TenB's reviews

I didn’t even know if I would be able to have a Bachelorette party in Birmingham with all of my bridesmaids traveling in from out of town and having limited time before the wedding, so this was something that was put together pretty quickly by my one bridesmaid from the Birmingham area when she realized we were going to be able to pull it off. Stix was a really fun place to go eat because we could all sit at one of the hibachi tables and have our own cook. They new it was a Bachelorette party, so the cook definitely played that up for us by singing love songs and forming the rice into hearts, etc. It was pretty cheesy, but a lot of fun for all of us and a place we could get really good food in a relaxed setting where we could laugh and talk.

We both wanted something relaxed with a touch of Birmingham flavor for our rehearsal dinner. Jim and Nicks was a great choice for us and they did a great job with both their food and service. We went with a picnic theme that went along well with the barbeque. Everything was delivered and set up on time and tasted wonderful. All of our guests enjoyed it, and with most of them being from out of town, they really enjoyed something that was specific to Birmingham. We chose Jim & Nick’s over Dreamland because we felt that they had a better selection of food choices for catering and it was closer to where we had the dinner (at the church following the rehearsal). I would definitely recommend J&N for anyone wanting a more casual rehearsal dinner.

We chose New York City for our honeymoon location because neither of us are really “beach people” and we both enjoy staying busy on vacations. The Roosevelt is a beautifully restored historic hotel and is conveniently located near the theatre district and close to places to jump on the subway. We took a cab to and from the airport and did not have to worry about transportation the rest of the time we were there. The hotel had a great concierge that was very helpful as we lined up our days of sightseeing. We also ate at the in hotel restaurant one night before attending a broadway show and it is some of the best food I have ever tasted. New York was a great place to honeymoon because we could do “touristy” stuff during the day and relax or enjoy broadway shows each evening. There is more than enough to do and there are great places to shop and eat!

We chose to stay downtown to be closer to the airport for our honeymoon flight the next morning. We chose this hotel over the Sheraton for its more quaint historical feel. We had a great experience and it was a wonderful place to go and relax after a busy wedding week & day. We could have spent more and added a honeymoon package, but chose to just order room service when we got there instead and it was very good. It also had nice amenities that included comfy robes and slippers, new flat screen Tvs, nice toiletries, and high quality bedding. One of the biggest perks for us was the free shuttle to the airport the next morning. We were able to be dropped off here on our wedding night and save on parking costs at the airport. Overall it was a wonderful way to start our honeymoon.

This hotel gave us the most competitive rate for our guests of all the hotels on 280 at the time. It had also been recently renovated so everything was new and nice for our guests. It was also very convenient for guest in location to the church and places and restaurants on 280. They were also great to work with and very helpful. They let us come and look at every type of room we would be using in the hotel and gave great rates for all of them. A nice continental breakfast was included in the cost for all guests.

A piece of cake did our wedding cake, “groom’s cake” (which was actually a chocolate fountain with all the dipping sides) as well as cheese & cracker trays and fruit trays, so they pulled “double duty” with the cake and as catering as well. They have a smaller bakery on Hwy 31 in Pelham and have incredibly reasonable prices. Our cake was beautiful, exactly what I wanted, and it tasted great too. It was another favorite of all our guests. I had several comments after the wedding about how good it was. It was even good after being frozen a year at our anniversary! If you do use them I would suggest getting the cream cheese icing. It’s slightly more expensive than the traditional buttercream, but well worth it. They also took care of all delivery, set up, staffing during the reception and clean up.

We had an all dessert reception, so Cold Stone was a great addition to this. I think most people don’t realize that they will cater for wedding receptions, and some won’t, but the one in Alabaster does. It was a really inexpensive option and they customized all the flavors that we wanted. The only other thing I would have liked them to do was to actually have a bar there where our guest could have their own flavors mixed, but they just didn’t have the capabilities for this yet. Instead we were able to do different amounts of 5 customized flavors and they had someone come and serve. It was by far a favorite of our guest who all enjoyed the treat during a hot Alabama summer day!

Glenn’s is a pretty obscure florist and does not even have his own website. He was the only florist who was actually recommended to me from another bride. Every other bride I spoke to in the area told me that they would not use their florist again. I only had to meet with him once and his pricing was very reasonable. He asked me to pick out what flowers I would want and I gave him a brief idea of what I wanted. I allowed him to have creative license with the rest. He far exceeded my expectations with his work and my flowers were absolutely beautiful. They made the wedding from a decorative perspective. Even my coordinator said they were some of the best she had ever seen. He set up and took everything down including a large archway that I requested on the stage in the church. His store is a little hard to find so I would suggest calling for directions first which is what I did. I would HIGHLY recommend him to anyone getting married in the Birmingham area.

We were in the process of becoming members at Brook Hills when we got engaged but were open to looking other place to be married since Brook Hills is so large and we were planning on a wedding of 175-200. We looked multiple places in Birmingham that were just out of our price range on a very tight budget. We ended up deciding we wanted to be married at the Church at Brook Hills both for cost and sentimental reasons. For a member the price was $750 for the sanctuary and was still competitive for to other places for non-members. That cost also included a wedding coordinator who is provided by Brook Hills and she was worth all the money. Once I booked caterers, florist, etc, she took over all the details from there. I didn’t have to worry about anything the day of my wedding which was one of the best parts of being married at the church. They also have a beautiful garden area with a waterfall that is great for pictures!

We decided to use the Student Building at the church since we had so many out of town guests who would be familiar with Birmingham. It was also more cost effective for us. The only bad part is that it is a student building and therefore not really suitable for a formal reception. Ours was very fun and laidback, so it worked well. It does have a stage as well as sound and video capabilities.

Sha Salon is located in Helena, Al and is a hidden gem. I moved to Birmingham not long before we were engaged and married and found out about Britney through friends at work. I use her as my regular hair stylist and I have never been disappointed after a cut or color. Their prices are also highly competitive. She knew that I wanted a very natural look on my wedding day with my hair down with a tiara. She colored, cut and styled my hair specifically for my wedding and did a beautiful job. I would highly recommend Britney to anyone as a regular or wedding stylist.