Venue Option #1 - 7 out of 10

We went to the Secret Garden's open house tonight with very high expectations. We loved the location and realized how easy it would be to have everything so close to Patrick's house.

It mostly lived up to the pictures. The house which held the groom's room and the bridal room would look great in pictures... Well, Patrick called it historic; I called it old, and it smelled old - I'm sure you can imagine the smell. It was very pretty though and the smell seemed to fade when we got used to it, but I think he liked the house more than I did.

The grass on the lawn (where the chairs sit for ceremonies) needed some help, but other than that, the outdoor ceremony site was very pretty. With all the trees and bushes, it was very green and didn't make me think of Arizona - not sure if that's a plus or a negative: just a fact. There were many places that would be gorgeous backgrounds/sites for pictures, and the stairs that I would walk down were fantastic.

The reception room was very nice with pretty doors, but it was simple and plain. I'm sure it could be really dressed up with lighting and decorations (it was staged with tables w/tablecloths & gold chivari chairs that Patrick said were horrendous), but they didn't have any of the tables set to give a good idea of what it could look like - negative points to the people planning their open houses.

They have a number of wedding package options: one that is all-inclusive and one that lets you choose any vendors you'd like to work with. I love the idea of the flexibility to create the night we're hoping for, and I also like that they let you bring in your own alcohol/drinks for a small set amount per person.

Going into this, I knew I would have an issue with the total pricing b/c I'm a girl who has never spent more than $100 to throw a party. I don't consider myself cheap b/c I'll buy my fair share of nice things, but I love bargain hunting, DIY projects and always try to know I got a good deal; it's like a contest with myself to see the best deal I can get. I'm not sure that the pricing for the Secret Garden would be worth it. It was definitely on the pricy side (more expensive than the upscale event venue I worked at for a while), and the price is definitely our main hesitation. I'm being realistic though, and I know that if the price was a little lower, the things I mentioned as negatives wouldn't be nearly as much of negatives. Maybe it works the other way though: if we were completely in love with the place, the price may not be as much of an issue... I'm not sure!

After talking through our thoughts over a sushi dinner, Patrick helped me realize that we don't have to choose a venue really close to his house because our guests will be traveling anyway. If they have a rental car (or even if they need a ride from the airport to a hotel near the wedding site), a 10 minute drive compared to a 30 minute drive isn't THAT big of an issue, and we've opened our search to include most of the Phoenix area.

We realized that we went into tonight with TOO high of expectations. I hoped to be blown away and to want to stop my search before I left the premises. The Secret Garden was very good and I have NO doubt they are an incredible location for a wedding, but it didn't blow me away as I had hoped. Our mindset going into other venues is to be open-minded, see what they have to offer and hopefully be pleasantly surprised.

We haven't crossed Secret Garden off the list; in all actuality, there were a lot of things that we liked about the place & it fit the main goals we're hoping to find, but the score we're giving it at this point is a 7 out of 10.

After getting to Patrick's house, we sent inquiries to 13 wedding venues around the Phoenix area asking for information/pricing/availability in April-June of 2012, so I'm sure my phone is going to be blowing up over the next few days. I'm ready to be woo'ed by wedding coordinators. Bring it; let's see what you've got! ;)

-Lisa