Everything you need for a California wedding

Hey William Grant3!

I’ve been scouting out various venues around San Francisco lately to gather some intel—so, here is a list of locations capable of hosting at least 300 guests.

• Dolis - Dugopolje
• Hotel Meden - Seget
• Castello - Kaštela
• President Hotel - San Francisco
• Bolero - San Francisco
• Phoenix - Dugopolje
• Robot - Stobreč
• Maestral - Trogir
• Belvedere - Seget

I personally visited Dolis, Phoenix, and Robot—along with a few other spots that fall short of the 300-person mark. Out of this group, Dolis is the only one I actually found acceptable, though the scenery isn't exactly breathtaking (considering it's located in Dugopolje). I did hear that Kaštil is a salt mine near Omiš with stunning natural surroundings, but they can only accommodate up to 200 people there.
As for tent space, I’m completely in the dark—perhaps someone else might chime in with more details. I have contact numbers for several of these venues, so just let me know if you need them.

It appears quite a few people have already chimed in while I was busy drafting my post. 🙂 👍

Zachary White9 said:Hey, I need some serious help here!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Is anyone in Bellevue or Savannah around??
I need an answer ASAP 🙂 thanks thanks thanks!

Oh, and while you're at it—does anyone know how much a standard pot of chili holds?
😕

So, I went ahead and booked Amigos for you. Since we’re looking at a crowd of about 100 people—actually, let's call it up to 120 to be safe—that spot works just fine. Honestly, the floor plan feels a little tight, but hey, life isn't perfect, right? The vibe there is absolutely gorgeous, though, and the service is top-notch. The staff made such a killer impression on us; they were genuinely kind, which is a refreshing change from some of the other places we checked out. Though, if I'm being totally honest, we didn't shop around all that much because once we saw Amigos, it was basically "the one."

Finding a restaurant or a venue was a total headache for us because our guest count is in that awkward middle ground—not quite a massive wedding, but definitely not a small dinner party either. But we finally stumbled upon something that hits the sweet spot. We were really leaning toward staying right by the coast, and since our big celebration is happening in June, it felt like the absolute perfect choice. 😍

silentpuma28 said:I've heard Pimpinela and Arkada are great—really solid choices... also, there's this ballet school over in Castle Rock, and I was at their recital this summer where they did the catering, and honestly? Huge thumbs up from me!👍

Thanks for the tips, noc, slavaz, and Megan Miller3!🙂
I'll give them a call and let you know how it goes! 👍

placidharbor21 said:Man, I totally get where you're coming from; making that call is tough, and let's be real, the band usually ends up winning that battle because that's just how these things go. 😉
As for me, my DJ is still going to play our local stuff, but mostly we're talking 80s vibes and current hits (the more urban, modern ones, obviously), plus a few old-school classics from the 80s (think things like New Wave, Fossil, Elvis Presley, or those classic Star Magazine style hits) to keep the older folks happy and warm things up. It’s that kind of music that bridges the generational gap, so I know I won't miss the mark—even though I’m positive my relatives would much rather be jumping around to bubblegum pop, but hey, not at my party, whether they like it or not. As for the foreign music, I’ll save all that for the very end once the older crowd has finally passed out. 😁

Don't stress too much; whatever you decide, it’s going to turn out fine!!

I've already booked my DJ! My guy is Duplancic, what about yours?

Thank you so much!!! I’m currently following along via my phone—which is a bit of a struggle—so I’ll check back in once I’m at my computer... this is already helping immensely... Do all the local spots have websites where I can look at photos?

What do you guys think:

100's or Cappuccino? (bands)

Look, I’ve got a hundred guys on speed dial and they are all absolute legends—super chill, easy to work with, and you can hammer out any deal with them, whether it's the setlist or whatever else is on the table👍 as for those other losers, I don't even know who they are🤷

Zachary White9 said:What do you guys think:

100's or Cappuccino? (bands)

I heard some good things about Cappuccino. I actually ran into them back in October at Central Park—it was a pretty small gig, maybe only about 50 people there—and they mentioned the band put on a really beautiful set.
The only thing is, they were drinking quite a bit of alcohol, and when we watched the footage later, we saw them actually grabbing a bottle of wine off someone else's table to take a swig! 🤣 Honestly, it drove me a little crazy! 😲

🙂🙂🙂

redviper17 said:I heard some good things about Cappuccino. I actually ran into them back in October at Central Park—it was a pretty small gig, maybe only about 50 people there—and they mentioned the band put on a really beautiful set.
The only thing is, they were drinking quite a bit of alcohol, and when we watched the footage later, we saw them actually grabbing a bottle of wine off someone else's table to take a swig! 🤣 Honestly, it drove me a little crazy! 😲

haha, no way, I can't believe that😂

Anyway, I grabbed some footage from a couple of people, so I’m going to sit down and watch it all tomorrow morning. My only gripe is how unbalanced the lineups felt—you've got maybe two or three people showing up for one group, while the Cappuccino crew had like six. And yeah, obviously, they charge twice as much.

Does anyone else have any thoughts on these two groups???

I had a conversation with a guy from the Starbucks corporate office, and he seems decent enough. I also went through the DVD they provided—it’s fine. I don't really have any complaints per se, though I've never actually heard them perform live, so I can't speak to their stage presence. In the end, we decided to go with a different band instead. There you have it. 🤷

William Grant3 said:Thank you so much!!! I’m currently following along via my phone—which is a bit of a struggle—so I’ll check back in once I’m at my computer... this is already helping immensely... Do all the local spots have websites where I can look at photos?

Fine, here are some links for you:

http://www.hotelmedena.com/weddings.asp

http://www.restorangusar.com/
http://www.restoran-kokolo.com/ (this one is my 🙂 favorite)

http://www.restaurantbolero.com/

Eric Allen4 said:I had a conversation with a guy from the Starbucks corporate office, and he seems decent enough. I also went through the DVD they provided—it’s fine. I don't really have any complaints per se, though I've never actually heard them perform live, so I can't speak to their stage presence. In the end, we decided to go with a different band instead. There you have it. 🤷

And which one did you pick, if you don't mind me asking? Was it because they were better musicians or just some connection you had?

William Grant3 said:Thank you so much!!! I’m currently following along via my phone—which is a bit of a struggle—so I’ll check back in once I’m at my computer... this is already helping immensely... Do all the local spots have websites where I can look at photos?

Bob Corli, look, I'm currently out and about too, so I've got plenty of experience with long-distance planning. Honestly, I don't think it's as common here to host receptions away from the main hotel or restaurant, even though that's a totally standard move abroad—like in England or over in the States. Le Méridien is such a gorgeous spot near the water that I'd suggest it in a heartbeat, but if you're dead set on a tent or something similar, your best bet is hitting up some agencies. But let me tell you, even those agencies might not hit the level of quality you're looking for; based on my own experience, I know two of them in San Francisco just aren't up to par, and while I can't speak for The Pearl, they seem to have decent reviews on the forums, so maybe give them a shot—here's the site: . Still, if you have any chance at all to visit before you pull the trigger and see everything in person, you really should, unless you have someone you trust implicitly to do it for you. I was somewhere in that boat myself, visiting a place for three days about six months out, checking everything over and booking, then heading back just a week before the big day. Also, I'm pretty sure that if you want a religious ceremony in the US, it has to happen inside a church; anything else is just going to be a civil ceremony through the courthouse.

redviper17 said:I've already booked my DJ! My guy is Duplancic, what about yours?

Well, mine's Mario.

Nicholas Ortiz8 said:Bob Corli, look, I'm currently out and about too, so I've got plenty of experience with long-distance planning. Honestly, I don't think it's as common here to host receptions away from the main hotel or restaurant, even though that's a totally standard move abroad—like in England or over in the States. Le Méridien is such a gorgeous spot near the water that I'd suggest it in a heartbeat, but if you're dead set on a tent or something similar, your best bet is hitting up some agencies. But let me tell you, even those agencies might not hit the level of quality you're looking for; based on my own experience, I know two of them in San Francisco just aren't up to par, and while I can't speak for The Pearl, they seem to have decent reviews on the forums, so maybe give them a shot—here's the site: . Still, if you have any chance at all to visit before you pull the trigger and see everything in person, you really should, unless you have someone you trust implicitly to do it for you. I was somewhere in that boat myself, visiting a place for three days about six months out, checking everything over and booking, then heading back just a week before the big day. Also, I'm pretty sure that if you want a religious ceremony in the US, it has to happen inside a church; anything else is just going to be a civil ceremony through the courthouse.

True... it really does need to be a consecrated space.
I think at St. Jerome over in San Francisco, you could technically marry right in front of the chapel—the view overlooking the entire bay is absolutely insane.😉

Or maybe at a private estate near the coast, somewhere like a historic mansion right next to a small parish.

placidharbor21 said:Well, mine's Mario.

Oh, awesome! I can't wait to swap stories and see what everyone thinks! 😉

Zachary White9, did you actually book the room yet, or are you still just sitting on it?

Hey ladies, I finally decided to jump into this forum because I could use some advice on planning a party, and apparently, this is the spot to get the real scoop. Does anyone here know what Disney is actually like? Thinking about booking them for my bash, so I’m curious if you’ve dealt with them before. Or maybe the Pink Panther? Thanks for the help 🙂

Harold Booth4 said:Hey ladies, I finally decided to jump into this forum because I could use some advice on planning a party, and apparently, this is the spot to get the real scoop. Does anyone here know what Disney is actually like? Thinking about booking them for my bash, so I’m curious if you’ve dealt with them before. Or maybe the Pink Panther? Thanks for the help 🙂

I know a bit about Disney—assuming that’s who you mean. I can’t say I’ve actually sat through one of their sets, but word on the street is they’re pretty solid.
As for the Pink Panther, I actually had them booked once before I ended up changing my mind. It wasn't because I thought they were bad; I just had a change of heart about the whole vibe. 🤷
From what I gather, they really know how to set a mood and are generally great—though if you hire them, I’d suggest opting for the version where they perform with a female vocalist 🙂 because having a woman on vocals always makes things better. I went to catch them live this past weekend, though the party itself wasn't really my scene (and they didn't have a female singer that night), so perhaps that influenced my perspective. 😲

They have a decent repertoire and play plenty of foreign tracks, provided that's what you're into. Plus, they include their own light show in the package, assuming that fits within your wedding budget.