NY weddings | Imamother

mpwife

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 9:26 am

Need to know:
Hhow much it costs to make a wedding (not chassidish) in Brooklyn? I would appreciate an itemized detailing like: how much does Photography cost? flowers? music? Hall? etc.. I am also curious to know on average how much a wedding cost to make these days in total (minus sheva brachot and gifts)

thank you!!!

icedcoffee

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 9:45 am

Venue/catering is usually around $120-$180 per person. Saw one option for $65, one option for $375, so there's definitely a range, but somewhere between $120-$200pp seemed to be average.

We paid 6k for photography/videography, 6k for a band, and about 4k for florist. I did a lot of shopping around until we got the best deal, but there were definitely more expensive (and some cheaper) options.

doctorima

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 10:34 am

I know someone who married off a daughter in Ateres Chynka (well-known mainstream hall in Flatbush) about 2-3 years ago and commented that previous simchas from start to finish including everything came to about $60k, but that was years ago, and this one cost even more.

I don't have a breakdown obviously, and a major factor will be how many people you invite to the wedding. It can definitely be done for much less, especially at a takana hall, but I've been to weddings at Ateres Avrohom (a nicer hall in Williamsburg) that definitely cost much more. This is one reason many Brooklyn families are now making weddings in Lakewood, where there are gorgeous halls that give you a lot more bang for your buck.

zaq

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 11:44 am

Your best bet is to contact halls directly. There’s a huge range. Obviously it depends on how many guests you want to have, but it also depends on how lavish you want to be. One man band or twelve piece orchestra? Big name singer or unknown? Hot smorg with meat slicing table or mini rugelach and melon balls? Gowns made to order or gmach rental? Carnations and daisies or orchids, roses and birds of paradise? Open bar yea or nay? Local rav or fly in the rebbe from EY?

amother

Mint

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 11:56 am

icedcoffee wrote:

Which halls in NY are going for these prices? When I called most places in Brooklyn said $35-$50 a person and some were more but not double, triple. Did you mean per couple?

icedcoffee

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 12:17 pm

Wow, really, 35-50? That sounds super low to me. I know it's definitely possible, but when I think about what it costs to eat at a nice kosher restaurant - appetizers, entree, dessert, unlimited alcohol - surely it comes out to more than $35, so how is it even profitable? I guess I wasn't really looking at frum places though, so maybe it's different. I ended up getting married at a secular place on Long Island with a kosher caterer.

rgr

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 12:20 pm

icedcoffee wrote:

The halls don't provide the alcohol, the person making the wedding does. So it's not included in the hall's price

amother

Mint

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 12:20 pm

icedcoffee wrote:

All the places were frum places. No unlimited bar because that's extra, so is valet, and for the least expensive food options. I think tip and tax were extra. These were in the Flatbush and Williamsburg halls- not takana halls, regular halls, unless they weren't honest about added expenses that they will only tell you when you go in to discuss?

pesek zman

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 12:31 pm

rgr wrote:

The halls don't provide the alcohol, the person making the wedding does. So it's not included in the hall's price

My hall included open bar

amother

Mint

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 12:33 pm

rgr wrote:

The halls don't provide the alcohol, the person making the wedding does. So it's not included in the hall's price

Even if you buy 50 bottles of wine on your own that's not a big expense compared to everything else so it doesn't add so much to the cost.

amother

Black

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 12:57 pm

icedcoffee wrote:

I'm not the op. But, I have a question was it cheaper to do it in the secular place vs frun place?? Do u mind saying the hall? How much was it to rent and how much for the caterer? I'd do it too if its cheaper than frum place.

icedcoffee

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 5:57 pm

Our place was $110 pp (Crest Hollow Country Club), which included renting the hall and the catering. It was definitely on the lower end of the spectrum of places we looked at. So it sounds like the frum places are definitely cheaper. Weddings are usually a huge money-making industry whereas it seems like the frum places are less about the profits, and more about providing a reasonable option for the Jewish community. I had always figured that, but I had no idea there were options for $35-50!

pesek zman

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 6:02 pm

icedcoffee wrote:

These halls usually have (large) minimum of people, and most require seperate seating which doesn't work for everyone. Also, you can't compare Crest Hollow, with it's numerous room options and outdoor space, to the (usual) basement of many of these frum places (no matter how beautiful it is, it's a basement) It's amazing that people have 'affordable' options but Cresthollow is another league.

Cheiny

Thu, Oct 18 2018, 11:33 pm

mpwife wrote:

You can save money on flowers by getting beautiful silk arrangements from a gmach.