Hosting a wedding in New Orleans comes with the many charms of the city. Whether that means hosting bridal events at a historic hotel wrapped in wrought iron, at a traditional French Quarter restaurant or at a popular local boutique or brewery, the Crescent City has plenty of options to make your bridal event a truly special soiree.
Arnaud’s
Arnaud’s, the popular fine-dining restaurant in the French Quarter, recently renovated its first-floor Jazz Bistro space to now tie in more with the main dining room. While the floor plan and original tile flooring remains unchanged, the space is now more chic and sleek with coffered ceilings, antique mirrored walls, gilded iron and crystal chandeliers, movable banquette seating and gold sconces along the perimeter. This popular spot for rehearsal dinners and wedding receptions can accommodate up to 120 seated guests or 150 guests for a reception-style event (when including the Richelieu Bar). 813 Bienville St., 504-523-5433, arnaudsrestaurant.com.
The Balcony Ballroom
This popular wedding venue in Metairie will celebrate its 50th anniversary next year and has hosted more than 10,000 weddings during that time. The all-inclusive, lavish venue features sky-high ceilings, endless options for food and decor, a number of wedding packages and more. For example, the Just for Hue package includes gourmet food led by Chef Ryan Romain, beverages, music, impeccable service and a design specialist who will help select table linens, coordinate every aspect of the event and create a unique monogram or type treatment of your names to be prominently displayed. Meanwhile, the photography area includes a fully stocked open bar, gourmet food of your choosing, a separate bridal suite, an enormous full-length mirror and a private restroom. 4738 Utica St., 504-885-8001, balconyballroom.com.
Calcasieu
James Beard Award-winning chefs Donald Link and Stephen Stryjewski offer a distinctive blend of passion and culinary experience at Calcasieu, Link Restaurant Group’s private dining and catering venue. Combining a New Orleans warehouse feel with modern design, Calcasieu features four private dining rooms. For example, the Tchoupitoulas Room offers views of the Warehouse District through the original wood sash windows and can accommodate up to 50 guests for seated meals and up to 65 guests for receptions. Meanwhile, the Higgins Room (Calcasieu’s largest dining room) has an open floor plan with access to the main bar. This space is perfect for formal seated meals as well as cocktail receptions for up to 100 guests. Or book the Wine Room for smaller affairs, as it can accommodate up to 30 people for a seated meal or up to 40 guests for a small cocktail reception. Finally, the Diamond Room with mezzanine (located at sister restaurant, Cochon), can accommodate private groups of 75 people for a seated meal and up to 120 people for a reception-style event. 930 Tchoupitoulas St., 504-588-2188, calcasieuevents.com.
Common House
Opening next summer, the 20,000-square-foot modern social club — dubbed Common House — will be located in the former Louisiana Children’s Museum space in the Warehouse District. Constructed in the 1840s, the structure will maintain its iconic blue arched doors and unique historic features. The space will include a restaurant, a rooftop pool, a fitness center, a courtyard, open co-working space, conference rooms and more. Multiple spaces will be available for weddings, cocktail receptions and other events for up to 300 guests. 420 Julia St., commonhouse.com/nola.
Le Méridien New Orleans
Le Méridien New Orleans recently completed a multimillion-dollar renovation. This 23-story stylish and modern hotel now includes updated guest rooms (410 luxury guest rooms in all), event spaces (plus a new event room on the second floor with a dining and pre-function area), a stunning rooftop pool deck, an outdoor patio and a restaurant and bar (Longitude 90). 333 Poydras St., 504-525-9444, marriott.com.
Port Orleans Brewing Co.
This popular local brewery has space available to accommodate everything from small gatherings to events with up to 350 people. Port Orleans is a great spot for rehearsal dinners because the brewery offers a catering menu with multiple options (including the normal catered menu items, plus a lot of off-menu, top-tier options). Want to do a whole pig roast or a crawfish boil? No problem! The brewery can even entertain some customizations. 4124 Tchoupitoulas St., 504-266-2332, portorleansbrewingco.com.
Porter Lyons
In addition to its Get Sparked permanent jewelry parties (perfect for bachelorette parties), Porter Lyons has a gorgeous courtyard space that is perfect for elegantly catered receptions. The French Quarter-based luxury jewelry store, founded by Ashley Porter in 2012, also offers private parties for special events. 623 Royal St., 504-585-0348, porterlyons.com.
Sparkle and Swag
Z Event Company recently opened another Sparkle and Swag location in the Lower Garden District with its own in-house event space in the former Wetlands Sake space. It features both indoor and outside space with a large, enclosed courtyard, a tap room with a large built-in bar area with a garage door that opens up to a deck and exterior courtyard, plus raw warehouse space that can be transformed to suit any gathering. The entire space can accommodate up to 300 guests for a reception-style event. Sparkle and Swag also can provide rentals, catering, full décor, lighting and entertainment. 634 Orange St., Ste. B, 504-510-5838, sparkleandswag.com.
