NEW YORK, NEW YORK, PART 2

Much to Mr. Latte's disappointment (or maybe relief is a better word), he couldn't get out to the East Coast for the 2nd installment of the big, bad venue search. So Day 2's victim? Momma Latte. I dragged poor Momma Latte around town to check out 3 more venues. Our first stop?

The Central Park Boathouse, New York NY

There is nothing more "New York" than Central Park. And the CPB is located right smack in the middle of it. It's also right next to the lake, home of the venetian gondolas, and also where Mr. Latte and I spent a lot of time talking and getting to know each other on our first date. The ceremony would be held inside the main ballroom, cocktails would be outside on the terrace, and everyone would come back indoors for dinner. The room itself is beautiful...the dark wood and huge windows just gives it a super romantic feel.

Momma Latte loved it! And apparently, so did everyone else getting married in NYC. Not surprisingly, the CPB books up FAST. They didn't have our holiday weekend available, but had a couple of nights open later in the summer. I wanted to check with Mr. Latte before making any hasty decisions, so we decided to move onto our next location.

the lakeside terrace.

romantic, no?

another view of the room.

Bridgewaters, New York, NY

I was really excited to check out Bridgewaters. It's located right in the South Street Seaport and boasts views of the Brooklyn Bridge. There are 2 function rooms that share the top floor of the building. We really liked the Bridge Room, which would be used for both the ceremony and dinner. The Terrace Room was connected to an outdoor terrace that would be used for the cocktail hour. The main room had beautiful wood floors and these cool, funky light fixtures hanging from the ceiling. The windows around the room really gave it a nice, open feel.

We really liked Bridgewaters. It was in a great location, had a nice look and was available our holiday weekend. Mr. Latte wasn't crazy about the lights, but we both considered it a top contender.

not the prettiest picture, but you can see how open the room is.

centerpieces against the view.

terrace room for cocktails.

Stage 6 at Steiner Studios, Brooklyn NY
Stage 6 is creative catering queen Abigail Kirsch's newest location. It's situated in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, right inside the Steiner Studios lot. It's the biggest film and movie studio east of LA, which immediately grabbed this US Weekly and Perez Hilton lovin' Latte's attention. Momma Latte and I rolled up and walked in on...a red carpet! Yup, they roll out the red carpet for their events!

Stage 6 only holds 1 event at a time, which means that all 4 glorious floors would be all mine. And glorious they are. The top floor is the rooftop, and has a huge outdoor terrace. It would be a gorgeous space for an outdoor ceremony, or a fun place to hang out during cocktail hour. The 3rd floor ballroom has floor to ceiling windows with views of the Brooklyn Bridge. There's a separate room that can be used for an indoor ceremony. There are even 2 bridal suites, so Mr. Latte and buddies can use one for...whatever they do while we ladies get ready.

I wasn't crazy about the carpet and hated the chairs, but the size, open feel of the space and that gorgeous rooftop terrace won me over. And just from reputation, we knew that the food was going to be awesome. And what's that? George Clooney is filming here? SOLD.

indoor ceremony on the 4th floor.

one side of the L-shaped rooftop terrace...love it.

part of the 3rd floor ballroom.

pretty bride at end of the hall...this one gives me the chills.

I took lots of pictures and sent them over to Mr. Latte. We went back and forth between Stage 6, Bridgewaters and Battery Gardens (oh that staircase!!!) and finally decided to go with Stage 6. They had our holiday weekend wide open so we snagged the Friday night, thinking that out-of-towners would probably have that day off from work. And it was much more cost-effective than the Saturday night option, which pretty much sealed the deal.

And just like that...the Lattes have a venue!

How did you choose your venue?