Charlottesville, VA, USA < change city >

Caterer:

Hot Cakes

"Surprisingly disappointing. Two of the 7 buffet items were changed to less desirable, cheaper items. The catering manager behaved unprofessionally in several ways. We had expected this to be the best part of the evening; it was the worst. So disappointing. The only recourse offered so far has been to change the price to reflect what we actually got. Didn't get what you wanted? Just pay for what you got, problem solved??? And in the end, their attitude was really bad, no real apology and no statement that this is not typical; it leads me to believe this is common practice. I will say the cake was great, but for the buffet, if you spend months going over the menu and stressing that a certain item is very important and you end up not getting it and the only explanation is Oh sorry I forgot to tell the chef then it's upsetting."

DJ:

John Garland of Garland Studios

"He made every effort to provide the music we wanted."

Florist:

Pattersons

"Outstanding! They made sure the flowers were exactly what we wanted. They even asked the size of the flower girl and style of her dress to make sure her flower basket was just the right size."

Ceremony:

UVA Chapel

"It must be requested a year in advance; it's a beautiful, intimate chapel. One guest even asked if it was a European chapel that had been moved here. Some people said maybe the air conditioning wouldn't be adequate but on one of the hottest days of the year we were fine."

Reception:

Alumni Hall

"The ballroom is very pretty. If you want to use it with the UVA chapel, it can be hard to coordinate to get both. When we used it, the chairs were unattractive and we rented chairs."

Hotel:

Courtyard by Marriott Hotel

Hotel:

English Inn of Charlottesville

"A number of guests stayed here; they all loved it."

Hotel:

Hampton Inn India Road

Hotel:

Hampton Inn Main St.

Restaurant:

Bodo's Bagels

"Where Charlottesville goes for inexpensive quick meals. Sandwiches, bagels, soup, salad. breakfast. Parking available."

Restaurant:

Bodo's Bagels on The Corner

"Where Charlottesville goes for inexpensive quick meals. Sandwiches, bagels, soup, salad. breakfast.Walk here from the Marriott, Hampton Inn, and campus. Limited parking in the area."

Restaurant:

La Cocina Del Sol

"Recommended Mexican restaurant. It's around back, on the lower level. 434-872-0270."

Restaurant:

Lime Leaf Thai restaurant

"A good Thai restaurant; in Rio Hill Shopping Center, next to Dick's Sporting Goods."

Restaurant:

Martha's Cafe

"One block off University Ave, 11 Elliewood Avenue. Great casual dining; sitting outside is best. Vegetarian options, pasta and salads. An emphasis on healthy eating using local produce. Lunch daily 11am-3pm; Dinner Wed-Sun 5:30-9pm. ."

Restaurant:

Milan Indian cuisine

"A good Indian restaurant, open 7 days a week, with lunch buffet. 434) 984-2827 A little hard to get to, going north. Go past and make a U turn."

Restaurant:

Vivace

"Italian restaurant with attractive outdoor seating. Up on hillside next to Sneak Reviews video. You will see the outdoor deck and parking lot below."

Attraction:

Ashlawn Highland

"Ash Lawn-Highland is an historic house museum and working farm. President James Monroe and his wife, Anonymous Kortright Monroe of New York, owned Ash Lawn-Highland from 1793 to 1826 and made it their official residence from 1799 to 1823. After the Monroes' death, the name of their farm was changed from "Highland" to "Ash Lawn"; today both names are used."

Attraction:

Barboursville Vineyards

"Tours and wine tasting. From Charlottesville and South: Go East from Charlottesville on Route 250 (bypass), to Route 20 North, "The Constitution Highway," proceeding 16 miles northeast. Barboursville Vineyards will be visible on your right, turn as directed by the signs into Route 678 to the estate."

Attraction:

Barracks Road Shopping Center

"Dozens of shops and restaurants(e.g. Chipotle,Ruby Tuesday, Panera), two large supermarkets open all night, Barnes&Noble/Starbucks, CVS Pharmacy. Aromas Middle Eastern Cafe(back side of the island), and Greenberry's Coffee are excellent locally-owned shops. On the Northwest corner of Barracks and Emmet you will see more shops, including a great toy store, and Wild Greens restaurant. Cross by going behind the Barracks Road stores, Millmont Sreeet goes across Barracks Road to the other shops."

Attraction:

Monticello

"Tour the house that Jefferson designed and built for himself and his family and enjoy the grounds of the Monticello Plantation. You may want to check with them in advance, sometimes tickets sell out."

Attraction:

Montpelier

"Montpelier was the lifelong home of President James Madison. Madison was raised at Montpelier, lived here after his marriage to Dolley, returned here after his presidency, and died here in his study surrounded by his books and papers. Here he researched past democracies and conceived of the system of government that became our republic. Take Route 29 north to Ruckersville, take a right onto Route 33 east. At Barboursville, go left onto Route 20 north towards Orange. Go about 8 miles. Take a right into the Montpelier entrance. Takes about 45 minutes."

Attraction:

Saturday Morning Farmer's Market

"Farmer's market, Saturday mornings in the summer. Fruits, vegetables, t-shirts, flowers, jewelry. Turn on 1st street, then go east on Garrett street, park on the street. YES you can park, look at the signs carefully."

Attraction:

Shopping area

"About 3 miles north of the intersection of Emmet and Ivy. On the west side of Hwy 29: Whole Foods Market, excellent used bookstore, other shops and restaurants. On the east side of Hwy 29 is Fashion Square Mall, with Belk,Sears, JC Penney, many small shops."

Attraction:

Skyline Drive/Blue Ridge Parkway

"Entrance to Blue Ridge Parkway/Skyline Drive."

Attraction:

The Corner/Historic Rotunda area

""The Corner" features student shops, bookstores, cafes, and night spots. Parking is limited; there is a small parking garage on Elliewood Ave or there may be parking spaces on University Ave between Newcomb Road and Emmet.Begin your tour of the historic Rotunda area across the street. There are tours of the Rotunda hourly; don't miss the disappearing bookcases in the dome. Walk along McCormick Road and see the original student rooms, including the glass fronted restoration of Edgar Allan Poe's room. On the right is Alderman Library, a nice coffee shop inside the main door."

Attraction:

The Downtown Mall

"Downtown pedestrian mall with 120 shops, 30 restaurants, movie theater, indoor ice rink. Parking garages on Market Street and E. Water Street. Parking validation at shops, restaurants, and the public library front desk, 201 E. Market Street. Some good restaurants: Hamilton's, Downtown Thai (111 W. Water St.), Chaps Ice Cream, and Christian's Pizza. Sal's Italian and others have nice outdoor seating for people-watching. Fridays after Five--every Friday there is live music in the bandshell at the east end of the mall. The mall is festive but crowded on Friday evenings."