Pond House Cafe is a rustic and elegant wedding venue located in West Hartford, Connecticut. It is also situated in a beautiful and renowned Elizabeth Park, America’s oldest public rose garden.
It has gorgeous grounds swathe with blooming flowers. Tulips and cherry blossoms bloom in spring. There are roses and a plethora of other flowers in summer and dahlias in fall. There is always something that blooms in the venue, no matter what the season is.
Pond House Cafe’s reception room has massive windows that let the natural light flow. The scenery of foliage outside the reception room makes an elegant backdrop for your wedding photos. It is indeed a perfect venue for couples who love nature and elegance.
This incredible wedding venue in Connecticut offers a variety of facilities that caters to every style of wedding, including:
- Pond House Cafe’s fieldstone fireplace makes a superb wedding backdrop for late fall and winter weddings.
- It offers a spectacular view, with floor-to-ceiling cathedral windows overseeing Elizabeth Park.
- Seasonally inspired menus that focus on fresh and local ingredients
- A nature lover’s dream reception
- Ceremony and reception can take place in one place – the grounds
- A wedding coordinator to assist you throughout your special day
- Rustic and chic wedding scenery
- An oasis in a cozy and elegant environment
If you are still searching for your perfect venue be sure to bookmark our List of Wedding Venues in CT!
venue spotlight
Pond House Cafe
Address
1555 Asylum Avenue, West Hartford, CT 06117
phone number
860-231-8823
venue type
Ballroom, Garden, Park, Restaurant
Brief History Of Pond House Cafe
In 1998, the property’s main areas were undeveloped and neglected. Over time, the Pond House Café’s management has replaced outer plants and built gardens and pathways to develop a new garden area known as Pond House Gardens. A new garden of herbs and vegetables, which is utilized by the café’s chef and consumed by guests, spans the path. Seasonal annual plants and bulbous plants stand out in large raised planters. The gardens and grounds at the Pond House are a beautiful place to visit, with the pond as a backdrop and towering trees as a canopy.
Noteworthy Features
Every bride will love the setup of Pond House Cafe from the fieldstone fireplace, the floor-to-ceiling cathedral windows, and of course direct access to Elizabeth Park!
Also from personal experience, Pond House Cafe has to be in my top 5 when it comes to food! I’ve never gotten a plate here that I didn’t gobble up in seconds.
The venue is conveniently located one half mile from I-91 and is only ten minutes from Hartford. The venue has ample parking for guests to enjoy their day without hassle.
Accommodations for Ceremonies
Pond House Cafe has a guest capacity of 150 with a minimum based on how much the couple has to spend on food and beverage, not a per person minimum. Minimums change depending on the month, day, and time of the event.
There are five wedding packages in the Pond House Cafe: Daytime Weddings, Evening Weddings, Brunch Weddings, Winter Weddings, and New Year’s Eve Weddings.
Daytime Weddings give an exquisite and elegant atmosphere with the Pond House Cafe’s ceiling cathedral windows gleaming with natural lights from the sun. The Elizabeth Park outside the reception room makes a perfect setting for your big day! The terrace outside the garden room provides a magnificent space for your cocktail hour, ceremony, lounge area, and photoshoots. Daytime Wedding Package has its Daytime Wedding Menu where you can choose from and customize with the Pond House Cafe.
Evening Weddings are blessed with simple grandeur by the glowing and twinkling lights and candles. You and your guests can revel in the adjacent terrace that oversees the park at night. The reception hour for the Evening Package starts at 6:30 pm and ends at 11:30 pm. Check out their Evening Wedding Menu to choose mouthwatering menus on your wedding day.
Brunch Weddings are ideal for brunch lovers. It is a three-hour package with hours available from 10 am to 1 pm, 11 am to 2 pm, 12 pm to 3 pm, or 1 pm to 4 pm. The brunch Wedding package is an excellent choice for couples aiming for a simple yet luxurious wedding reception. Check out their Brunch Wedding Menu to choose your ideal table d’hôte.
Winter Weddings are available from January through March. The Pond House cafe boasts a winter wonderland with its premier banquet room decorated gracefully for the holiday. The banquet room is adorned with winter decor from February to March. The reception hours for this package are 12 pm to 5 pm and 6:30 pm to 11:30 pm. Its Winter Wedding Menu will help you finalize your entrees on your wedding day!
New Year’s Eve Weddings take place from 6:30 pm to 12: 30 am, a perfect time to welcome the new year! The Pond House Cafe aspires to provide party favors to make your wedding day more special! Check out their New Year’s Eve Menu, and who knows? It might be the best day for your wedding in 2022!
Brides and grooms must prepare in their respective hotels or houses because the Pond House Cafe does not offer waiting rooms and suites at the moment. But according to the Pond House Cafe, they are currently in the process of creating a space to wait for the wedding ceremony.
Pond House Cafe has seasonally inspired menus that focus on fresh and local ingredients. Their chefs are also proficient in handling dietary needs. The Executive Chef of the Pond House Cafe will be there on the day you would review their menus to assist you with your concerns.
Pricing, Packages, and Potential Fees
The ceremony fee on Saturday evenings is $1200 and $700 on all other days. The ceremony fee for a fall or winter fireplace wedding is $350. The cost includes a half-hour earlier start time for the ceremony, set-up, and breakdown of the ceremony, and another half an hour for rehearsal 1-2 days before the wedding day.
Pond House Cafe will also let you customize your big day with their Bar Packages. All of the bar options at the Pond House Cafe are open for five hours. These bar options include mixers, sodas and juice.
Beer: Miller Lite, Stella Artois, and a local seasonal beer — Magnolia Grove
Wines: Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Rosé, Pinot Grigio and Chardonnay; Coastal Estates
Wines: Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc.
The costs for each bar options are as follows:
- Top Shelf Open Bar – $44.27
- Classic Open Bar – $33.86
- Beer and Wine Open Bar – $27.20
- Craft Beer Package – $5.26
- Brunch Bar – $21.52 (3-hour package)
Sodas and juice are also available for guests 20 years old and below for $8.50. Check out their Wedding FAQs if you have more questions about their wedding packages and rates.
