The Empress Estate

I'd probably give this venue 2.5 stars. I just had an excellent wedding here, but I can't say that was because of the venue but at times in spite of it. Pros: -The day of coordinators that you work with while planning and during the day of your wedding are pleasant, transparent, and knowledgeable. -For wedding food, the food was very good and plentiful (we had a buffet and everyone was full). Even the cake was good, which I was skeptical about. -There's no fee to use a vendor outside of the preferred vendor list (at least for DJs or photography, which I used outside vendors for) -The location is stunning. Both the chateau and the mansion are gorgeous and surrounded by well taken care of trees and flowers. Also beautiful and customizable centerpieces. -Good prices. Compared to other Washington venues, Empress Estate has good rates for food, centerpieces, and labor, and also was very transparent about their fees. We booked more than a year out and used a payment plan for the majority of the costs. -Flexible with the weather. We were able to move our ceremony inside (if needed) with very little notice. -Breakfast at the BnB was very good (but not vegetarian friendly) -Received deposit back in timely manner Cons: -Turn over. We worked with three different coordinators during the planning phase. Certain details about our event didn't seem to be communicated between coordinators. These issues included: 1. Forgetting we paid for coffee and tea (and arguing when we asked for it to be provided. It was set out late and we got no money back) 2. Getting different answers about whether chargers were included in our package 3. Scheduling our planning meeting late 4. Sending invoices at the wrong time. -You cannot schedule independent tastings at this venue. They offer quarterly group tastings and encourage couples to come to at least two. My partner and I went to two tastings, but the tastings has basically the exact same menu. Therefore, it was impossible for us to taste all of the available food items before the day of the wedding. -Dietary restrictions. The venue was very hesitant to give us information about what was included in each dish. We also had to provide our own signage to show which allergens were in each food. This lack of communication led to a dish with an allergen (the three cheese pasta apparently has tomatoes) that we weren't aware of. -Lack of communication with our vendors. Our vendors struggled to get in communication with the venue. Even one of the preferred vendors lacked information about the venue. -Vendor meals. Unlike making venues, the vendors are included in our head count. Therefore, if you want your vendors to eat, you have to pay the same price as a seated guest who has access to the open bar and centerpieces. -Many policies weren't spoken about in person but rather hidden in email chains (such as the vendor meal policy). -I don't know if this is typical, but you have to provide your own banquet license which makes you liable for damage and injury due to alcohol. -The general manager Zoe is difficult to work with. It's clear the day of coordinators are aware and try to work around him. He is terrible at communicating, authoritative, and rude. He did not help the day go smoothly. -The preferred vendors tended to be more expensive than other vendors in the area. -Hard to schedule a rehearsal (you can only do it in the morning)

My husband and I married here on 10/21/2023 and I cannot tell you how Thankful we are that we selected this Venue. We had attended a wedding here once before and fell in love with this place. Working with the planner Sarah V. was fantastic and she was extremely helpful, professional and always available to answer questions. The day went off without a hitch, the food was fantastic, the staff were great and we had a beautiful day. I would recommend this venue to any couple!

Sarah was an amazing planner! She was always timely with her responses. The venue...STUNNING! We selected the Chateau as our ceremony location and it was beautiful! Love this all inclusive venue! ABSOLUTELY would recommend!!

I felt very taken care of. As the bride I have a lot to stress over Ms. Sarah made sure we didn't have to worry one bit. From the moment we met it felt very professional but also human. I didnt feel like I was another bride and it was another wedding it felt very personal and caring. Sarah's excitement about planning a wedding blend into mine which made the entire experience wonderful. The venue is gorgeous from the manor to the deck and all the flowers in between especially when the sun sets just right. In the actual wedding day everything was planned behind the scenes me and my groom could truly enjoy the day without thinking. The staff was very polite and cordial. I'm really glad we choose the Empress estate it made my wedding day feel magical

The Empress Estate is an absolute picture perfect wedding venue! From the mansion to the grounds and scenery. We couldn't have picked a better place to get married. Our wedding coordinator and event manager Sarah Villanueva was very helpful in answering all our questions and helping us plan our beautiful wedding. She provided us with options and made us feel comfortable throughout the process. On the day of our wedding, we were a little nervous but Sarah and her staff helped our nervousness fade away. Everything was taken care of and we could just focus on our love. After the wedding, we checked into the mansion and the owner greeted us with a fire. This allowed us to extend our beautiful day and cap off our evening. Finally, we would like to thank The Empress Estate for making our dream wedding come true.

Very beautiful venue with a lot to offer. Staffing was amazing and they make the wedding process super smooth and affordable. They also help with clean up which was wonderful.

When we got engaged, we were told to book as early as possible due to the rise of weddings post Covid. We were excited to have booked with Empress Estate back in January 2022 for our wedding in August 2023. We loved the outdoor atmosphere and how beautiful the Mansion was. With it being an all inclusive venue, we were excited about the price range as well. We moved forward with the payment plan all throughout 2022 and had our first planning meeting in March 2022. We went over our package details and pricing. At our 2nd planning meeting, we were surprised at the lack of communication from the team that there were price changes. We were never notified nor were told that we would be included in that change. Luckily, we were able to advocate for ourselves but it was a bit awkward that we had to bridge the gap of communication between the owner and wedding coordinator. We had to reference back to our contract and welcome guide given to us multiple times due to the fact that they made so many changes to their packages without notifying already reserved couples. Communication was not in our favor the majority of the planning process with Empress I would've appreciated at least an email about price changes / changes to the packages. Our wedding day went smoothly and we had the wonderful day of coordinator and Sarah to help us. The only comments I would have would be for the waiting staff. I had multiple guests tell me the waiting staff was a bit rude / unapproachable when asked questions regarding food / drinks. When toasts came along, my husband and I actually had to go up to the bar because we weren't served with toasts first (really...?). We worked our butts off to get out by our allotted time because they charge you an extra $500 if you stay after the time you paid for (even if you're cleaning up). All in all - I enjoyed the wedding and scenery, but it was a bit frustrating to be left with surprise costs and added stress. Other that those things, I really did enjoy our wedding day. Only advice to future couples is to advocate for what you're wanting straight up and communicate and document everything so that your day can go smoothly and stress free.

What an amazing experience we had! Truly the most accommodating, friendly, welcoming, and professional staff. The venue is absolutely beautiful at all times of the year, and the staff is extremely prepared for any sort of weather change in a matter of minutes. Zoe was immediately welcoming & wonderful to work with, and helped to explain everything to us every step of the way. Reasonably priced, all-inclusive, customizable packages - we so appreciated only having to coordinate with 2 outsourced vendors!! The food was -delicious-, the bartenders were friendly and professional, and the clean up crew was so organized, efficient and kind. The getting ready experience was one of the most memorable parts of the day; Sarah was hands on & made sure we had snacks, bubbles, and anything we needed! Our day-of coordinator Alexandria was hands down, -incredible- in every sense of the word. Because of her expertise, the day flowed effortlessly without a single slip up; I had even forgotten my flowers up in the balcony, was literally walking down the aisle, and the -second- I turned the corner, she appeared with them out of nowhere and placed them in my hands. (I’m not kidding, it felt like a movie experience). My wife and I truly couldn’t have dreamed of a better experience for our wedding. Thank you, Empress Estate!

This was our dream venue!! Literally, it’s the most gorgeous property! The Empress Estate has both the fairytale castle and the cabin in the woods feel. They provide you with an incredible wedding planner named Sarah who is AMAZING at her job!! She works hard to ensure everything is taken care of and all goes smoothly! Their motto is that everything should be easy and stress free for the couple (and it truly was)!! They have a varieties vendor list that they work with and recommend that are familiar with the venue, to make things easy! They have a great system and process in place to make the whole wedding planning process streamlined and simple to follow as it relates to budgeting, due dates/deadlines, wedding schedule, payment processing, etc. They provide catering, cake, tables/lines/silverware/dishes and so much more! They recommended We and 16 of our guests stayed the night at the mansion and they provided breakfast for us in the morning! We feel very blessed to have had the opportunity to get married at the Empress and to work with Sarah!! HIGHLY RECOMMEND!

I booked Empress Estate for our wedding venue and I cannot put into words how absolutely magical my experience was. They have round the clock staff serving drinks, food and ensuring all our guests were taken care of. Sarah, the wedding coordinator, was an absolute pleasure to work with. She nailed every detail.

I have dreamed about my wedding since I was little. The empress estate was perfect Sarah, Ramsey, and the owner Zoe we’re so nice. we had our wedding in the mansion. It was absolutely beautiful, thank you for helping me have my fairytale wedding!!

The Empress Estates is such an incredible venue. Not only is the scenery breath-taking, Zoe, Sarah and the entire time make your big day go smoothly. They were so patient with the groom and I flip flopping about an indoor or outdoor wedding whenever the rain stopped, but they were so understanding and quick to put everything together. It was nice to have a calm competent team on our side.

we loved working with the empress. we held our wedding there in september of 22 and it was the most beautiful backdrop for our wedding day. the staff was great to work with and so helpful. they were very patient with all of my questions and they worked hard together to pull off our wedding day. we couldn’t be more grateful or happy with how the day came together.

The Empress Estate was a royal experience! We loved we did not have to do anything, but let the day unfold and be treated like king and queen for our special wedding day on 12/22/22. The cake, food, and drinks were perfect on the coldest winter day. We chose the empress menu choice. The prime rib was yummy! There was plenty of drinks for our guests. The dance floor was amazing and we chose dj that works with the Empress. The guests and I and the bride enjoyed it all and were glad to have our wedding reception at the Empress. The Empress worked well with all of our vendors. We made memories to last a lifetime! There was consistent and clear communication throughout the planning process with the Empress Estate Sarah and Zoe. The grounds are beautiful and the wedding party air bnb was perfect for my friends and I to stay , both in the woods and historic and beautiful, and have whole made sausage, omlette, fruit, coffee and pastries. We couldn't be happier !! Thank you! Love the Hutsons

The Empress is a gorgeous venue. We loved that we could pick where on property we wanted our ceremony. Staff was very responsive and helpful throughout the whole planning process and the day off. Staff puts you first on the wedding day, they make sure you eat and have drinks. So helpful on such a stressful day.

We chose the Empress Estates to be our wedding venue not because it has stunning landscape, 10 different spots on the property to have a wedding ceremony, can accommodate up to 300 people, and has a mansion (that you can stay at!), but for the fact that they coordinate the wedding, provide catering and the cake, as well as have alternative options if it happens to rain on your outdoor plans! That's right, they can relocate everything indoors! Which is a must when trying to plan an outdoor wedding in Washington State. Zoe got us started on our journey with planning the wedding at his venue. He is a man with a plan and definitely has mastered the wedding planning process down to the minute. He will provide you with a list of his preferred vendors, but will work with whoever you pick as long as they agree to stick with the timeline you and he will put together for your special day. He will need to have an idea of how many people you plan to invite, and a potential day for the wedding selected for him to work up numbers for you. I loved that you could get ready at the venue and they have a room upstairs for the Bridal party and one for the Groom and his men! Day of the wedding, Sarah ended up being our coordinator. She was amazing! New exactly where to be before we even knew we needed her. She kept everyone organized and on time. Made it super easy to know where we needed to be. The catering was wonderful, everyone was super kind and thoughtful. I chose the buffet style for the food (which I should have mentioned, he has cake tasting events throughout the year that you can attend and sample the food and cake! As well as explore the grounds and see the mansion). Everyone enjoyed the meal and cake, and the sparkler send off was a success! Thank you all for providing and maintaining a beautiful property, and having a team that worked together to make our day run smoothly. It was truly a pleasure working with you all, and a memory that I will treasure.

We got married at the Empress Estate this summer and I feel like an honest review is due. We were given a tour by the owner who sold the venue as “all-inclusive”. Turns out they just have a “preferred vendors” list. Many of the numbers provided were non-working and when I informed them, they responded “oh, he must have left the state.” The owner also said the cocktail hour would be held between the two buildings where the fireplace and outdoor bar is. We loved it. After signing the contract and at our first planning session we learned it’s an additional $500 to have the cocktail hour there. The food was just ok. Cold, no seasoning. Our cake was dry and cold. I received feedback from many guests about the owner. He would awkwardly micro-manage the bar and other staff. He tried to cut off my bridesmaid within 10 minutes of arriving. The bar wasn’t even open yet! Here’s the best part. The bartender was slow and confused all night. At one point she told my brother “sorry about that. I’m so high right now.” Are you kidding me??!! As we’re packing up to leave the owner held me hostage in conversation about how much my guests loved the place, it was a gorgeous wedding, etc. He said it seems like I have a lot of single people as guests and that I’d likely be back because they will want to get married here. What a joke. Also, we have hardly any single attendees which is why we skipped the bouquet toss and did a anniversary dance instead. Just shows what he knows about us personally and how he cannot read a room. The bar closed at 9 even though we had the venue til 10. They never made a last call. I, as the bride! Was standing at the bar and he put up a “bar closed” right in my face! Later on when I complained about this, he told me he doesn’t make last call because then everyone would rush the bar. My florist said we didn’t have to clean up the flower pedals. The owner had my bridesmaids out there in the night with their flashlights cleaning them up!! I wish I knew at the time because I’m so upset about it now. Positively, the view is nice. The grounds are pretty, not gorgeous. In a state where plants are plentiful, the grounds are pretty sparse. And I have to shout out Sarah. She was friendly and so helpful. She was quick to respond to my emails and on the actual day she accomplished every task I gave her. Big time thanks! And edit to ad. It’s been 3 weeks since we got married. We knew the day following the wedding that we were missing cards from the gift table (cards as in people leaving a greeting card with a cash gift inside). When they didn’t turn up in our stuff we started to ask our wedding party and family if they had them. We’ve learned that the cards missing are the ones that were dropped in the card box before the ceremony. They should’ve absolutely made it home with us. I’m not accusing anyone of stealing but the circumstances really stink where cards were left unattended around staff who admitted to being high.

Amazing venue the chateau is absolutely beautiful ❤️ the views from the ceremony, outside patio for cocktail hour were perfect for our September wedding! We had great communication through out the wedding planning with coordinators . Day of wedding service was amazing from decoration, food, drinks and service from staff. Made our wedding dress come true and we had an incredible night full of memories to last us a life time .

The Empress Estate did a wonderful job making my wedding stress free! They are worth every penny, as the staff there truly know what they are doing. They are smooth, organized, helpful, and detailed orientated. They make sure everything runs perfectly. I couldn't ask for a better wedding and it is all thanks to their help!

Thank you so so so much Zoe, Sarah and the whole entire Empress team to make EVERYTHING absolutely more than perfect...simply OUTSTANDING & UNFORGETTABLE from the moment we said yes to Empress as a venue and catering to the moment we said “I do”!!! Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your professionalism, care, love, patience, amazing decorations, incredibly delicious food, for the classiness in every touch and for your perfection from the beginning to end!! Us, our families, friends and guests were incredibly impressed by the Empress!! We had our dream wedding and a true fairy tale moment that will be forevwr remembered by all of us!! We recommend The Empress to everyone that wants to have ONE IN A LIFE TIME EXPERIENCE in their special event!! SO grateful!!! ❤️ Natali & Michael Burgess

Thank You so much for letting us use your beautiful venue for our wedding day. We really had the most incredible time over your location was the most perfect setting. zoe thank you for all your help in the run up to the day. Your calm and collected approach really put my mind at ease through my many questions and queries as well on the day. Thank you so much to the whole team fr everything you all did on the day to make it so special, all those little touches really made the day for us and blew all our expectations . the food was amazing and you have great team

Dated April 22, where the magic came to life. The venue is beautiful and weather gave us a chance to be outdoors. The ceremony turned out great, afterwards, well I thought it would stay the same the entire night. Please do not let me discouraged you on booking but rather, highly recommend extension research. After meeting with the owner, we thought, let's go ahead and give him the benefit of the doubt (reviews were a mixed bag).That sure felt like a slap in the face. Not only was this a BIG investment, the event felt sugar coated for everyone. Yes, it should only be your day as newlyweds however; there were multiple flags that started to happen throughout the event. As vendors are setting up, their was hostility and the owner belittles them as if their kids (#1). My best man along with our decor team start to setup with the blueprints we made and begins to argue on how and where you should be setting up (#2). I'm trying to figure who was the day of coordinator as it's "part of the package" and just wing it with organized chaos from the owner (#3). Food, was a mixed bag, don't recommend the green beans. Majority of my 100 guest had bugs in their mixed drinks, the bottle being pour had them sitting at the bottom, guest thought it was odd that it was black and then clear (#4). #5, towards the end of the evening prior to sparklers, a fiasco broke out when a family friend (over 21) brought a sealed expensive bottle of tequila. This was meant to be as a gift and fell off the table. The owners presses that the family friend has been underage drinking out the bottle and could cost him his liquor license. Family friend was very apologetic for dropping the bottle that didn't break but spilled on the floor. Owner enraged, yelled at the family friend AND the mother for how much of an inconvenience this was and TOSSED the bottle that was nearly full over the counter and hitting the bartender. All the mother wanted was to take back the bottle, guess that meant having it tossed at the feet. Dumbfounded of what happened, the next day I came back to pick up lost/found, he tells me, their was a situation that happened but don't worried I got it controlled and lied to my face. There's a difference between being black/grey and rude/disrespectful. I understand weddings aren't perfect but, it was far from good. Might as well try to make the best out of it with the money spent. If I had the chance to go back in time to picking a venue, this wouldn't be my choice.

I wish I could give them more than 5 stars! From start to finish, the empress estate made my sister’s wedding dreams come true. zoe and the staff are amazing at what they do. They are prompt, knowledgeable and beyond helpful. The venue is breathtaking. The service is spectacular. all guests said it was the best wedding food they have every had. The bartender made amazing drinks and people rarely had to wait. The night started and ended perfectly, we beyond happy with our experience. If you are looking for a wedding venue , this is it. No need to look further. You won’t regret it!!!! Thanks 🙏

I came as a guest and my friends wedding went perfect! The food was delicious, the staff kept everything clean the entire night and we had so much fun dancing! Thank you Zoe

This is a very beautiful place with a fantastic views of the ocean. My sister in law got married there and I couldn’t have asked for a more perfect venue.The people that work there go out of their way to meet your every need, and are on top of everything. Just wonderful Thank you 🙏 Lala

Just a big thank you to you and your team. We had the best day and made so many special memories at your beautiful venue. Great services and delicious food. We hope we get to visit again in the near future to enjoy as a guest! We will always recommend you to anyone looking to get married in The empress estate You have an amazing place Best wishes

Just wanted to thank you all for my sister fairytale wedding. You guys took care of every detail and we loved every second of this special day. I can’t tell you how many people said what a beautiful setting the empress estate is. You have supreme organisational skills Best wishes Momo

This venue was perfect for us!! We read all the fine print soo we knew what was on the line!! Thankfully everything worked out amazing the weather was perfect!

Empress Estates made our wedding day very easy and care-free. They took care of everything from the food, setup and tear down, and decorations. The staff was very professional on the day of and respected all our wishes. The only real issue was the planning sessions were slower and more tedious than we would have liked. However, it's hard to fault them for this because they were short staffed and the person in charge of the planning was new to it. We are very satisfied with our day and made wonderful memories at Empress Estates. If you are looking for a hassle free day from start to finish then definitely give them a look!

We had our wedding at the Empress , it was absolutely amazing time. I had my dream wedding The food was amazing and it was stress free wedding. My mom loved not having to do any setup or clean up. I would recommend the Empress to any one that wants an organized wedding

Dear zoe / the empress estate Just wanted to thank you all for our fairytale wedding. You guys took care of every detail and we loved every second of our special day. We had the best day and made so many special memories at your beautiful venue. We hope we get to visit again in the near future to enjoy as a guest! We will always recommend you to anyone looking to get married in the empress estate I can’t tell you how many people said what a beautiful setting the empress estate is. It really was like a dream come true, and everything was perfect, we will be forever grateful for creating such a wonderful & personalised experience Your supreme organisational skills took the stress out of everything! All best wishes + Love from Alex vector

It was an amazing day for me. Everyone was so kind and helpful. I would highly recommend this venue to future brides.

I shot the wedding of the sweetest couple there last year during high covid time. It was a small event but they paid well for the venue and time. Throughout the event they were rushed through the dinner line, put it away super early and tried to refuse service to the maid of honor because she was helping the bride while the dinner line was in motion. They also pushed them out 2 hours early even though they had paid for that time. We were all ushered out by 9pm. I felt awful for my couple. It's a beautiful venue with so much potential. It's a shame the owners treated their clients so terribly.

While searching around we came across this beautiful piece of property. The prices on the website were totally in our price range and we were very very excited. Booked a tour and all. Upon arrival, the property was even better in person. We thought to our selves “this is the place”. After our tour guide then said “no wedding here is under 15k”, “our in house catering is required”, and “drinks are not included in the 15k”. We were immediately disappointed. The pricing online is very very misleading, the pricing is the venue yes, however there is no catering pricing. Which then makes me think “why do you even have a venue price if it’s not accurate because of the requirement of the in house catering”. Our tour guide told us “if you did an AM wedding, mid week, and In the off season you might afford it”. Mean while we never told him our budget, and he said word for word “we typically like booking people from Seattle area because they don’t have family members that typically help with the cake, or food etc”. Which I found extremely odd and then it made sense to me why our friends got ripped out of 6k because they don’t tell you how much the catering is until you sign the contract and they have a zero refund policy. I then did some digging and found out there had been numerous people that had the same problem. Others that had been stolen from their deposits because of the fine print. I just really hope others don’t have the same problem which trying to find a place for their special day.

Very nice beautiful place & good service ! The owner was very nice & welcoming.

Our daughters wedding was at the Empress Estate. It was absolutely stunning. The food was delicious. The staff were very professional and helpful. Zoe the owner did a great job . Everything ran smoothly and on time. Thank you Zoe for helping make our daughters wedding so beautiful!

My husband and I chose the Empress Estate for our wedding in October of 2019. Everything with the Pandemic happened and we had to reschedule until October of 2021. Throughout the stressful and unpredictable time, they promised that our big day would happen without a hitch. And it did. Zoe and the rest of the staff were wonderful to work with. They were reassuring the whole way along, and had great communication with us. When our wedding day came our expectations were exceeded. The venue itself is stunning, the staff made it a breeze and stress free for us and our family & friends. The food, cake, and drinks were exceptional. The serving staff were so professional and kind. Our day was truly magical and more than worth the wait. Thank you for everything and we recommend any engaged couples to tour the Empress Estates!

This venue is a dream! We are so excited to be hosting a party here in November! This will be our second event we have hosted at the Empress It’s stunning up there in the Fall & the owner has always been so accommodating to our group ! If you haven’t had a chance to check out this venue I highly recommend a picturesque autumn drive up to view the grounds!

Zoe and his staff have it together when it comes to a great venue, great food and great service. Nothing was missed and plenty was customized per our wishes for our wedding. When you drive up to the place, you're not sure what to expect as it's set well back off the road. Once you cross the property line though, it's beauty takes over. Whether it's the castle-like residence (where our wedding party stayed over night) or the three-tiered landscape where we were able to host the ceremony, cocktail hour and reception. I don't have the best words to describe, check out the website, or better yet take the trip out to Woodland and see for yourself. Thanks for hosting an awesome wedding, Zoe!

My husband and I got married here in June. That time of year everything is so colorful and bloomed. The grounds are very picturesque and so many places to choose from. The day was very well planned out and I didn't have to think about anything. Zoe and his staff were very friendly and helpful. Food was amazing and the cake was beautiful. I loved everything about my day there. I highly recommend The Empress Estate for your wedding day!! Thank you Zoe, Stevie and al the Empress Estate crew for making my day perfect!!

Information for future couples: We originally had our wedding planned for Saturday, July 25th, 2020. Due to COVID-19 we decided it would be best to reschedule to the following year. Unfortunately no summer weekends were available and we had to settle for our new date Thursday, July 22, 2021. Even though we had originally paid a weekend price for the event, the venue made no accommodations to adjust the price to a Thursday event, which is less expensive. The “treatment coordinator”, Rose, was assigned to us to help out during the planning. She had an attitude the entire time which made us uncomfortable, even unwelcome, and made it very obvious she doesn’t care. Definitely not the attentive/sharp/caring coordinator you’re looking for. During our chain of emails, I reminded her multiple times to change the “no champagne” to “yes champagne” since we wanted to toast. She reassured us champagne will be served during our toast, only for it to NOT happen. She never even corrected the contract!To make things worse, the owner then pulls out the contract in the middle of the wedding to prove a point that we didn’t want champagne.. extremely unprofessional. Thankfully our friends took over the situation and handed out the drinks quickly for the toast, but it was an absolute unnecessary chaotic situation, which could be prevented had Rose done her job. Rose had also reassured us that our candles will be lit during cocktail hour by the venue staff to be ready for reception , she failed AGAIN to communicate that to the team, hence NO candles were lit. My friend and her father had to scramble and take care of it. Pure negligence. We had about 180 guests, and the venue KNOWING that number, still only had ONE bartender and ONE dinner buffet. excessive long lines for both, which again, could be avoided. When addressed w the owner afterward he said “we have never had a wedding this big so we didn’t know”. You knew the guest count! We were taking photos during cocktail hour but apparently the servers took control of the food and barely served the guests! the guests were restricted and not allowed to eat as much as they wanted! Very cheap!! This applied to the dinner as well! The owner also kept pushing the DJ to lower the music from early on and all throughout the night We had a lot of ceremony decoratives which we had hired workers to pack up by the end of the night, looks like they left a box or two by mistake, and the next day some of the items were found in the venue trash by my husband. Luckily a worker was kind enough to show him the items. However, there are still lots of large items missing and I would like to go through all the trash, but my email requesting that is getting ignored!We have expensive items missing! the emails regarding Rose not doing her job are not being acknowledged either. Figures! Our gut feeling was right all along about them not really caring about the couples. Out of all the unprofessionalism we witnessed, treating us like this after the wedding is almost expected. Even if you are SURE our items are not there, have the decency to at least acknowledge our concerns and let us come search anyway! What a shame that we paid this amount of money for a venue that is CLEARLY not about making the couples have a peaceful/stress-free night. There is some MAJOR lack of communication between the staff and owner and a lot of negligence which costs the couples unnecessary stress on their most important night.

THE BIGGEST SCAM EVER! DO NOT BOOK HERE! They changed our even schedule multiple time, tried to scam my contract for more money, AND Took the food we paid for and closed our down ceremony early! SUCH A HUGE DISAPPOINTMENT! No one is on the same page there and the owner is a LIAR! DO NOT BE FOOLED, THEY ARE HORRIBLE!

Had my dream wedding here, everything was so perfect! From the very start we had a personal wedding event coordinator, Rose, she was so helpful with the whole process up to the day of the wedding. Also loved how organized they were, they had made a timeline of how the day would look like and mapped everything out. Was actually very stress-free, which is one of the most important things I had wanted my wedding to be like. I had also wanted my ceremony and reception to be held outdoors if the weather was supposed to be good, which kept changing between rain and sun that day. The venue thankfully had made a backup plan in case it were to rain, and did our rehearsal in both places, so had peace of mind. My wedding here at The Empress Estate was a dream, thank you so much for everything!

We had our wedding a the empress state I have to say it was perfect, all inclusive has been the very best thing, it was all in one spot and The staf were amazing It was absolutely perfect thank you

Beautiful venue, excellent staff, wonderful services. Highly recommend.

Look no further for reviews and CHOOSE this venue! The owner takes the time to listen to every detail for your special day and make it come true. They have so many services available including: catering, sound systems, decorations, alcohol service, florist, etc! The venue itself has so many beautiful areas, including the Empress Estate, the Chateau, the open fields, gardens, arbors, and more. They truly help your wedding go smoothly by bringing the services to you, providing an excellent staff catering to your every need, and consistent communication during the planning process. XOXO Marquesa & Bejian

Absolutely gorgeous venue! We're so glad that we chose it over any other option we had. Zoe went above and beyond to make our day extra special. My wife and I were both amazed how much effort he put into it to make it perfect. Zoe accommodated all of our special requests for details and cultural preferences. We got everything in writing on the Empress planning guide and we stuck to the plan. Everything went very smoothy during our event (Zoe and Stevie were around to help out when needed). We attached a glimpse of just how amazing this venue really is! Best day of our lives! We received great reviews from our friends and family and we will definitely recommend this venue to anyone who is interested. Huge thanks to Zoe and the Empress team for making our dream wedding come true! PS: We were initially concerned about some of the negative reviews but we've personally had a great experience. After sitting down with Zoe, we've learned he has very extensive experience with weddings and he gave us a lot of great advice beforehand to make sure our wedding runs smoothly. If you show respect for the venue and the owner Zoe, you will have a blast! TIPS: #1 Prepare a solid plan with your future spouse & the Empress wedding coordinator. #2 Get it in writing on the Empress planning guide #3 Trust the Empress team to make it happen #4 Don't change things last minute #5 Have fun, and if it's not perfect, enjoy the day anyway! :) - Max & Anna Bondar

Dear Zoe Thank you so much for making our wedding day so amazing and the best day of our lives! It really was like a dream come true, and everything was perfect, food and your stuff and all services , thanks 🙏 Our warmest wishes, Shereen

Just a big thank you to you and your team. We had the best day and made so many special memories at your beautiful venue. We hope we get to visit again in the near future to enjoy as a guest! We will always recommend you to anyone looking to get married in The empress estate 🥰😘

Please let me make this abundantly clear, if I could leave this venue LESS than 1 star, I would. If you want your wedding planning experience to be a total chaotic disaster, this venue is the place for you! If not, steer clear. DO NOT DO BUSINESS WITH THESE CROOKS. Honestly, I’m only writing this review because it looks like sometimes if you leave a negative review, the owner will contact you and after three unanswered emails regarding rescheduling our event due to COVID-19, I’m desperate for a response. We signed a contract with this venue before the pandemic and now that our wedding date is getting closer and our state’s restrictions are getting more stringent, my fiancé and I decided to start the process of rescheduling our big day. When I contacted The Empress Estate to discuss options, I received a very poorly written COVID policy almost instantly and have received zero communication since (other than our automatic payment reminder of course). The “options” this venue has given us are laughable and include: going forward with our date as normal and adhering to whatever restrictions are in place at that time, rescheduling for a date in 2020 and paying half our space rental fee on top of the thousands of dollars we are already paying them, rescheduling for a date next year and paying the full space rental fee at whatever the 2021 rate is (they don’t know what the rate will be yet), or canceling our wedding and forfeiting all money paid this far per signed contract. When I asked for more information about the 2021 rates, I received no response. I tried several more times to get ahold of someone and have received zero communication. I looked through some reviews from other people who have been screwed over by these people and I’m so disgusted and so horrified. I also found glowing, positive review left by one of the wedding coordinators on Google reviews. If a business needs it’s own employees to leave positive reviews to boost its rating, you know there is a problem! In addition to all this, the online portal that these guys use doesn’t sync with the payment system they use. So even though my fiancé and I have made all our payments (roughly $6500 worth), their portal system says we haven’t made a payment to them since February. So if you already booked a wedding with these crooks, make sure to save your payment receipts! ALSO, the person who WAS our wedding coordinator appears to have been let go and we were not notified. So I’ve wasted quite a bit of time trying to get in touch with a person who doesn’t work here anymore. We had high hopes for this venue and in the beginning, they were great and got back to us right away. We were told they’d be there to support us every step of the way and then once we signed the contract, it was like flipping a switch and communicating with these people is like pulling teeth now. It’s clear they’re only in this business for the money. OH AND! It appears the owner likes to lie and claim not to “have any record of any couple with that name” when he gets a negative review so beware! I’ve got a screenshot of our contract at the ready for anyone who doubts the authenticity of this review. Again, just to be PERFECTLY CLEAR: Walking barefoot through a field of hot glass shards while birds peck out my eyeballs would be a pleasant experience compared to dealing with this venue. DO NOT GIVE THEM YOUR BUSINESS I AM BEGGING YOU.

Will not give you your money back. THESE PEOPLE ARE CROOKS!...These people expect you to keep paying for a date they cant confirm will be solid themselves(actually, "not the forseable future"). But if you want to keep it they cant confirm the money you have already spent is going to be as valuable "when" you can plan your wedding date. GARBAGE PEOPLE, GARBAGE SERVICE!@

Communication was excellent until we signed the contract. Now with COVID preventing them from being able to withhold their end of the contract they cannot be reached. I have sent countless emails with limited responses. The responses I do get are misdirected and do not relate to anything I asked them about. They proposed that we could change our date, but we would have to pay the rental fee again! The empress estate is running a racket pyramid scheme! It is evident that they have spent our money on other events or improvements to the venue the minute we made the payment and it is clear they don’t have the funds to refund us even though they cannot fulfill their end of the contract.

The venue is beautiful and initially they were wonderful, but ever since Covid struck, they've been absolutely terrible. Our planner must have been let go, but nobody ever told us of this, she suddenly just stopped responding to our emails and, after weeks of our questions going unanswered, the vendor manager was our only point of contact. The Governor recently announced that weddings are prohibited, every single one of my vendors reached out to me immediately...except the empress. After a week of emailing and calling every single day, the manager finally responded and all he said was "I prefer communicating through email, if you want to speak on the phone we can speak when you have your next planning session which isn't until 30 days before your event." My fiance and I both continued to email and call him everyday because this venue charges large monthly payments and we were no longer feeling comfortable making these monthly payments considering the situation, we didn't want to continue paying for our event not knowing when or if it would happen. We continued to get ignored. The manager finally called us, in his voicemail he claimed that we cannot make a decision to cancel or postpone more than 30 days in advance. NOWHERE in our contract does it say that AT ALL. He completely made up this rule because our final payment would have been due 30 days prior. He then stated that if we wish to postpone, we can do so if we pay the venue fees again to hold our new date. So not only are they expecting us to continue making payments for a cancelled event, he's telling us we can't make the official call to postpone until we have PAID HIM in full, then we have to pay the fees AGAIN even though we are not choosing to do this, we are being forced to by the fact that there is a worldwide pandemic and gatherings are now illegal. We understand that the business is being hit hard and that many couples are probably panicking and contacting them, so we were more than willing to communicate with them to find a happy resolution, unfortunately they have chosen to ignore us all together again. We are now having to go through legal representation just to get them to speak to us. No couple should have to see their wedding day turn into a legal battle. This place is completely robbing their couples that are already going through emotional hardships due to this lifetime milestone being stolen away from us. They are completely morally corrupt, all they seem to care about is getting an extra penny, not showing any support or compassion towards the couples.

They were amazing! The food was killer, the venue was spotless and gorgeous, they were so nice and made the entire process so simple

Planning a Wedding is stressful. Its even more stressful when you military, living overseas and getting ready to deploy. I tried to give this venue the benefit of the doubt. However after four months of them not being able to attach a document to an email theres either two outcomes. A. The employee doesnt know how to. B. Their doing it intentionally. Either way not the level of competence I want running my wedding. I'm glad it worked out for some of you but if anyone else runs into these issues dont wait four months like I did. It wont get better.

My husband and I got married here in September and we had nothing but a positive experience! The owner was very kind, our coordinator was always on top of things and when we forgot to include a small dance in our plan, she was able to coordinate with the DJ for us right away and everything went smoothly! The food here is AMAZING, they weren't kidding when they told us they take pride in their food --- and our guests even got to meet the chef! We did the all-inclusive package so after the reception, my husband, myself and the wedding party got to stay at the location and the staff brought out midnight snacks for us to eat by the fireplace. We had such an amazing day and couldn't have asked for more. Thank you Empress Estate and the staff for helping us create such a magical moment!

The Empress Estate is a lovely venue! We fell in love with the location within seconds of driving up for the first time. We toured the venue in the summer of 2018 and knew this was the spot we wanted to celebrate our special day. Thankfully our date was available. Planning for our day was very simple and wasn’t stressful what so ever. The Empress has a variety of wedding packages and they coordinate a few planning sessions to make everything flow and come together with ease. During the year of planning we did have a transition between a few event specialists but nothing got lost during the transition in staff. Our wedding was in July 2019! We used three areas within the venue. The ceremony was held outside in a lovely forest terrace, we used the Woodland Chateau for dinner, toasts, etc. and then moved down to the Empress for dancing! We were one of the Empress’ first same sex marriages as well and all of the staff made everyone feel welcomed! Zoe even agreed to switch out the lights around the Empress from white lights to rainbow colored lights. The venue was glowing in color during the late night hours. We also rented out the Empress suites for the wedding party to stay in. Zoe brought out an outstanding midnight snack and fixed up a scrumptious breakfast the next morning for all of our guests who stayed overnight. All in all the Empress Estate staff was fantastic and having Nichole, our event specialist, available on the day of to help watch the clock and manage the timeline was as huge help to the overall flow of the day. We highly recommend the Empress Estate to every engaged couple.

This place is a fairytale lovers dream! It is beyond beautiful. The food on the day of exceeded my expectations. We had a few issues with no response to emails in the couple months leading up to the wedding, but the day of everything was exactly as planned and perfect! Stephanie was amazing the day of at making sure everything was exactly what we wanted. This place is worth the price tag!

Oh my goodness. I am still in disbelief over how absolutely perfect my wedding day was. I can truly say that this day was the BEST day of my life, and a huge part of that is due to the excellent team at the Empress. The planning process with Ambree and Nichole was fabulous, easy and fun. Zoe, the owner was fantastic and eager to please. The Empress mansion is incredible and breath taking, and has hundreds of amazing photo opportunities, just calling your name! My now husband, Scott and I had our reception at the newer building, the Woodland Chateau. Wow. Just wow. The space is absolutely gorgeous. We didn't feel the need to bring in much decor at all. Natural lighting just flooded the space and allowed for some amazing photographs. The venue's grounds are breath taking as well. It is high up on a hill so you will be able to see the river in the distance and the town down below. Awesome selfie opportunities just everywhere ;) Back to the day of the wedding. Nichole is the woman of the hour, let me tell you. She made it happen and made everything flow so smoothly from beginning to end. She made sure everyone stuck to the schedule and that everyone was happy and had what they needed. ALSO. MY WEDDING DAY WAS HER BIRTHDAY! HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY NICHOLE! She is the true MVP. I couldn't recommend this venue more. Go take a tour, you will not regret it. Oh btw, the food is to die for.

Wonderful experience with The Empress Estate!! Everything turned out perfect and exactly as planned. Our cake was fantastic (highly recommend the Earl Grey Spiced with Lavendar and the Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese filling!!!), the food was a HIT and the set up was perfect. I was initially a little worried with the spacing and table set up during our planning session/email correspondence, but it all worked out day of and the staff made every effort they could to ensure everything went smoothly and set everything up with my wishes in mind. Long story short - based on the mock-ups, I was nervous that we weren't going to have enough dance floor space with the amount of tables and our 6-piece band (usually, weddings booked here use a DJ service..) but we did and it was AWESOME!! The grounds are so beautiful, you truly do not need much decoration. However, they allowed us to bring flower petals for the reception tables and our own small pre-made floral arrangements for the aisle and later used them on the cocktail tables. Nichole was OUTSTANDING day of and had the help of Stevie co-owner/florist for all things coordination. We had an extreme last minute change of ceremony location because the weather took a turn for the BEST and allowed us to stick to our original outdoor setting, the staff was so flexible and helped make it happen! So many people commented on how it was the best and most beautiful wedding they have been to because it truly was so magical.

I had my wedding here and it was truly magical. Nothing went wrong. Stevie was my coordinator for the day and my florist and she was spectacular she truly made my day special. My guests all had a fun night and enjoyed the bar! I would recommend this venue to anyone looking for a flawless magical wedding! Dinner was excellent and I enjoyed the chef coming around to check on us

I just have to say my daughter had her wedding here and not only was it affordable for her father and I but it was also beautiful. They handled Everything only thing my daughter and son in law had to do was show up! Highly recommend to anyone.

I had a magical wedding here! Everything turned out perfectly. The staff was amazing the food to die for! Everything we could have imagined our night to be came true. Even with me running late to the ceremony they accommodated us! My guests had a great time! It is truly beautiful and I would recommend to anyone wanting a special day!

My husband and I got married here last summer. The venue and grounds were breathtaking. The customer serve and help provided by the empress employees was above expectations. They were so responsive and helpful through the whole process. And having a day of coordinator was AMAZING. The food and cak