Red Lion Inn

Reviews 3

A

A Private User

I got married at the RLI in August 2008 and after reading the negative reviews online, I thought I should set the record straight on this place. As a bride reading the comments before my wedding, I was nervous. Yes, there was turnover in the sales staff over the past year. It was not ideal. But I have to say that the people I dealt with at the Red Lion were extremely helpful and did their best to calm my nerves. We were especially impressed with Helena, Elaine and Lynns professionalism and help. My instinct leading up to the event was to be obsessively organized, but I didnt need to be! The RLI handled everything beautifully! The venue is stunning, theres no disputing that. But the staff there goes above and beyond to make things perfect. Their attention to detail was truly impressive. We wanted to have our ceremony outdoors, and requested certain items be out there, such as a table for the unity candle and a glass to smash at the end of the ceremony (all of which, was packed up and returned to us after the wedding... cake too!). They didnt forget a thing, and even offered to set up more chairs than we needed just in case. The cocktail hour, by all accounts, was amazing. The raw bar setup was elegant and grand, and really wowed our guests. The passed appetizers were a huge hit. (AND they had trays and trays of food and champagne waiting for the wedding party when we arrived back from pictures). The reception: Kudos to Ron and his staff for executing the reception like clockwork. This guy is a dynamo! He was everywhere, involved in every aspect of the reception, from introductions, to dinner, to the cake cutting to a group photo! You would have thought there were two of him! Ron is an amazing coordinator in every way, and we can not thank him enough for making our night spectacular. Oh, and Chef Tony Ambrose, need I say more?! If you love food, you will not be disappointed. We asked for a tasting a month before our wedding and were pleased to hear that Chef Ambrose would be running the kitchen the night of our wedding. Any nervousness we had disappeared at that point. At the tasting he came out and introduced himself, and took the time to explain each course. Many of our guests commented that the food was outstanding, certainly much better than would be expected of wedding food. In fact, nothing about the meal remotely resembled wedding food; it was the caliber food you would spend big bucks for at a fine dining restaurant in Boston. One thing to note: allow a great chef to do his thing and try not to be picky about the exact menu. By letting him choose which in-season, local ingredients to use, you are inviting him to use his creativity and culinary knowledge to prepare a fantastic meal. Another thing to note about the food: it came out timely and hot! Dinner service lasted no longer than expected, and our guests were on the dancefloor with plenty of time to get down! The hotel: the rooms at the RLI are far from ordinary. They are cozy and warm, and each has a personality all its own. We can not wait to go back. We can not say enough about our experience at the RLI. We loved it, and would not change a thing about our wedding day. If you are a bride that is worrying about your upcoming wedding at the Red Lion, please know that they will do their best for you on your wedding day. Thats what they are there to do, and they do an amazing job!

A

A Private User

My husband and I got married Oct. 18, 2008 and could not have asked for a more perfect day. From the moment I reserved our date a year earlier up until the day of the wedding, my event planners were very reassuring, extremely patient, and most imortantly attentive. The staff and planners have many years of experience in the wedding industry and they took all my anxiety and worry away immediately. Any emails or phone calls I made would be returned promptly. I felt like they genuinely cared about my wedding. I wouldnt worry about the quick turnover of the staff because my initial event planner changed positions within the RLI and I thought everything was going to get confusing but the new event planner (s) swept right in and it didnt affect me at all, again because of their reassuring nature and experience. My guests raved about the delicious food and apps and the GORGEOUS atmosphere. On my wedding day my every need was catered to and it was so nice to see all of the event planners there making sure I didnt have to worry about time management or what not- a friend of mine who just got married noticed this and told me how impressed she was that they were all there for me and how "unstressed" i looked. The after party downstairs at The Cave was flawless and the food again was so delicious. I could go on and on about all the positive things about this place and the staff and owner as well who is really nice and introduced himself to me on a few occasions. I would also go with the vendors they recommend because they all know eachother and are familiar with the facility and that was a plus! The next morning the staff packed up all my wedding stuff/cake/centerpieces with great care. Before I went to the RLI to check it out for my reception I also read some negative reviews but I decided to see for myself and glad I didnt let someone elses so-called "bad experience" let me think twice. See for yourself and you will be sooooo happy you did.

JU

Julie Dambra

09.03.2016 My daughters wedding was exceptional. The venue Coordinator was the best. He will service your wedding the day of, from he delivery of the centerpieces to the last dance of the evening. We cannot say enough about him. He is a man that you can truly count on. The food was raved about by the guests. I met Gerde, the owner, two days prior to the wedding. He is the nicest man. He made us feel welcome, like we were family. He was so sincere we invited him to celebrate with us the day of the event. The front desk was very attentive and helped us with whatever we forgot or couldnt find immediately. No task was too small for an urgent response. My bartender, the first night I stayed, was named Amy, I believe? sweetest kid ever. The kind of person that makes you want to be friends with them the rest of your life. I was fortunate that she was also the bartender at the cocktail hour. Her brother Vinny, also worked there. He took care of the head table the night of the wedding. He came and introduced himself to us and was very attentive all evening. Someone did a marvelous job raising those two! The guests rooms were immaculate, beautiful and very comfortable! I loved my stay there. My only hiccup through the whole thing was the bar manager. A grumpy old gus, that spoke to people like they were an inconvenience to him. He really set a bad tone for myself and a couple of guests. His harshness was unnecessary. Gerde, fortunately is a wise man that I am sure will not allow that him to speak with such disdain for his customers in the future. I would highly recommend this venue to any one. As a side note we had our rehearsal dinner at Atlantica. Same owner. The food was fabulous and the service was excellent! Thank you Red Lion Inn staff and Gerde! You really pulled things together for me! ~ Julie