"Every wedding we do at The Crystal Plaza is individually designed," says Manager Fred Fogg. "No two weddings are the same. We try to convey that to the bride the moment she comes in."

To personalize each wedding, Fred starts by presenting you with a 22-page menu. "You also can do your flowers, music or photography with us. It’s one-stop shopping."

A 19th Century Mansion
A private 19th century mansion, The Crystal Plaza was originally built by noted architect Stanford White, who created many landmark buildings in Manhattan, as well as the Rose Cliff Mansion, where the movie ‘The Great Gatsby’ was filmed.

"We have a beautiful, turn-of-the century ballroom with 40-foot ceilings and 18-foot glass arches. They look over our French gardens, which are moonlit at night."

With its circular, inlaid wood dance floor plus tables that seat from eight to 16, Crystal Plaza gives its brides a lot of flexibility. "We have a beautiful living room and library, which are great areas for the cocktail hour. They lead to an outdoor patio which can be heated or air-conditioned, as well as enclosed or opened up."

The Crystal Plaza has two outdoor gardens for ceremonies. "We also have a non-denominational chapel just for wedding ceremonies."

"Almost all our brides like the outdoor garden areas for the cocktail hour. However, both the indoor and outdoor facilities are set up, so you can go directly inside if suddenly the weather became inclement."

Overall, the facility accommodates up to 400 guests with dinner and dancing. The minimum is 100 people.

"We do only one wedding at a time, so the entire mansion and the French gardens are exclusively yours."

Give Yourself Enough Lead Time ... Or Be Flexible
Before visiting the venues you want to consider, Fred suggests you make certain key decisions. Know what date you want for your wedding, how many guests you’ll have, and what you are willing to be flexible about.

"Flexibility is the key to planning a wedding within a budget," Fred explains. Dates in the prime spring and fall months, and Saturday nights in particular, are taken faster and priced higher.

"We see thousands of brides a year," says Fred, "and it seems 99 percent ask for a Saturday night in a prime month.

"But a bride who is dreaming of a particular Saturday night in a particular prime month can waste a lot of time going to different places — only to find out that her Saturday night is not going to work."

Then — after other dates have been taken and their favorite suppliers have been booked — they start exploring other options.

"For the rest of your life, nobody will remember what day of the week it was. They’ll remember whether they had a good time or not.

"But if you start shopping with enough lead time, you won’t find yourself forced to be flexible, or locked into less desirable choices."

Significant Savings
If you pick a date outside the prime months, or other than a Saturday night, you can save a great deal.

Menu considerations also affect price. Typical dinner packages at The Crystal Plaza give your guests the chance to choose from five different entrees. Choose less than five and you can enjoy a savings.

"We print menus with the bride and groom’s name at the top and a full selection of the entrees offered."

The Crystal Plaza has a one-server per five-guest ratio, regardless of budget. "That’s the highest ratio anywhere. We also have all premium liquor at the bar. Some things we never sacrifice, no matter what level the wedding is budgeted at."

Personalize Your Wedding
"Unless a bride is extremely flexible, she needs about 12 months to plan her wedding," says Fred.

"First we want to understand what you are trying to accomplish and what your budget is. Then we’ll customize the package around you."

In one recent wedding the bride wanted a Cinderella theme. "She arrived at the outdoor ceremony in a horse-drawn carriage. We carried the theme throughout the wedding with ice sculptures of castles. We have a phenomenal garde marge chef who does our ice carvings."

"One groom had a house built for his bride as a wedding gift." The Crystal Plaza carved the house out of ice, with ice sculptures of the couple standing in front.

Wines, Scotch, and Smooth Acoustics
What about wines? "We have gourmet house wines from Napa Valley, California, which are excellent table wines. A wine steward comes to each table with a list of wines: Chardonnays, Merlots and Cabernets.

"For those who are connoisseurs, we have an extensive wine list, and an international wine bar with about 35 different wines."

Wine stewards explain the wines and let guests try them throughout the evening. "We can do a champagne bar, as well as a cigar and cognac bar. The cigars are cut, lit, and rolled in front of your guests. We do premium cognacs and single malt Scotches."

They also can accommodate up to a 30-piece orchestra. "We built a dome in our ceiling which is made out of fabric. It absorbs sound first, instead of letting the sound bounce off, which makes the acoustics beautiful."

Special Touches
When your guests arrive, they have the choices of champagne with raspberries, Pellegrino water with lime, juices and soft drinks. "We start the ceremony 30 minutes after the invitation time so all guests are present when you walk down the aisle.

Brides typically come in before the ceremony to take daylight pictures in the garden. "I’ve been here for 10 years and I still think it’s magnificent," says Fred.

"Brides send us thank you letters, saying their guests can’t stop talking about the wedding, and that’s what makes it special for us."

Focus on the Big Picture
Over the years Fred has observed many brides getting too focused on little things when making their key decisions.

"Some brides will make a list of 20 different places and ask the same questions at every place. If the place isn’t even a consideration, it doesn’t matter if you can extend the cocktail hour a half hour or not. Budget your time, and focus on what you want." Limit the number of places you see and you will simplify your decision and minimize your stress.

"Use magazines or the Internet to narrow your choices down to six or 12 places, and it will be a lot easier to make a decision." The same can be done in selecting your other key suppliers.

"Some places have a pre-set schedule for the party, where the appetizers and the main course get served at certain times. But at our weddings, we do what the party calls for.

"If it’s a real dancing crowd, we’ll serve the main course later to give them more time to dance. If the crowd isn’t as interested in dancing, we’ll serve the main course a little sooner, and let them linger on the meal."

They also provide the bride and groom with a personal butler who attends throughout the entire day.

Fred’s emphasis on service come from a lifetime of dedication. He started in catering as a nine-year old in his family’s business, an off-premise catering company in New Jersey. "I washed dishes, but my real interest was the food. So I worked my way up through the ranks."

He went to culinary school and became a chef, and eventually started doing sales. He took over the family company and before his father retired they sold it to The Crystal Plaza. "That’s how I became involved here, 12 years ago."

Now, when Fred meets with the bride, he maintains contact with her through the entire planning process.

"I am there on her wedding night to oversee everything. All my salespeople do the same as well. We have a phenomenal team. Our maitre d’s love the parties almost as much as our clients do."

Featured Crystal Plaza Wedding: Romance Online

The Crystal Plaza
305 West Northfield Road, Livingston, NJ 07039
973.992.8100, www.crystalplaza.com