By Ryan
So the search for a caterer is over and it is just nice to check things off of the list of things to do and decisions to make. We have gone with a caterer from Worcester County, bringing a little bit of hometown cooking to the reception in a couple of ways. For those that don’t know, Ryan grew up in Worcester, the second largest city in New England. It is just 40 minutes outside of Boston, the home of Holy Cross College and where every true train diner car was manufactured.
Pepper’s Fine Food Catering made a lechon kawali that actually had Nanger and Margie and me talking about it long after the tasting. Their interpretation of Filipino food recipes which we provided them is sublime! It was obvious that they not only enjoy catering, but enjoy the creative aspects of making incredible food.
Crispy skin, and melt in your mouth tenderness served with a sweet and sour banana ketchup and a banana and sweet-potato mash. I wanted to ask for seconds at the tasting. 
They were one of the few that took my food allergies seriously. One caterer we were almost ready to go with, kept putting peanuts, fresh-water fish, and peas onto their menu. We gave them a chance to revise it in case it was an honest mistake and they replaced it with a different freshwater fish, nut and kept the peas. Is it that difficult to not poison the groom?!?
I’m really looking forward to introducing everyone to the lumpia shanghai, the pancit bihon and the other delicious Pepper’s dishes. Anyone have any special requests?
By Ryan
Welcome all Save the Date visitors! Kamusta? Join the Discussion Board and drop us a line. We’d love to hear from you. Here’s a sneak peek at the place where we will be partying the night away. After searching for the right place, we found that the least expensive one was actually our favorite.
Welcome to the Arlington Town Hall. It is 20 minutes away from the church and has an amazing great hall. (where people vote and hold town meetings) There is a garden and fountain outside and a cool old “hearing room” and balcony upstairs where people can watch the dance floor from a safe distance.
Aubrey’s friend Anne actually found the place for us, after we all vented about how difficult it was to find an inexpensive but nice reception venue that wasn’t a sterile and impersonal wedding factory. We walked in and Patsy gave us a tour and Aubrey and I looked at each other with the “I think this is the place look.” Tell us what you think. I personally like the old Victorian guy with a top hat in the hearing room.
By Aubrey
Another option that we looked into was the Hibernian Hall, the Roxbury Center of the Arts that was established as an Irish cultural/social hall in 1913. It had several things going for it: tie to the arts and Irish roots, and the rental costs were incredibly reasonable. Roxbury leads a double life: some of the most cultured institutions are right on its border, including the Museum of Fine Arts, Wentworth Institute, and Northeastern University, but also has sections that are run down, with bars on windows, and a high crime rate. We were hoping Hibernian Hall was on the outskirts of Roxbury. Erin was in town and went on our venture to check out the place. As we drove further… and still further into Roxbury, the conversation got continually quieter… and quieter. Spotting the destination, Ryan went to turn the car around and find a parking spot. Erin and I both spoke up at the same time: finding parking was not necessary. We turned around and kept going. Thus, no pictures of this venue.
One bright spot about this venue was discovering that Haley House, a Catholic nonprofit soup kitchen that provides training to the under-employed in the food industry, housing for the homeless, and a farming co-op growing food to distribute to those in need, does drop-off catering for events. Haley House was listed on the Hibernian Hall website as a possible caterer for events. We still haven’t decided on using Haley House, but they are definetly a possibility.
By Ryan
Finding the venue for our reception was quite an adventure. The cost of a wedding anywhere in Boston is exorbitent, and October is the busiest month for weddings in New England. Everyone wants to see the fall foliage I guess. So with more than a year away we really wanted to nail down our venue. Our first stop was Springstep Dance Studio in Medford, MA. Just on the other side of Somerville, it is 20 minutes away from the church:
It is modern and interesting, has hardwood floors and is inexpensive for Boston. We had discussed it for a whle and knew that we didn’t want a hotel. or other corporate looking facility. Wherever we held the reception had to have character and lack ugly, patterned. stain-hider™ carpet or a hung acoustical tile ceiling. We also liked the idea of supporting a dance studio because my mom was a competitive ballroom dancer, and she would have really loved salsa-dancing across the floor.
The view out the windows was nothing much to talk about and this section of Medford doesn’t have the picturesque Norman Rockwell style that our out-of-town visitors would want. We wanted something where we wouldn’t have to do too much decoration, where we could bring in our own caterer to save some money and had a very New England feel.
We are getting married in the fall of 2009 and are very excited. Thank you for visiting.
