Reception Location Reviews

We went to look at 2 wedding reception sites on Saturday, OldEbbittGrill and the Mansion at Strathmore. Old Ebbitt Grill is crossed off of our list. While it was very grand and the price was reasonable, the space seems very cold. The space is in this marble lobby of an office building. The room was set up for a wedding, but for instance, the cake was set up in front of a business's door. So in all of the wedding photos of cutting the cake, a business name on the door will be behind you. There's also a neon green banner running along the entire perimeter of the restaurant - and it looks a bit tacky. We just didn't feel anything great when we were there.

The Mansion is absolutely beautiful and would be perfect for a group of 70. But because we will probably end up with about 150 guests, we'd have to seat people in 3 separate rooms for dinner. We are keeping this as an option because we could put a tent behind the mansion to accomodate our entire party for dinner and then just have the cocktail hour and reception inside the mansion. But then is it really worth renting the mansion if we're not going to spend much time in it?

We both are taking off work on Thursday to go visit the Pookshill Marriott, Hotel Palomar in DC, and the Westin Grand in DC. I'm waiting for phone calls back from several other locations to try to get an appointment to view it on Thursday as well. Geesh - this planning process is difficult for anyone who has a full time job - most places are only available for viewing on weekdays from 9-5.

Thanks everyone for the recommendations!! I've added them in my notes for each category.

We went and registered at Crate and Barrel yesterday. I hate malls! Thank goodness I am marrying a guy who loves shopping so that he can help get shopping done while I sit and get all anxious and annoyed with all the people around me:)