"4"^^ . "0"^^ . "1"^^ . "16"^^ . . . . "2013-02-25T00:00:00"^^ . "We recently got married at The Secret Garden. It's hard to give a review of a place that holds so much weight, but I'll do my best to be non-biased. We had about 4 months to plan our wedding, and so we picked our venue very quickly. That's not to say that we would have reconsidered; The Secret Garden is beautiful, their prices are reasonable, and they allow for more flexibility than MANY venues. We opted for a package to choose and pay our own vendors, as we wanted to include some friends and more personal options than those listed in the all-inclusive package. Interviewing vendors was a bit of a stressful task, but we got through it and were lad to have made the effort because everyone did a great job and each individual part was exactly what we wanted. \nNow, as for the venue itself, there are some big plusses and a few drawbacks. Dave and Nancy own the place. Overall they do a great job. As a participant in a family business, I like to see the owners doing the work at the property. They have great pride in a beautiful location, and it is totally understandable that they have a few rules to protect their property (no confetti/glitter, extra safety precautions, etc) They have an event coordinator, Alexis, who was very helpful in getting everything planned for us in the formative stages. She and I emailed dozens of times and met twice for long sit-downs and to plan out arrangements in the hall and the ceremony grounds. On our last meeting, she informed me she wouldn't be the attendant at the wedding, but Nancy would be there. I was initially uncomfortable with having spent my time planning only to be switched off to someone else, and I got a good deal of resistance for my complaints. All in all, Nancy did a good job with us. The Rehearsal was a bit rocky, but I would wager almost every rehearsal feels that way. The wedding itself turned out pretty darn good; it rained like crazy and we had to switch the plan and do the whole thing inside, but Nancy was a great help and got through a last-minute organizational would-be disaster. Though we didn't have the beautiful ceremony we had imagined, it still turned out great and we wouldn't change it if we had the chance. \nI gave four stars because I would recommend The Secret Garden to couples looking for a venue with only a bit of caution. It was seemingly cost-prohibitive for many, but the versatile packages made it more accessible and personalized. The staff was friendly, a bit fussy and for the most part effective to my satisfaction. I'd say go for it, but just remind yourself that sometimes it rains, so be mindful especially in monsoon season!\n\nP.S. if you can help it, pick virtually ANYWHERE other than The House (the restaurant that adjoins the venue) for your rehearsal dinner. Overpriced, underwhelming food and staff that were unhelpful to the point of near-confrontation. Totally not worth it for a milestone celebration."^^ .