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Wedding Reception Ideas?

Z

zimman18

Active Member
Apr 7, 2006
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www.drinkingrisk.com
Anyone know of any decent, laid back and affordable wedding reception venues in the Des Moines area?

My fiance and I are getting married over seas, and are hoping to have a light fun, and affordable cocktail party when we return home.

We've contacted numerous hotels but all of their packages seem to be for an all out reception with lots of food, hors dourves, table settings and all that jazz. We just want a bar, dance floor and casual environment.

I'm fresh out of ideas. Thanks for the help.
 
Start calling local bars and see if you could book a private party prior to their normal business hours or while their open if they have a private party room or seating.
 
When my wife and I got married about 6 years ago, our top choice originally was the shelter at Jester Park. Great view, indoor and outdoor area. Cater in what you like and BYOB - which would be cheaper. Only downside was you had to staff a deputy to watch over. Get your own DJ or band. As I recall - the facility was yours for the day and pretty cheap.

It was near impossible to get for "prime" days (ala Saturdays)

We ended up having our wedding at Younkers Tea Room - which is gone.
 
I have no idea on cost, but Jasper Winery does those types of things, and I think would be a pretty interesting venue.
 
We just had a friend who had his wedding and reception at the Botanical Center. It was beautiful.

However, I'd really recommend looking at the Scottish Rite for a reception. Our friend runs the rental of it - it's a beautiful old building, and has tons of different options for room sizes (depending on the size of your reception).
 
DaddyMac said:
When my wife and I got married about 6 years ago, our top choice originally was the shelter at Jester Park. Great view, indoor and outdoor area. Cater in what you like and BYOB - which would be cheaper. Only downside was you had to staff a deputy to watch over. Get your own DJ or band. As I recall - the facility was yours for the day and pretty cheap.

It was near impossible to get for "prime" days (ala Saturdays)

We ended up having our wedding at Younkers Tea Room - which is gone.
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Jester Park Lodge now requires you to use Christiani's catering. I checked into it before our wedding and it was just too much nickel and diming. And it's still true about hiring a police officer. Depending on how large the party is, you may have to rent 2.
 
I'd suggest golf courses. Tournament Club of Iowa is beautiful and reasonable.
Botanical Garden, Des Moines Art Center, you can even have receptions at the Blank Park Zoo.
A great place would be the new Alumni Center at ISU.
 
johnpkelly81 said:
Yeah I recommended the Scottish Rite to someone too but they actually had theirs at the reception room at Inplay, said it was cheaper.
the Scottish Rite might be a good idea though if its a smaller reception.
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Yeah, Scottish Rite would be worth checking out. Lots and lots of different rooms. Neat location. I've been there several times. Also, you may want to check into Za Ga Zig shrine in Altoona. They have a full bar/dance floor, and I don't think it's terribly expensive to rent.
 
I know of a few alleys in south Des Moines were you could set up a nice reception in. They probably hold 50 to 60 people, there is ZERO renting fees and instead of a dj or some lame crap like that your guests could be entertained by bum fights. Sounds like a perfect night to me.
 
Lakeside Center in Ankeny might be worth a look. I think it is pretty cheap to book it.
 
How big do you need? I went to one at Crown Point in Johnston. I would guess it was about 100 people. If this won't work for you, you could look into other community centers in the metro as I don't think they would be too expensive. You can also arrange your own catering at many of these places, which would normally be cheaper.

City of Johnston, Iowa
 
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