Albana & Marc | VIP Country Club | New Rochelle, NY

"Exactly What We Wanted"

We met in college and started dating a few years after graduation when I moved to Manhattan. Marc  was still living in CT, so our first date was on the shoreline where we grabbed some gyros and walked the beach and of course finished the date with ice cream. I finally convinced Marc to move into the city and after two years of city life together, we decided to move in together.

One Friday night I was rushing home from work and running late for plans that I thought we had with Marc’s older brother Chris and his wife, Corrie. I ran into the apartment to find Marc standing in the middle of candles and rose petals holding a ring box. Also sitting by his side, in a little tuxedo created by Westchester Floral, was our wiener dog Rambo. We had a beautiful dinner on the water and Saturday included a full day of celebration with friends and family.

After searching far and wide within the Tri-state area we fell in love as soon as we walked into VIP Country Club. Everything felt right, starting with a very warm welcome from the receptionist. We loved the attention to detail everyone showed us and especially fell in love with the cocktail lounge. We loved that it was a separate area from the reception and had the perfect New Year’s Eve feel.

Despite the chaos of Covid, VIP Country Club was so easy to work with, including rescheduling the initial New Year’s Eve 2020 date to the new NYE 2021 date. Even on the wedding day they were extremely flexible as we had some last-minute cancellations. Vinston Joy, assistant general manager, was extremely responsive and helpful the entire year and would constantly check in to see how we were doing. My bridal assistant was there for everything I needed, whether it was a dress change, food, or drinks.

The ceremony took place at VIP’s fireplace area. We had flowers by Westchester Floral on top of the fireplace mantle, beautiful flower stands, and white rose pedals on either side of our aisle as we walked down. My brother-in-law, George Tsakos, married us! He did an amazing job encapsulating our relationship with the perfect mix of laughter and tears. As we walked back out, our friends and families dazzled us with rose pedals!

The cocktail hour was my favorite part of the wedding. The area had the perfect vibe for a New Year’s Eve wedding and the food was amazing. People are still talking about all the food, especially the seafood station. One family thought this was dinner because of all the food options they offered.

I am Albanian and we absolutely love to circle dance. VIP had the perfect dance floor and layout for our night. We had our tables in a U formation with the large dance floor in the center. The lighting was perfect as it shifted the attention to the dance floor. The party lived on the dance floor and we only sat to enjoy our amazing dinner.

I had the salmon and my husband had the steak. The way VIP organized dinner was the most convenient aspect of the venue. Rather than having me submit names and dinner orders, they went to each table and asked each guest what they wanted for dinner from a printed menu of several options.

VIP also made our wedding cake which was simple and perfect. Since I love carrot cake, I requested that and they happily obliged! We had a massive dessert station for late-night snacking and VIP even let us bring in homemade baklava. The food was truly endless and our guests cannot stop talking about it to this day.

Thank you to everyone at the venue who helped us over the last two years and finally on our wedding date! Vinston, Tom Esposito, general manager, our maître d’, and my bridal assistant. Despite all the craziness and last-minute changes, they made everything perfect. Thank you to Erica and staff for all the amazing photos and capturing pictures all hours of the day! DJ Arian had the perfect mix of Albanian and American music. Lastly, our family and friends!! Thank you for coming, putting up with us, and being a part of our special day. We Love You All!!

VIP Country Club, New Rochelle, NY
914.235.1500, vipcountryclub.com