We didn’t start wedding planning until March of 2021 due to the pandemic. We knew we wanted to have our wedding in New Jersey. My mother-in-law did a lot of the planning while I was in Canada. She suggested Birchwood Manor because their family had been to the venue for previous events and absolutely loved everything about it. They did a video tour with me and I thought the venue was beautiful.
Michael Marino and the Birchwood team were very flexible and provided excellent input, covering every aspect of the design, food, cake, Covid safety, and music. They had a lot of design options that perfectly matched our theme. We wanted to make sure our guests didn’t feel confined, so Michael ensured the tables were large enough and spaced out to allow for social distancing and that our guests had access to the beautiful garden. We arranged for some custom menu items and the food and cake at our reception were delicious.
For cocktail hour, we had a variety of options. Our guests really enjoyed all the food, including Cantonese egg rolls, chicken quesadilla, chafing dishes with penne alla vodka, Swedish meatballs, sesame chicken, Italian sausage, and fantail shrimp. A lot of our guests were shocked to find out there was going to be more food during the reception! Our ballroom was decorated in our theme of pastel colors. The room was beautiful, the lighting was perfect, and the space looked elegant. The bride and groom table was on a platform centered with the dance floor and facing the DJ booth, just across the dance floor. We could see all our guests, which is what we wanted.