I honestly don't understand the hype surrounding this venue. I considered it for an event, but very…read moreglad that I looked elsewhere. I attended a reception here, and that sealed the deal for me entirely. They really advertise for a much better experience than what is given in reality, including "on-Site and Transportation to and from the venue," which means that if equipment breaks down (and it did) that you are left waiting to pile onto a bus whenever they can get one to your guests. Walking into the space, all I could see was an awful slab floor. It looked as if they were still in renovation stage or something. Just awful. Your guests get one little coat rack that looks as if they bought it online, and it's in a back hallway as you make your way to the restrooms. It's a cramped space and I wonder why this place was so poorly built, but then I remembered what I call the 'benefactor factor,' and it became more and more clear. The only way that this place becomes "gorgeous," as it's been referred to in other posts, is if you spend a ton of money with a trained event professional (outside and separate cost, of course) to beautify it. Otherwise, you have a small room with a slab floor to work with. The only redeeming quality of the place is the outside deck.

Attended a wedding for my good friends. Really neat setting. The roof extension off the back porch…read morecame in clutch as it rained the entire day of the wedding. It's surrounded by trees and made for a wonderful wedding setting. About 80-90 attendees and it was a great size, more than 90 would probably overwhelm the space. Logistics and transport were not super smooth, but all was well once we finally got there.

Food is absolutely delicious. We went twice in one week! The Gnocchi and Short ribs were lights…read moreout. Don't be scared off from the presentation the food is filling and the atmosphere is great. All around great service and behind the bar Nick is an awesome bartender! . My only recommendations would be to enhance the share plate offerings and add a steak to the menu. You will not be disappointed, this place is a must try!

Tasty food, nice atmosphere, great cocktails, attentive service. As for price point, we ordered…read morehalf size and in our opinion it's was very pricey for the serving, more of a full price plate at a small plate serving. Want to support local fare, but feel like they need to work out balance of sides and protein to make a common customer satisfied. We enjoyed the meal but walked out hungry at $100.00 for a party of 2.

I recently hosted an event here and the venue itself was well maintained and provided a great…read moresetting. Unfortunately, there were issues with the catering service that affected the experience. I appreciate the venue offering support afterward, and I would encourage clearer enforcement of vendor policies during events. Thank you to the staff for their assistance.

Everything was beautiful , the staff was very engaging . The manager came over and sat with us and…read moretold us about all the amenities and there are many. Upper level staff, bar, food preparation area. Beautiful building I believe it used to be the American Legion . Our floor could hold and seat 100 easily . The decor is opulent for this type of venue .

Gorgeous wedding venue! I loved how there were many different areas to gather and celebrate!read more

The wedding ceremony setting was the worst. No one could see the faces, gowns, etc. of the wedding…read moreparty including the minister. The backlighting was so severe, it was horrible. The wedding party had to be very disappointed. The food was pulled pork and it was burnt. I was just a guest. I wrote the management to see if they have curtains to block the light coming in. No reply.

Sadly, I went to The Knickerbocker wearing jeans and not my baggy trousers. New Holland's place is…read moreright on Bridge Street, so it's right in the heart of things. For drinks, I had the Dragon's Milk S'mores on tap and the S'moregasm cocktail. For such similar drinks they were wildly different. At 11% ABV the beer was quite strong and I really didn't taste the "s'more" flavor. Meanwhile, the cocktail was super sweet as expected. New Holland has a solid line of beers so you can't really go wrong, but I don't think the S'more flavors worked on tap. Everybody debates whether pineapple should be on pizza but how about mustard?! So I had to try the seasonal Chicken Cordon Bleu pizza and it was delicious! It had cut up fried chicken, ham, and different types of cheese along with scallions and of course mustard. Somehow, they made this work! Service was also great despite the crowds but my only real negative was that they sneak a credit card charge onto the bill and hide the notice at the bottom of the menu. That doesn't fee transparent when businesses do that but otherwise, we enjoyed our time at The Knickerbocker.

Ordered buffalo wings and double cheese burger…read more Start with the wings. Buffalo flavor was standard. 0 crisp on the wings, on top of that the chicken itself seemed to be lower quality. I could see after having a few beers these might have seemed good, but sober they were not it. Double cheese burger was smaller then I anticipated. Beef was well seasoned and had a good taste. Bun was generic. My real issue was the veggie on it. My lettuce had brown/black tips. My tomato was soggy. The pickles had no crunch to it, they were tough to bite through. Fries that came with the burger were also not my favorite. Thickness between wedge fried and steak fries, rough chopped every piece was different size so how could you cook them all consistently. No crisp to the fries, fairly greasy too. I wont be back.

We are SO thrilled that we chose The Cheney Place for our February wedding! From the moment we…read morestepped inside, we knew it was the perfect venue. The combination of industrial charm, elegant details, and modern touches created the most breathtaking setting for our big day. The space is incredibly versatile, allowing us to bring our vision to life effortlessly. The natural light, gorgeous furniture, and unique décor elements made for stunning photos. Plus, having multiple levels gave our guests plenty of room to mingle, dance, and enjoy the celebration! The staff, especially Hannah, was incredible to work with! Leading up to our wedding, communication via email was easy and efficient, and they were always helpful in answering our questions. Everything went smoothly for both our rehearsal and wedding day, and we felt completely taken care of. Our only small frustration was the accessibility of the office staff from the main entrance. Since their office is on the far end of the second floor, they couldn't hear us when we were dropping off or picking up décor, which led to some long waits outside, even when we had appointments. That said, this was a minor issue, and it in no way affected the actual wedding day, which was executed flawlessly! If you're looking for a one-of-a-kind venue with character, elegance, and a great team behind it, The Cheney Place is the perfect choice! We wouldn't change a thing about our wedding day and are so grateful to the team for making it unforgettable.

My husband and I had our wedding reception at The Cheney place this summer. I fell in love with The…read moreCheney Place when I was a guest at my friend's wedding in 2017. Ever since, I knew this was where I wanted my wedding to be. They sure delivered on making my dreams come true! They help you out every step of the way & the staff is so helpful & organized. We had Meg as our day of coordinator & she helped to make sure everything went perfectly & I didn't have to think at all & could enjoy my day! Cannot recommend this venue enough :)

A joke of a bar. Bartenders and staff have no control over anything that's going on inside the bar…read more If you like being treated with disrespect by the staff, this is the place for you!

My Grandfather opened this bar years ago. When I travel to Grand Rapids? It's a MUST!! Great…read moreservice, great atmosphere and the perfect place to unwind!

Just an all around solid brewery. We went early on a Saturday, and snagged a spot at the bar. Beers…read morewere good- but the show stopper was the food! Great chips and guac, husband liked his chicken street tacos but my burrito? 10/10. Just a well executed shrimp burrito with great salsas. All of their birria items looked amazing- will try when we come back. Friendly service, and a nice vibe to it. Romos pro tip: if getting the cerveza- add a splash of their michelada mix!

One of my good friends took me out for a late birthday celebration here at City Built!…read more This was my first time actually eating here but second time being in/ near the space because a few days before they hosted a World Cup watch party right on Mason street, which was super dope btw! I looked on City Built's website to see the menu before going there (of course) and found out that Los Mariscos De Pancho is now serving their food here which was a nice surprise since I have tried them at their Leonard location a few years back and enjoyed their food! I wish I could've tried some of the food that City Built had before since i had heard good things in the past but loved the combination of both City Built and Los Mariscos De Pancho! While browsing their website, I also found out that there would be open mic night on Thursdays and live music/ concerts on Monday nights which is always fun! We sat at the bar and we were pretty close to the musicians so it was kinda loud but my friend and I were still able to have our conversation. We came on a Thursday night around 6:30pm and it was already a steady amount of people there but as the night progressed the restaurant was more busy. Street parking wasn't too hard to find at this time or maybe we just got lucky.I believe the meters are free after 7pm! Walking in, there's bar seating, booth seating, high top table, coffee table seating, and bench style seating where you can sit yourself. There are 2 different entrances and in front of the main one there's patio seating! We opted to sit at the bar this time since most of the booths were full and it just happened to work out that way. We started off with drinks an alcoholic and non alcoholic version of the Agua De Jamaica and an order of the Garlic Butter Mussels. The my NA Agua De Jamaica was refreshing and much needed for the hot day. The mussels come in a serving of 6 or 12 and next time I would definitely order 12 right off the bat because we ended up ordering another round LOL. The sauce was so good I could drink it. The cucumbers were a nice refreshment/ palate cleanser from all that garlicky, buttery goodness. Just writing this review makes me want more right now! I also thought the mussels were a good size too so I will definitely be ordering those again. We also both ordered the Birria Ramen which came with Texas toast which I've never seen before. The portion size of the ramen was very filling since I was stuffed before our 2nd round of mussels came out (which took longer than anticipated to come out since we had to check to see if the order was put in). I also ordered the Birria Plate (4 birria tacos & consume) to go for my husband, which I should've ordered a bit earlier because of how long the mussels took. In the meantime, my friend wanted an expresso martini which they don't normally serve, but our amazing bartender made his own version with what he had and gave us both a cup to try. I don't even drink expresso martinis like that but the drink he made was delicious! I also heard that they have great beers too but I can't speak to that since I drink beers like that. Overall loved the vibes in here. They had different entertainment options like the live music and a few different board games to pick from. The ambiance had lots of natural light, and cute string lights, and overall a nice place to have dinner and drinks! Service was a bit on the slower side, maybe for this particular day, but everyone we interacted with was very friendly.

I've been craving some good polish food for a while now so Pulaski Days truly came at the right…read moretime! I choose to get some food from Eastern Ave Hall this year mostly because they have the online ordering + curbside pickup option. Makes everything so easy. I would note to maybe not try and go pickup food at the same time that the Pulaski Days Parade is going on because it's so chaotic around that area lol All the food was so good. Pierogis are always my favorite and these were super good. Also loved the kielbasa. I'm picky about mashed potato's and gravy but thought these were yummy! The kapusta was a little mild for my taste, I usually like it a little more "sour" but still tasty. I'm also not typically a fan of golumbki, I think it's a texture thing, but this one they served I actually liked! I was surprised! Dill pickle soup was good and I hadn't had this in so long. It's a childhood favorite so it felt like a special treat to eat a good version of this again. The real stand out was the kremowki/cream horns. These were literally insane. I was blown away by how good these are. Super rich so you really only need one MAYBE 2 but they hold over night and you'll definitely be craving more.

Eastern Avenue Hall is one of the many Polish halls in Grand Rapids. Most of the Polish halls are…read moreon the West side of town, but there are four on the northeast side, which is closer to where I live. We stopped by Eastern Hall during Pulaski Days to get dinner and drinks and had a great time. The Polish halls originally served as community gathering places for Polish immigrants to connect and share their heritage. Plenty of Polish people still gather at these membership-based halls, but Pulaski Days provides an opportunity to the public to visit and eat lots of great Polish food! Most halls have a cover charge during Pulaksi Days, as it serves as their biggest fundraiser each year. Eastern Hall was $10 per person which I thought was quite steep (double what we paid at Fifth Street Hall), but worth it for me for a once a year event. Lines for food were quite long, but it moved pretty quickly and we had fun catching up with our friends and had a couple drinks while we waited. We ordered the Polish plate, with kielbasa (smoked sausage), kapusta (braised sauerkraut), golumpki (cabbage rolls), pierogis (potato dumplings), mashed potatoes and gravy, and a slice of rye bread. This is pretty typical of the Polish plates at the different halls, but most people have their favorite plate. Eastern Hall is definitely in the running for my favorite! The pierogis were tender with a bit of crisp on the outside and the best I've had at the halls. The kapusta wasn't as tart and sour as I'm used to, but it would definitely cater to a palate that isn't used to super strong kapusta. We also got a kremówka for dessert - this version was a cream-filled, cone-shaped puff pastry dusted with powdered sugar. We only got one to split, which was a huge mistake! It was so delicious and a bit small. Next time I'd definitely get two. I'll definitely be back to Eastern Hall next year for Pulaski Days! Note that during this fun and festive weekend parking in this area can be a bit tricky, so get there early or prepare to walk a bit.

I was never sure if I was someone who wanted to have a real wedding. I was so worried about what…read moreneeded to be done. I've focused on my career and had no idea about how to plan a wedding and my family does not live in the area to help out. I knew that I would need a wedding planner if we were to have a real wedding. And I couldn't have made a better choice than Elegant Events of West Michigan. Nicole is amazing. There are very few people in this world who are equally organized and creative and she is one of them. I had the platinum package of full planning and I am SO glad I did. My husband and I continue to say it was one of the best decisions we have made. She walked us through every detail and really got to know us as a couple. The vendors she recommended were perfect for us. She was there for every panicked phone call from me. When I had an entire flower meeting and then I got home and completely changed my mind...she set up another meeting without making me feel like a crazy person. She really cares about what you want. AND she kept us on budget. This was important as we paid for the wedding ourselves. I would have never known what to expect to pay for what things, she helped us prioritize our budget so we could afford the things that were most important to us. She also planned our rehearsal dinner which was at an art gallery and was amazing. She even took pictures of me and my family during the rehearsal dinner. She was there to handle every little thing that came up on the day of the wedding including sewing my belt for my dress back together after I tried to alter it. I felt like I was in a movie when she said, "Oh, I can fix that" and started sewing! The wedding was beautiful, more beautiful than I could have expected. The food and dessert table was amazing which was very important to us. I was worried that no one would dance and the dance floor was full all night thanks to the DJ she recommended. Everything was very professional and personal. Her assistant, Caitlyn who helped on the day was also very professional. She even handled a during event switch from Pepsi to Coke by my dad's request without me even knowing about it. We have been to many weddings over the years and of course we think that ours was great, but it has been over a month and we still have people calling us to tell us that it was the most amazing night. If you think about planning a wedding on your own, consider all the vendors and the coordination. You can't figure everything out from Pinterest! Do you want to spend time with your family for your wedding, or do you want to be setting up and breaking everything down? Do you want to spend months researching vendors or do you want to celebrate with your family, friends and fiance? I would highly encourage anyone to use Elegant Events of West Michigan to plan your wedding or event. I wouldn't have believed how great everything looked, but it turns out, she got me a great photographer...so I have the pictures to prove it!

My husband and I did the long distance thing through most of our relationship, including the months…read moreleading up to our wedding, so he didn't contribute a whole lot to the planning process just because he was so far away. The one thing that he did contribute however, was the idea of a wedding coordinator, and then finding Elegant Events and convincing me to have a preliminary meeting with Nicole. I didn't think we needed a coordinator, especially at the extra cost, but looking back, our wedding day would have been a complete disaster without Elegant Events. She helped me every single step of the way, having never been really into weddings, I was unsure of the way things were "supposed" to go or what was traditional, professional, etc. She never once made me feel stupid for asking what I'm sure were some really dumb questions. Our decorations in our reception tent were beautiful and I'm not sure I can take any of the credit for it. Nicole has a great eye, and helped me pull everything together for the look I wanted on our big day. She kept everything on track for the rehearsal and was in touch with all of the vendors the week of the wedding; everyone knew where they were supposed to be and when. It took a huge load off of my shoulders. On the wedding day, Nicole and her team spent the majority of the day setting up the reception tent in the 90 degree heat. When the bartenders didn't come with the mixers, she fixed it. When the pizza ovens weren't working and we were behind schedule, she took care of it, while I was pretty much oblivious. She even arranged transportation for my wedding party and anyone else who needed it back to the hotel when the cab service I had contacted didn't work out. Elegant Events is no less than amazing, easy to work with and will make any event a hit :)