative. The wait staff was especially friendly and attentive. We received a myriad of compliments from our guest on the space and the quality of experience. Amanda and Josh are both extremely organized, efficient, friendly and attentive. We would recommend them, their staff and the entire facility without qualification. We are extremely grateful to the entire team for helping us realize our dream wedding. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

We had our dream wedding at the Housing Works Bookstore Cafe two months ago, and it was such a pleasure to work with Amanda, Josh and Amy. If you're the type of bride who loathes the supposedly fun aspects of wedding planning, this is the perfect venue and team for you. In choosing Housing Works, you are obliged to use their in-house caterer and planning team, and this makes choosing food, layout and linens a breeze. As far as decor goes, stringing lights, adding candles and floral arrangements are all you need; the bookstore at night is dreamy, hip and intimate. We are still getting tons of compliments on how unique and lovely our wedding was, and everyone raved about the food. If you are looking for a classy and elegant, yet quirky and casual venue that typifies NYC without the headache that comes with typical wedding planning, Housing Works fits the bill. It also certainly doesn't hurt that all proceeds go to Housing Works' larger mission of ending the dual crises f homelessness and AIDS.

Well mannered book store by day, awesome celebration site by night

The Housing Works Bookstore Cafe was the perfect venue for my daughter's wedding! The evening went off without a hitch, the staff was incredibly professional and there wasn't one thing I would have changed about the wedding. it truly was a magical night. The bookstore setting gave the wedding such a warm and welcoming feel. Our guests were raving about the food and the attentive bartenders. We had 96 guests and they were all comfortably seated. Plenty of room on the dance floor, too. It was a month ago but everyone is still raving about what a wonderful wedding it was! Bravo to this team who is doing great work and for an important cause, too! Josh and Amanda are the best!

Amazing experience from start to finish. Hard to find someplace so unique that is also has its own catering company. Relatives and friends are constantly commenting on how much they loved our wedding and especially the venue.

I think every bride thinks their wedding was amazing, but when I walked in the room to see all of my hard work brought together with the help of Amanda and Josh, I was completely blown away with the magic of the venue, with all the string lights, books, and nooks of the venue. I had no words other than "this is so cool", which is what I heard the guests say throughout the night. Josh was a God-sent when it came to the reception - he caught and fixed glitches that I never would have anticipated. I loved that the tastings allowed me to really get a sense of not only the delicious food and wine, but of how the set up could look in person (versus just photos). They provided us with high quality recommendations for flowers and a DJ and they provided practical advice about what "extras" were not really worth the cost - especially because there is just so many ways you can go for a wedding. I never had the sense I was being pressured to keep adding options. And I loved that they are a charity with a worthy cause. I highly recommend this venue for anyone's wedding!

The staff at Housing Works Bookstore is absolutely wonderful. From planning with Amanda and Josh to the day of the wedding, everything was easy and perfect. We loved the food and service of the staff. My husband and I were married in April and we still have friends and relatives raving about our wedding. We wouldn't change a thing!

Amazing people, amazing space, amazing food, amazing coordination, amazing everything. I was very excited for everything beforehand and everything surpassed my expectations. A wonderful team to work with.

I cannot recommend Housing Works Bookstore Cafe enough for a wedding venue. From start to finish, the staff there is INCREDIBLE - so nice, so helpful, very transparent, and they really really want you to have a perfect wedding day and do everything they can to make sure they happens. The space is also beautiful once it's set up and the food is delicious - I got so many compliments from my guests on both. Further, it's affordable for NYC, and because a good chunk (if not all) of the proceeds go to the Housing Works charity, I certainly felt better about spending the money to begin with. I really just cannot say enough nice things about the venue. If you want a very NY wedding with a more offbeat vibe and want to deal with nice people who want to do everything to help you, this is your place!

I cannot say enough good things about Housing Works Bookstore and the staff. We got married at a Catholic church nearby and celebrated our reception here afterwards. My parents have repeatedly told me how impressed they were: the food was great and the staff was outstanding! Working with Amanda and Josh was a dream. Josh was the event captain on the night of my wedding and he was a star! The rest of the staff was also very attentive and made sure I and my husband had plates made up for the cocktail hour and dinner, and a drink whenever necessary. We received so many compliments from guests about the atmosphere, the food, and the staff. It is truly a unique venue with a staff that throws a flawless event. It made my NYC wedding so special and I cannot thank them enough! If you are thinking of booking here, do it! You will not regret it!

Amanda and her troops took the BEST care of us from the moment I reached out with questions to the end of the venue. So many of our guests informed us that it was one of or the BEST wedding they had ever attended. We were so delighted with everything about Housing Works Bookstore/Catering for our wedding. We were all treated like royalty!!! I can't write enough about how much we loved everything: the tasting a few months prior really gave us an idea of what the venue would look like on our wedding and let us plan accordingly, as well the food was absolutely delicious. The details provided by Amanda as well as all considerations taken during planning were so beneficial to this first-time bride and her family. For a non-traditional (ie not a church) venue this is a WONDERFUL option. They will take excellent care of you and your wedding will be beautiful and unforgettable, I promise.

Our wedding at the Housing Works Bookstore was flawless! The venue itself is incredibly beautiful and affordable (for Manhattan) and it completely transforms from a store during the day to a really unique and romantic event space at night. Josh was our event captain and I cannot even put into words how amazing he was. I received compliments about him and his staff the entire night. He was accommodating, organized, friendly and just super fun to work with! The food was really delicious and they accommodated all types of dietary restrictions with absolutely no hassle or issues. If you are looking for a rare and exceptional event space in Manhattan, I highly recommend Housing Works!

Phenomenal. The service and food was amazing. My guests loved the venue. Amanda and the rest of the staff were fantastic.

We had our wedding at the Housing Works Bookstore on a Friday in Fall 2015. The whole event was absolutely perfect and magical. I received many compliments from guests on the bookstore: "it looked like a scene from Beauty and the Beast", "It's the most sophisticated and unique venue!", "The food was the best wedding food I've ever had!", and on and on. There are SO many fantastic things about having a celebration at the bookstore: - THE SERVICE: probably the single biggest aspect that wowed me about the Housing Works were the people I worked with! They were all talented, helpful, patient, fun, understanding, and exceptional to us. They made it happen. Their hospitality was truly amazing. - THE LOCATION! We made it a SoHo themed event: we took our bridal party and family pictures in the neighborhood, stayed at a nearby hotel, walked to and from the venue, etc. . Also, logistically, parking was not bad at all. Almost all guests found free street parking the night of! - THE VENUE itself is so interesting and unique. It is a far cry from the generic catering hall in Long Island. If you have a small flower/decorating budget, this is also a perfect place for you-- the books, the whole interior design of it is so rich, textured, elegant and beautiful that you don't need to do a thing in terms of decor to make the setting spectacular. We added some small flower arrangements to the tables and used extra votive candles on a small decor budget. Everywhere our guests looked, there was something interesting/beautiful to see. No bare walls here! It set the perfect setting for a wedding. - THE FOOD! I am really into fine dining, and every single dish at the HW was delicious and beautifully presented. We had several appetizers which were all well-crafted, and the seated salad and main courses were divine! They were prepared exceptionally well with high quality ingredients. ( I am the rare bride who tried all the food). I got numerous compliments when we got back from our honeymoon. An event at the HW gives for a sophisticated and elegant scene. It's beautiful, charming, and richly lavish without being tacky. We thought it was the perfect location for our wedding and allowed us to have a wedding that was a good reflection of us. I definitely recommend having a celebratory event here.

This review is a little overdue, but my husband and I had the most AMAZING wedding reception (ceremony was nearby) at Housing Works Bookstore a little over a month ago - people are still raving about it! We worked with Amanda and Josh who were both so helpful from the very first meeting thru the night of. They made the process simple and were there to answer each and every one of our seemingly never-ending questions (sorry guys!). The space is absolutely beautiful. We had a total of 97 guests and it was a perfect fit that felt intimate yet full. Oh my gosh, the food. Unfortunately we missed our cocktail hour due to pictures, but the amazing staff at the Works Catering had saved a selection of the hors d'oeuvres we had chosen and gave them to us when we got settled - so awesome! My husband and I also had a "dedicated" server who kept checking in to see if we needed anything throughout the night, which was really nice! The rest of the food we choose was so fantastic and there was plenty of it. We have had so many friends and family rave about the food and atmosphere - I can't recommend Housing Works Bookstore enough for a wonderfully unique wedding venue.