A CITY WEDDING is exciting! It's also relatively easy for guests, since transportation and accommodation is nearby, as well as other enjoyments before and after the ceremony. But it can be expensive, so here are some city options you may not have considered that are stylish and easy on the pocketbook:
The Cliff Dwellers Club
200 S. Michigan
Chicago IL 60604
312-922-8080
Club Manager: Donald Santelli
cliffdwellers@cliff-chicago.org
http://www.cliff-chicago.org/
Note: The Cliff Dwellers is a private club honoring the arts founded at the turn of the last century. It happens that I am a member and thus can host events - including YOUR WEDDING! The club is perched on the top floor of the Borg-Warner Building across from the Art Institute on Michigan Avenue. It overlooks Grant Park, Millennium Park, Buckingham Fountain and the lake. From the terrace you can see the fireworks from Nay Pier and take in the splendor of the city skyline and the horizon where sky and water meet. With windows on three sides, the view is magnificent from the great room where the ceremony and reception take place. The club can accomodate up to 125 guests for a sit-down dinner. The food is wonderful and the cost for rental and catering is extremeley reasonable. Call Don, the manager to see if your date is available. Tell him Rev. Rebecca sent you!
A New Leaf
1818 N Wells St
Chicago, IL 60614-5867
312-642-8553
A relatively new space, this charming venue has great acoustics and marvelous food.
Wooden Gallery
1007 N. Wolcott Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622
773-342-2550
One of the many Chicago area galleries that opens it space for private events, this funky, offbeat, but still elegant space will appeal to the young at heart!
The Grove at Redfield Estate
1421 Milwaukee Ave.
Glenview, IL 60025
Redfield Rental: (847) 298-0095
http://www.glenviewparks.org/fa-grove-redfield.htm
This is one of my ALL TIME FAVORITE SITES for a wedding! Romantic setting on an old estate with a charming and architecturally rich manor house with attached terrace and gardens. Most couples opt to have the ceremony in one of the gazebos on the property. Heavenly!
Promontory Pointe
5491 S. Lake Shore Dr.
Chicago, IL
312-742-4847
http://www.chicagoparkdistrict.com
For the price of a Chicago Park District rental, you get the million-dollar view: the entire cityscape sweeps before you from this peninsula that juts out into Lake Michigan just steps away from Hyde Park off of Lake Shore Drive. An elegant building with large French windows facing the lake makes a lovely spot for the reception meal.
The Margarita Inn, Evanston
1566 Oak Ave
Evanston, IL 60201
(847) 869-2273
If you want something very classy near north, the Margarita has been wooing and winning hearts for its amazing food and lovely ambience. The elegant ball room on the first floor can host eighty for an intimate wedding, or you can stroll over a block to the sublime Rose Gardens for the ceremony and come back to dine. A perfect gem.
North Park Village Chapel
5801 N. Pulaski Road
Chicago, IL 60646
Phone: 312-744-5472
Colleen Gallagher
You've never heard of this place and it doesn't advertise on ANY of the wedding internet sites. It's owned by a park district and used every Sunday by a wide range of religious groups. But other days and evenings you can rent it for a song and stage a beautiful wedding in a delightful mid-size chapel. The setting is what really moves this site into being highly desireable -- it's in a garden! Everywhere you turn are photo-op vistas. Worth a look!
The Rookery Building
(312) 829-3663
209 S LaSalle
Chicago, IL 60622
www.jewelleventscatering.com
Unity Temple of Oak Park
John Wood, Rental Manager by email at rentals@unitytemple.org or at the Unity Temple office at 708/848-6225 ext. 108.
Germania Place
108 West Germania Place
Chicago, Illinois 60610
312.573.1968
Chicago Cultural Center
78 East Washington Street Chicago, IL
(312) 744-8922
Lara Ziemba, Manager of Private Events, 312-744-2080
The Ballroom of the School of the Art Institute,
112 South Michigan Ave
Chicago, IL,
(312) 345-3506
 For those who love Chicago, there is no setting I can think of more dramatic or romantic that to have a wedding BY THE LAKE. Here are my favorite choices for a lakeside wedding.
[See Promontory Point above under HIDDEN GEMS for my first choice.]
Illinois Beach State Park
1 Lakefront Drive
Zion, IL 60099
(847) 625-7300
Scott Metzelfeld
Yes! You are right on the beach with a whole resort behind you. What could be easier! And it's all run by the State of Illinois so it's not outrageously expensive.
Villa Terrace Decorative Arts Museum
2220 N. Terrace Ave.
Milwaukee, WI 53202
(414) 271-3656
This is a little known treasure up near Milwaukee. An old mansion built above the cliffs on Lake Michigan boasts a backyard Italianate garden with breakthaking views of the lake. Indoors, the former drawing room serves as a back up on a rainy day with the same lake views.
Whistling Straits & The Irish Golf Courses
N8501 Hwy. LS,
Sheboygan, WI 53083
(800) 618-5535
Whi knew? You can get married on a golf course overlooking the lake - and sheep grazing on the greens! A gorgeous stone reception hall completes the illusion that we're back in Ireland.
Boulevard Inn at St. Joseph, MI
521 Lake Blvd.
St. Joseph, MI 49085
269-983-6600
Around the other side of the lake, St. Joseph Michigan can offer some wonderful, less expensive options for lakeside ceremonies. This one is right on the lake and looks out over the horizon. You can walk down the block and take the stairs to the beach for a wonderful sandy experience.
Gintaras Resort
15860 Lakeshore Road
Union Pier, MI 49129
Phone: 269-469-3298
This Lithuanian family-owned beach resort is out of the rustic, romantic past. They have annual visitors who've been coming for generations all summer, but if you're planning a spring or fall wedding, they may be able to host your event on a bluff overlooking Lake Michigan. Sublime!
The Cliff Dwellers Club (see above for long review)
The Garden Rooms
Winnetka Community Center
620 Lincoln Avenue
Winnetka, IL
(847) 446-3154
(call Catered by Design)
Oscar Swan Inn
1800 W State St
Geneva, IL 60134
(630) 232-0173
The Woman’s Club of Evanston
1702 Chicago Avenue in Evanston, Illinois
847-475-3800
Contact Facilities Manager, Carol Short
The Winnetka Woman's Club
485 Maple St
Winnetka, IL 60093
Phone: 847-446-1830
Email: Winnetkawomansclub@sbcglobal.net
Ruffled Feathers Golf Course
1 Pete Dye Drive
Lemont, IL
(630) 257-1000
The 19th Century Club in Oak Park
178 Forest Avenue Oak Park, Illinois 60301
708-386-2729
http://www.19thcenturyclub.com
Mission Hills Country Club
1677 Mission Hills Rd
Northbrook, IL 60062-5705
United States
P: (847) 498-3200
F: (847) 498-9107
http://www.americangolf.com
The Hyatt Lodge at McDonald's Campus
2815 Jorie Boulevard,
Oak Brook, Illinois, USA 60523
Tel: +1 630 990 5800
http://thelodge.hyatt.com
Armour House in Lake Forest
1500 West Kennedy Road
Lake Forest, IL
(847) 615-3219
The Cheney Mansion in Oak Park
220 North Euclid Oak Park, IL
(708) 383-2612
ask for Linda
Danada House
3S501 Naperville Rd.
Wheaton
(630) 668-5392
Chicago History Museum
1601 Clark Street Chicago, IL
(312) 799-2254
Museum of Contemporary Art
220 East Chicago Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60611
312.397.3855
Harold Washington Library
400 South State Street
Chicago, IL
(312) 747-4130
Newberry Library
60 W. Walton St.
Chicago, IL – 60610
(312) 255-3595
Karen A. Skubish,
Peggy Notebart Nature Museum
2430 North Cannon Drive
Chicago, IL
(773) 755-5155
A New Leaf
1818 N Wells St
Chicago, IL 60614-5867
Phone: (312) 642-8553
Wooden Gallery
1007 N. Wolcott Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622
773-342-2550
Gallerie Marchetti
825 West Erie
Chicago, IL
(312) 563-0495
Chicago Fine Arts Exchange
815 W. Chicago Ave.
Chicago, IL 60622
312 850-2787 800-799-3463
Steve Waxman
River East Arts Center
435 East Illinois Street
Chicago, IL
(312) 321-1001
Cafe Brauer
Stockton Drive
at Lincoln Park Zoo
Chicago, IL
(312) 742-2400
Garfield Park Conservatory
300 N. Central Park Ave.
312-746-5250
Columbus Park Refectory
5701 West Jackson Blvd.
773-287-0856
Buckingham Fountain
Grant Park Rose Gardens
at Buckingham Fountain
312-742-4847
Lincoln Park Conservatory Gardens
2400 N. Stockton Dr.
312-742-4847
The Grove at Redfield Estate
1421 Milwaukee Ave.
Glenview, IL 60025
Redfield Rental: (847) 298-0095
Montefiore
11250 South Archer
Lemont, IL
(630) 257-6576
Byron Colby Barn at Prairie Crossing
1561 Jones Point Road
Grayslake, Illinois 60030
(847) 543-1202
Stan Rosenberg
Chicago Botanic Gardens
1000 Lake Cook Road
Glencoe, IL
(847) 835-8370
Shakespeare Garden at NU
2121 Sheridan Rd
Evanston, IL 60201
847-864-8384
Margo Brown
Merrick Rose Garden in Evanston
corner of Lake and Oak
847-866-2900
Parks/Forestry and Recreation
Independence Grove
16400 W. Buckley Rd.
Libertyville, IL 60048
847-247-1111
Katherine Legge Memorial Lodge
5901 S. County Line Road
Hinsdale, IL
(630) 789-7095
North Park Village Chapel
5801 N. Pulaski Road
Chicago, IL 60646
Phone: 312-744-5472
Colleen Gallagher
Naper Settlement Chapel
523 South Webster Street,
Naperville, IL 60540
Phone: 630.420.6010
Cortylou Commons at DePaul
2324 N Fremont St
Chicago, IL 60614
Becky Jones 773.325.4077
Old Stone Church in Lemont
306 Lemont Street
Lemont, IL 60439
630.257.2972
The Chapel at Garrett Seminary
2121 Sheridan Road
Evanston, Illinois 60201
Phone: 847.866.3900
Bond Chapel at Divinity School
1025 E. 58th St.,
Chicago, IL 60637
(773) 702-8200.
Rockefeller Memorial Chapel at U of C
1156 East 59th Street
Chicago, IL 60637
773.702.9202.
Maple Chapel in Lombard
220 S. Main Street
Lombard, IL 60148
Debbie Curtiss
630-629-2630 x 10
webmaster@maplestreetchapel.org
The Harbor Grand Hotel
111 West Water St
New Buffalo, Mich.
888-605-6800
Heston Hills Conference Center
1933 E 800 N
La Porte, IN 46350
2197789595
The Barker Mansion
Cecilia Zubler, Center Director
631 Washington Street
Michigan City, Indiana 46360
(219) 873-1520
Boulevard Inn at St. Joseph, MI
521 Lake Blvd.
St. Joseph, MI 49085
269-983-6600
Inn At Union Pier, The
9708 Berrien Street
Union Pier, MI 49129
Phone: 269-469-4700
Gintaras Resort
15860 Lakeshore Road
Union Pier, MI 49129
Phone: 269-469-3298
Lakeside Inn
15251 Lakeshore Road
Lakeside, MI 49116
Phone: 269-469-0600
Abbey Resort at Lake Geneva
Fontana, WI
(800) 772-1000
The Wisconsin Club of Milwaukee
900 West Wisconsin Avenue
414-271-7510
Villa Terrace Decorative Arts Museum
2220 N. Terrace Ave.
Milwaukee, WI 53202
(414) 271-3656
Whistling Straits & The Irish Golf Courses
N8501 Hwy. LS,
Sheboygan, WI 53083
(800) 618-5535
| 
