Amanda & Vincent | Glen Island Harbour Club | New Rochelle, NY

“Like We Were Family”

We met the old fashioned way, on social media. V.J. liked my Instagram pictures and I messaged him. We realized we lived in a smaller world than we thought. He was my brother’s college baseball coach at Manhattanville College. After talking, we went on a first date at Fortina in Rye Brook. We spent hours eating pizza, drinking wine, and talking about everything. We continued dating and then Covid hit and we were trapped at my parents’ house. I was away on a bachelorette party when V.J. asked my dad for his blessing to marry me.

I thought it was another Sunday dinner with my family at my dad’s restaurant, Tilly’s Table, in Brewster, NY. At Tilly’s, I walked into a surprise birthday party with all my friends and family there and knew my 27th birthday was not an ordinary birthday any more. V.J. got down on one knee and asked me to marry him in front of all our family and best friends. As cliché as it sounds, it really was the easiest yes of my life.

We wanted a big venue that overlooked the water and was in Westchester, near the majority of our friends and family. After touring Glen Island Harbour Club and meeting Rocco, picking Glen Island was the second easiest decision. The views are beautiful, they have a perfect room for our ceremony, and a huge reception room that includes an outdoor area with a fire pit for our guests to hang out and smoke cigars. It felt like our own private island!

Working with our venue was incredibly easy. Rocco is one of the most organized individuals we ever met. He walked us through every single step of the process and made us feel like we were family and that our day was the single most important day there ever was. For someone who has helped with thousands of weddings, to make our day feel like it was the most important, is indescribable and meant everything.

Maria, our maître d’, also made the day very special. If someone in the bridal party needed a drink, she was on it, if someone had a small wardrobe catastrophe, she was there to fix it. The day would not have been as memorable if not for her.

Our ceremony took place in the chapel at Glen Island, which Rocco timed perfectly (a year in advance!) and made sure we said our vows as the sun was setting. The room is covered with windows and the ambiance was absolutely perfect. We had flowers and candles throughout the room and were able to fit all 255 of our guests in the ceremony space, yet it still felt like the most intimate setting.

Our priest had baptized me and married my parents, which made it even more special. For our cocktail hour, we had a raw bar, sushi station, pasta station with a cheese wheel, carving station, and more. Between the presentation and the quality of the food, ever since that night, we’ve heard that our cocktail hour was the best anybody has ever had!

When I arrived at Glen Island, I began taking pictures with my family and peeked inside the room. My mom instantly started to cry at how the room looked. Seeing the room empty vs how it looked decorated felt like my own personal fairy tale. From the tea lights hanging individually from the ceiling to the centerpieces with our flowers hanging with crystals and the lights on the balcony surrounding the room, I was in awe. Our M.C. was Richie Gagliardi, who works for Jimmy Dee, and my husband and I didn’t leave the dance floor the entire wedding.

Dinner at Glen Island was amazing. Chef Al completely nailed it. We gave our guests a few different options but the majority of them went with the surf ‘n’ turf. They were blown away by the size of the lobster tails they got with their steaks. Every guest went out of their way to tell us how good the food was. The cocktail hour and dinner were absolutely delicious. Our cake was from Lulu’s Bakery. We did vanilla with buttercream and we had a wall-to-wall Venetian hour that had every dessert you can imagine! Our big favorite were the espresso martini shots with biscotti cookies in them.

Our magical night would not have been possible without the staff at Glen Island. Specifically Rocco, who planned our day from start to finish. Maria, who was there every single step of the way. Our photographer, Alfonso, captured every special moment. He’s also personable which made our day so much less stressful. Our MC, Richie, kept the energy on the dance floor all night long. Most importantly, the owners of Glen Island, my father, Al Ciuffetelli, and my uncle, Joe Ciuffetelli, are irreplaceable parts of my life and were irreplaceable parts of our day. They made everything happen. I could not be more fortunate for the love and support of my family on our wedding day.

Glen Island Harbour Club, New Rochelle, NY, 914.636.6500, www.gi-hc.com