The Grand Hall at Bold North Cellars

Reasons why we chose Bold North Cellars: Everything is so beautiful! Shuttle & centerpieces included If it rained, there was a back up plan There wasn’t an upcharge for things like linens or cake-cutting Things I appreciated throughout the planning process/day of Directly after the ceremony, they brought us sparking wine We brought our materials, they put them out, and they packed them up Food & Floral Event offered so we could try some of the foods. (However, I felt that the majority of the foods included an upcharge, and we were trying to avoid that.) Cons–Communication It would take a minimum of a week for them to respond to almost three weeks. When I talked to married friends about this, they were all surprised by this because their venues would respond in roughly 2-3 days. It appears only the main coordinator responds to emails. There were a few instances where she was on vacation, so we’d have to wait even longer. I really wish BNC would have had a point person to take over when she was on vacation or have multiple people responding to emails, so it wouldn’t have taken so long. I was frustrated that I was told I needed to turn in my vendors’ (DJ, Dessert, Officiant, and Photographer) information because (1) BNC would take care of getting ahold of them if they were running late the day of and (2) BNC would call them about a week before the wedding to answer any questions and to explain things to them. This never happened. Cons - Rehearsal We got married on a Friday. Part of the reason why we chose this is because we wanted our rehearsal the night before instead of the morning of (the case if you get married on a Saturday there). We did not have our rehearsal dinner on site. On Wednesday at 7:40 PM, we received an email that there was an event happening in the event building, so our guests could not go inside during our rehearsal. We could only be in the chapel area, and if anyone needed to use the restroom, they’d have to go into the tasting room. We were told we could keep our rehearsal at 5:00 PM Thursday, or if we wanted to, we could move it to Friday morning. Honestly, I was furious and sad at this email; I felt like an inconvenience. We’re not from the area, and everyone was driving a minimum of an hour to our event, including our rehearsal guests. I was not going to change our plans on them less than 24 hours before the event. Additionally, having the rehearsal dinner on Friday would mean having to adjust our entire timeline since we were getting hair and makeup done off-site at a salon (since you’re not allowed into the building until noon the day of). I couldn’t change things like that for my guests or the salon Cons - day of Catering was rough. We had a guest count of 250, and it took about an hour to get all the plates out for dinner. A guest who is gluten-free commented how they didn’t even look at her Name Plate which stated she was supposed to have a gluten-free meal. Some people commented their chicken was great and others commented it was the worst they’ve ever had at a wedding. Parking - I was told that there would be a sign with our names pointing to where guests should park. I remember this being said because I asked at our planning meeting that they make sure my last name was spelled correctly because it was spelled incorrectly on our planning binder (not a huge deal–just wanted to make sure it was correct on the sign). There was no such sign. There is a small permanent sign that says something like “Events & Weddings” (I don’t remember what the sign says exactly). Some guests shared they didn’t even see that because it was so small. We were also told that parking would be blocked off, so it was only our guests–this didn’t happen. In fact, we had some people (not guests) coming into the building and looking around. It was frustrating to see random people looking around when it was supposed to be a private event. Something we added on (and paid for) was the easel with a light to hold the poster board of guests’ names and their tables. This easel was not used, instead it was a basic one without a light. As a result, guests were using their phones to be able to read it because it was too dark. This wasn’t a huge deal, but I did pay extra for that particular easel to be used. When cleaning up, the groom grabbed two water bottles (which were complimentary) from the mini fridge in the groom’s suite. He was yelled at by someone for this… She told him “Those are for the day!” (Actually yelled at.) This was shocking to me because what’s the difference of him grabbing it from the bar vs. out of the mini fridge? At the end of the night, the timeline by BNC has the time for the last call, and music plays until 11:30 and everyone needs to be off the property by mindight. Our DJ stopped playing music at 11:15 (I’m not 100% sure, but I believe a staff member told him to stop then because I saw someone from the bar talking to him). Then we felt like they were pushing us out. We left at 11:30. After the day of On Monday we received an email that suggested a guest left damage in the men’s bathroom. I was so embarrassed to hear this, concerned that I know someone who could do that, and frustrated because obviously, it would come out of our security deposit. I appreciated that they provided a picture that was time-stamped as well. I responded as soon as I saw the email with some questions. Of course, a week later, I had to send a follow up email because we hadn’t heard anything back, and I asked for camera footage, so I could try and figure out who did it. After talking with the DJ and his assistant, the assistant said they used the bathroom at 11:30 and didn’t see the damage. At 11:30 my mom and mother-in-law did a sweep of the entire building and they said all guests except the DJ were gone. After asking for camera footage, I was told that building does not have any cameras. I was dissapointed at this because I really wanted to figure out who did it if we thought all the guests were gone. About two weeks after the wedding we were told how much the damage cost, and what we’d be getting back in our security deposit. We were told the accountant was out the rest of the week, and would likely mail the following Monday or Tuesday. Two weeks after it likely would have been in the mail, I had to email again because we hadn’t received it. I asked if it was put in the mail yet. Two days later we were told that she’d would connect with the accountant next week because they were getting ready for the Grape Stomp. On the one hand, I want to be understanding of this, but on the other hand, I was just irritated. We had to wait about the details/cost of the damage, and then waited two weeks to see if the check was in the mail, and then was being told I had to wait longer. I get that they were busy with their annual event, but (1) how long does it to take to double-check if it was put in the mail and (2) I wouldn’t have to be pestering at this time if it didn’t take so long for them to communicate and be organized. After the Grape Stomp, we were told it wasn’t in the mail, they missed it, and it was now going in the mail that week. All in all, the day was beautiful, there’s no doubt there. Unfortunately, though, I ended up so frustrated with the venue at times, specifically with their communication which is ultimately why I’m giving a ⅗ stars.. Perhaps my expectations were too high–I thought we were getting the best of the best based on all The Knot awards BNC has. Now, when people ask how the wedding was, I want to focus on how beautiful it all was, but my thoughts are just tainted with the frustrations I felt. BNC is beautiful, but if you are someone who’s very organized, you will feel frustrated with their communication and organization.

The staff at Bold North are fantastic! So easy to work with we never had to worry about a thing! Our day was perfect and couldn’t have asked for anything more!

Kasey, Morgan, and crew are the best there is! Couldn’t recommend this venue and wonderful group of people more!

Bold North Cellars did a wonderful job providing us with such a beautiful and perfect venue. The inclusions are great and having Britt as our wedding coordinator was amazing! So many of our guests said that we had the best wedding food and such a beautiful venue! We did happy hour first before the ceremony, and if you aren't traditional, I would highly recommend!