Location, Location, Location

Turning your fantasy reception into a real-life party starts with a careful assessment of your budget and, of course, the three rules of real estate.

• By Jo B. Hoffman
• Published 2003

If you’re like many brides we know, you’ve been picturing your wedding since long before you even met the lucky guy. Barefoot in the backyard of your summer place? A virgin-white candlelit loft? Your favorite restaurant? All are easy enough to find in this city and its surroundings. But before you set your heart on, say, a tented sit-down dinner for 300 at your parents’ home, there are a few basic cost issues to consider.


KNOW THE BASICS
As any engaged couple quickly learns, there are certain fixed costs in planning a traditional reception. If you want flowers, expect to pay $3,000 to $5,000 for a pretty basic setup (of course, we’ve all heard of those weddings where couples have spent 100 times that, but those are a different story). You’ll also need to factor in a cake ($1,200 to $3,500), and musicians ($1,500 to $3,000 for a D.J. or small band). From there on in, the cost depends on where you choose to tie the knot. All price estimates in this story are based on a wedding reception with 100 guests and don’t include liquor.

GETTING HITCHED IN YOUR BACKYARD:
Sure, making the most of your parents’ garden in the Hamptons or getting extra mileage from your own summer rental makes a party that much more personal, but clambakes and barbecues aside, dinners at home can cost more than you expect.
WHAT YOU'LL SAVE: Location fees (anywhere from $1,500 for your local synagogue to $8,000 for, say, the Pratt mansion).
MAJOR COSTS: Just about everything.
SETTING UP: A tent with a hardwood floor costs roughly $15,000. Add a dance floor, and it’s another $1,200 for parquet to $5,000 for a tiled or hand-painted surface. You’ll also need landscape lighting ($1,500 and up)—“so your guests don’t kill themselves on the way to the car,” says Marcy Blum, party planner and author of Weddings for Dummies—as well as spotlights and ambient lighting for the tent ($2,000 to $10,000). Also, your caterer will need to build and equip a cooking tent ($3,500). And you’ll need to rent tables, chairs, and tableware. Count on $20 per person for basic white plates and all-purpose glasses (or up to $125 per person for designer settings). Tables and chairs are an extra $12 per person.
FOOD AND DRINK: It’ll be at least $125 per head for cocktails, hors d’oeuvre, and a seated dinner. Waiters are generally $30 per hour.
HIDDEN COSTS: Don’t forget that you’ll need Porta-Johns ($2,000) and you may need parking ($200 per hour for valets or $100 an hour for a police officer). If vendors are traveling for the event, add the cost of transportation and hotels.
MONEY-SAVING TIPS: Use as much of your own china, glass, and silverware as possible. Enlist help from family and friends, but “don’t be penny-wise and pound-foolish,” says Blum. “Don’t ask your aunt to make the wedding cake and your cousin to build an elaborate huppah”—last-minute fixes can be costly. Also, she advises, “go with the hominess; there’s no reason to serve foie gras canapés.”
THE BOTTOM LINE: For a tented sit-down dinner in a posh area, expect to spend anywhere from $300 to $600 per person.

SAYING "I DO" AT A PRIVATE CLUB:
Go this route, and your soirée can seem chic and exclusive without being as expensive as it would have been if you’d had it at home. Some clubs do charge location fees, but, says Claudia Hanlin, president of the Wedding Library, “they also have a lot of pared-down costs.”
WHAT YOU’LL SAVE: Services of waiters and other in-house staff are generally included in the location fee. Ditto for all furniture, tableware, and lighting. Also, keep in mind that private clubs are generally well-furnished and attractive, so that beyond centerpieces for the tables, a few well-placed vases of flowers will suffice.
MAJOR COSTS: Location fees ($5,000 to $12,000). Food and drink.
SETTING UP: Most labor is covered. If the chairs need to be moved between the ceremony and dinner, expect to pay $2 to $3 each.
FOOD AND DRINK: Dinners at clubs cost $175 to $300 per head. What to expect: four courses, furniture, tableware, and waiters (sometimes even the cake). Clubs often charge a flat fee for an open bar and wine with dinner. Warning: Clubs tack on a 20 to 23 percent gratuity, and—if they’re in the city—8.25 percent sales tax.
MONEY-SAVING TIPS: Negotiate. Location fees can be waived if you spend a certain amount on food. Same with any cake-cutting, meat-carving, or setup fees. Depending on the club’s wine-list prices, you might want to bring your own and pay for corkage—ditto if brand-name champagne is important to you. And make sure to get everyone out to avoid overtime (up to $10 per person per hour).
THE BOTTOM LINE: For a ceremony, dinner, and dancing at a private club, you’ll spend $250 to $400 per head.

WEDDINGS IN PLACES OF WORSHIP:
Many places of worship have party spaces, ranging in style from basic community areas to rather grand ballrooms. Consider these one-stop-shopping options that translate into one of the most reasonably priced weddings you can throw.
WHAT YOU’LL SAVE: Hanlin notes that at churches and synagogues, “you will get a better deal, paying anywhere from 10 to 30 percent less.” Also, if you’d have held your ceremony in a religious space anyway, you won’t need to pay two location fees or for transportation. Kitchens, tables, chairs, and place settings are usually included. As is, of course, the officiant.
WHAT YOU’LL SPEND ON: Members don’t usually pay a location fee; nonmembers can expect to pay $1,500 to $2,000. Staff (porters, maintenance) will run $500 to $1,000, and you’ll pay around $3 per coat for a coat check.
FOOD AND DRINK: The in-house caterer is usually your cheapest option ($150 to $200 per person for a seated dinner). Note: Since Kosher caterers can cost about a third more, a synagogue reception is a great way to save if you require kosher food.
MONEY-SAVING TIPS: Get married in the low season (you’ll pay at least 20 percent less in February and March), and don’t plan a synagogue wedding on Saturday night, suggests Blum—if you have to wait till after sundown to start cooking, you’re more likely to incur overtime.
THE BOTTOM LINE: Church and synagogue weddings usually run $125 to $225 per head.

HOLDING YOUR NUPS IN A LOFT:
Raw spaces like lofts and photo studios often have high ceilings, big views, and lots of light—all of which make them spectacular settings for weddings. But remember, they don’t have much else.
WHAT YOU’LL SAVE: Many lofts come with high-tech sound and lighting systems, so you may be able to negotiate a lower price with a D.J. Décor can be a double-edged sword. Says Ro Howe, chef-owner of Barraud Caterers: “If you’re a minimalist, all you need is a few calla lilies on top of pillars. If you want waving organza and smoke, you’ll spend a lot more.” But, she reminds us: “You don’t need a Rembrandt on the wall—you’ve got windows.”
WHAT YOU’LL SPEND ON: Like lawn weddings (minus the tent fees), lofts involve building from scratch. And, of course, you’ll pay $3,000 to $8,000 just for the space (plus $500 to $800 per hour of overtime). And then there’s more for cleaning ($400 or so), air-conditioning ($150 per hour), and doormen ($250 per night).
SETTING THE TABLES: As with a lawn wedding, the caterer will usually need to create a kitchen ($2,500 or so), and you’ll need to rent tables, chairs, china, glass, and linens ($20 to $125 per person). If the space is booked for an event the day after your wedding, you’ll have to pay $150 or so for a late pickup of the rental furniture. Off-hour use of a freight elevator will often cost you another $75.
FOOD AND DRINK: Count on $125 to $350 per person for food, plus bartenders’ and waiters’ fees ($30 or so per hour).
MONEY-SAVING TIPS: Go easy on décor, and make your crew aware of time constraints—if the caterer takes an extra hour to clean up, you’ll get hit with overtime fees.
THE BOTTOM LINE: For a ceremony followed by a seated dinner at a loft, expect to pay $250 to $600 per person.

SWAPPING RINGS AT A RESTAURANT:
From your favorite neighborhood place to a world-class establishment, practically any restaurant is available for a wedding. As with private clubs, per-person prices may seem high, but can include a lot more than you expect.
WHAT YOU’LL SAVE: No need to rent furniture, tableware, or lighting. And, of course, the kitchen staff is all yours.
WHAT YOU’LL SPEND ON: If you want to take over an entire restaurant, your bill must be equal to or more than what the restaurant would make if open to the public (as much as $75,000 for a Saturday night). For a private-party room, you’ll usually pay a fee of $1,000 to $1,500. Keep in mind that if you’re planning to hold a ceremony and reception in the same venue, you’ll need two rooms (one where people can have cocktails while the other is reset for dinner). Temporary partitions can do the trick.
SETTING THE TABLES: The beauty of having a reception at a restaurant is that they have all the supplies and do pretty much everything—usually the flowers, too (you’ll pay about the same for this service as you would to hire your own florist).
FOOD AND DRINK: Expect to pay $75 to $125 per person for a three-hour cocktail party; for dinner, count on anywhere from $125 per person to $350 per person at, say, The Four Seasons (where, for instance, you can rent a private room for 50 guests or take over the restaurant with 200). You may also have to pay for a bathroom attendant ($100) and coat check ($3 per coat). Like clubs, restaurants usually add on gratuities and sales tax.
MONEY-SAVING TIPS: “Getting married at a restaurant is a very good cost-saving option,” says Hanlin. Have your party on a weeknight, and it’ll be less expensive all-around. Keep in mind that restaurants can take a 100 to 300 percent markup on liquor. If you invite a heavy-drinking crowd, it’s worth negotiating an open bar (generally about $35 per person).
THE BOTTOM LINE: Depending on what kind of restaurant you pick, taking it over for your ceremony and dinner can cost you as little as $150 or as much as $500 per person.