Rehearsal Dinner in M... | Q&A

Jenifer and Vincenzo Montauk, NY, USA

I am getting married at Gurneys in October and trying to figure out the rehearsal dinner. Where are you having your rehearsal dinner?

42 Replies

Alison and Mike Montauk, NY, USA

Have not yet decided but some possibilities are Nick's, Sunset Saloon, or even a clam bake on the beach. Someone I know had theirs at East by North East.. heard it was really nice.

Jenifer and Vincenzo Montauk, NY, USA

I have been in contact with Nicks and that is definately a possibility, although it was kinda pricey for what it is. East by Northeast is tough because I need the rehearsal to be on a Friday night. I love the clam bake idea though. I wonder if Gosmans does catering? Thanks!!

Jacqueline and David

Hello-

We are having a beach bonfire dinner the night before, but that will not work in October. Try harvest on fort pond- they are great

Jacqueline and david Montauk, NY, USA

Hi Jen-

I hope you don't mind I looked at your map and just wanted to let you know gosman's dock is in the wrong spot (sometimes the map does that). it's on my map if you want to check it out -

http://www.brides.com/weddingwebsite/davidjacqueline

-jacqueline

Jon Lagasse Montauk, NY, USA

Hi,

I was curious about the clam bake / bonfire on the beach - did you need to get a permit or anything for that? Wasn't sure given you would be having alcohol and a bonfire.

My fiancee and I are thinking about a day wedding and having an after reception party on the beach....

Thanks,

j&d

Thanks.

Jacqueline and David

Hi-

We are using http://www.hamptonlobsterbakes.com/ for our bonfire dinner. They are setting up tiki torches, the bonfire, some seating, and preparing a super casual menu (burgers, hot dogs, corn, salad, s'mores) since our reception dinner will be fomal. We are bringing our own drinks (last I checked glass is not allowed on the beach so only plastic cups). I have been to a party they catered (a more fancy party) and it was wonderful.

The catering company takes care of the permits so i do not know much about it, but the town clerk office is on this site -http://www.onmontauk.com/montauk-wedding-conference.shtml

We would have loved to have our reception on the beach, but since tents are not allowed on the Montauk beach (i think only South Hampton) I was scared of rain.

-Jacqueline

Jon Lagasse Montauk, NY, USA

Hi Jacqueline,

Thanks so much for the info - we are actually hoping to have a day reception at Harvest and then since its a day reception...we'll need to keep things going :) We'll definitely take a look at hamptonlobsterbakes.com for our "after hours"

Thanks again and Good luck with everything!

Best,
j&d

Jacqueline and David

Our first choice for a reception was Harvest, but we had our hearts set on an evening reception and it would have too expensive to close the restaurant at night. I just love it there - the garden is so beautiful and the food is great. We played with the idea of getting a boat to take our wedding party on a sunset sail after the reception, but decided to have a brunch on a boat the morning after our wedding and have our reception at the second house tavern (across the pond from harvest)

I don't mean to be nosey, but what is your wedding date?

-Jacqueline

Jon Lagasse Montauk, NY, USA

Hi Jacqueline,

Yeah - we were at Harvest last October (we live in NYC) and thought it was beautiful and were really impressed by the food. My only concern with them is the 120 capacity - we're a little over already and we haven't even finalized the invite list...

And please feel free to ask any questions you'd like - I don't think its nosey at all. We have yet to set the actual wedding date - we only got engaged two weeks ago, but we are shooting for a late September wedding if we can get everything together in time - so we're going to be moving pretty quickly.

Thanks again for the help with hamptonlobsterbakes.com.

Best,

J&D

Jacqueline and David

Oh how wonderful. Congratulations!

We live in NYC also (near columbia). I really should take a trip out there to look at hotels, taste cakes..., but it is hard to find the time. I didn't realize there was a 120 person limit. Is that with seating both inside and out?

What a great plan to have it after labor day-prices drop so much. Negotiating with hotels has been a nightmare because ours is the weekend before labor day.

If you don't have a photographer yet, you should look at Kathleen Doran (www.kathleendoran.com). She is going to do our wedding, and she has been so easy to work with. I am very excited about her! When I first contacted her I told her we were planning on having the reception at Harvest and she said- oh how funny i am going there tomorrow night for my sister's rehearsal dinner. Anyway she is friends with the management at Harvest and very familiar with Montauk in general.

-Jacqueline

PS: wow 6:30- you get up early

Jon Lagasse Montauk, NY, USA

Thanks - we are both very excited.

We live on the other end of the island down in battery park...but it looks like we're both heading out east for our weddings :)

We haven't even given thought about hotels yet - I can only imagine the nightmare that's going to be... I've gone out there a few times and always stayed at one of the "summer hotels" but we did manage to have drinks at the surf lodge back in October when we were out there and that place is really pretty nice - so we'll have to check out hotels during our visit in the next couple weeks.

Thanks again for all the helpful tips - we'll be sure to take a look at Kathleen's website :)

I'm sure i'll be back with a bunch more questions

PS I love the idea of a boat brunch - very cool!
PSS I think the clock is off - it was 930 :)

Best,

j&d

Jon Lagasse Montauk, NY, USA

Good morning Jacqueline,
If you don't mind, we've got a few more questions for you ;)... We are waiting to hear back from Harvest as to what their available dates are, so we are thinking of other reception location options which include East by Northeast and Second House. Having visited them (well, at least Second House), could you describe how they compare to Harvest in terms of ambiance, setting, cost (just an estimated cost, certainly not asking for specifics). Any extra advice you can give is apprecaited, as neither website has photo's up of past events.

Thank you!
j&d

Jacqueline and David

I love Harvest, but they were never very flexible in working with us. I must have sent 100 emails back and forth with Rachel trying to make that plan work. I am sure our wedding party will go there at some point for a meal, but it just would not work for the reception itself.

East by Northeast has an Asian inspired theme- which was not what I had in mind for a wedding, but it is very nice. It has a beautiful view of the pond, but has a very different vibe from Harvest. I don't really know how it compares in price to Harvest, because I never really considered it as an option for our reception.

I just discovered the Second House Tavern after my aunts and uncles all recommended it. They spend a lot of time in Montauk and Second House was their favorite followed by Harvest. I also talked to Kathleen (our photographer) about it and she loves it there. I started working with Abby from Second House about a month ago and the restaurant is closed for the winter. They will not reopen till March...so as crazy as it is, I am planning a reception somewhere I have never been- which I would never have done if I didn't have complete confidence in my Aunts and Uncles taste. They have been so easy to work with and very reasonably priced- our quote from Second House was much less than our quote from Harvest. We are going to be in a tent outside (with partial water view).

Jon Lagasse Montauk, NY, USA

Thank you so much for all the info!!

Best,
j&d

Jacqueline and David

Hi-

I just spoke with Linda who is in charge of permits for Montauk (631-324-3187). Turns out we won't need a permit for our bonfire dinner because our party is under 50 people. She also said- no amplified music on the beach, no tents, no glass, and we have to follow the town parking regulations.

-Jacqueline

jennifer schmidt Montauk, NY, USA

hi..i love your bonfire dinner idea...where do they actually do it?
also, what provisions do you have if it rains? I am getting married on 7/25

Jacqueline and David

Hi Jennifer-

We are doing ours right in front of our hotel (the ocean surf resort). But there are a few companies out there who can do it anywhere on the beach-

http://www.clamman.com/catering.asp,
http://www.hamptonlobsterbakes.com/
http://www.hamptons.com/clambake/

Gurney's also does bonfire dinners. It is a gamble and you would have to come up a rain plan- our company said they would not charge us for the bonfire or tiki torches and we would just move the food into our hotel...but i crossing my fingers that will not happen

jennifer schmidt Montauk, NY, USA

Hi Jacqueline,

Thanks so much for your reply! Congrats on your wedding!!
I hope the clambake idea turns out...quite high actually for a rehearsal dinner. Did you hire a band yet?

Let me know if you missed anything as I have done research on every subject! :-)

Jacqueline and David

Hi Jennifer-

For our rehearsal dinner we are just going to use an ipod with a portable speaker system, but for our ceremony and reception we are having the jazz guitarist Bill Wurtzel (http://www.billwurtzel.com/contact/) and his partner guitarist- I am so thrilled they were able to come out to montauk. i am a musician so music was the most important part to me.

Did you hire a band yet?

One thing I am having trouble finding is a great bakery in the area. The only one I have found is Gurney's- Do you know of any in East Hampton that are great? Have you decided on a bakery yet?

Jenifer and Vincenzo Montauk, NY, USA

I am getting married at Gurneys and the cake is included but you can also try Montauk Bake Shoppe. I believe they do wedding cakes.

jennifer schmidt Montauk, NY, USA

I am actually bringing mine from NYC from "something sweet"
i was looking for a makeup artist out east that is reasonable if you girls know of one

thanks! i will keep my ears open for a bakery!

jennifer schmidt Montauk, NY, USA

yes, that is funny..we are doing the ipod as well for the rehearsal dinner!

i love that you are a musician ..i will check out the link!

Jacqueline Shepherd Montauk, NY, USA

Hello! I am a Makeup artist(freelance)I have just moved back to NYC after being in Los Angeles for 8 years. I used to work @ E! on a show the daily 10 and various other projects.Do you have someone for your Oct 09 wedding?
Please check out my site and would be glad to email you day rates and trial rates.
www.jacquelineshepherdmakeup.com
Thanks!

Jennifer Hardy Montauk, NY, USA

I am getting married at Gurneys October 10th 2009. When is your date? Were are still trying to decide where to have the rehearsal dinner and it's already the middle of May. Did you come up with anything yet?

Christy McDermott Montauk, NY, USA

I am getting married in September and want to do the beach rehearsal dinner but I am very nervous about weather... it's kind of a gamble. Also, does anyone know good + reasonable hair and make-up people? Thanks!

Jennifer Hardy Montauk, NY, USA

I agree on the weather issue. We just have to pray about it. If the dinner cannot be on the beach or outside, I would like something with an oceanview for sure. I just can't decide if I should have it at Gurney's where the wedding is or some place else. Let me know if you hear of anything and I'll do the same.

Jenny

P.S. - Haven't gotten that far with hair & make-up people yet. We are just starting to get prices for DJ's, photographers and flowers. I guess we're running behind. :(

Laura Marino Montauk, NY, USA

Hi all! I've just been reading all the great stuff on this topic. Very helpful! Wanted to see how the whole beach bonfire rehearsal idea was coming for you guys. That's the definite route I want to take as well but I'm not getting married until 2010, specifically Sept. 18, 2010 @ Montauk Yacht Club. So excited! However, we are trying to find less expensive lodging as well as a great rehearsal dinner venue & a Catholic Church nearby. Any ideas? Also, who are you using for flowers & are they reasonable?

Thanks,

Laura

Alison and Mike Montauk, NY, USA

Hi Laura,

Love that you're planning early.
- St Therese is the Catholic Church in town.. its beautiful!
- A lot of my friends are staying at the Royal Atlantic. Its right on the beach near Nick's.. seemed pretty reasonable. If your wedding is at the Yacht Club you should look at the Harborside Motel. Its across the street.
- I'm using Strawberry Fields for flowers. Her name is Mary. Good prices too.
- We are having our rehearsal dinner at the Old Harbor House. Its near the train station. The other place we were looking at was Manucci's.
- We are doing a bonfire thing after the rehearsal dinner w/ everyone. Its a real hassle getting a permit and as long as the fire is 2'x2'(i think?) you should be fine. And as long as its not too close to the dunes.. common sense stuff. You can even have more than one 2'x2' fire.

Have fun planning.
-Alison

Laura Marino Montauk, NY, USA

Thanks so much I will definitely look into those ideas! I'm trying to get started early so we know how to budget for everything & we can still have time to save for the splurges we can't be without haha. When is your wedding exactly & where are you doing the reception? Good luck, hope everything is going smoothly for you!

Alison and Mike Montauk, NY, USA

9/19/09! Coming up fast!
The ceremony is at the Lighthouse and the reception is at the Second House Tavern.

Laura Marino Montauk, NY, USA

Wow...exactly a year minus a day from mine. You'll have to let me know how it all turned out! Are you going on your honeymoon straight after?

Alison and Mike Montauk, NY, USA

Yes.
We're going to Spain and Portugal!

Laura Marino Montauk, NY, USA

Congrats! That sounds fabulous! I hope you post how everything turns out though I'm sure it will be beautiful!

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