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Weddings

American Swedish Institute Reviews

American Swedish Institute

American Swedish Institute

Minneapolis, MN
4.3 out of 5 rating, 9 Reviews
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Reviews

4.3 out of 5 rating
9 Reviews
  • Quality of service
    4.5 out of 5 rating
  • Average response time
    4.4 out of 5 rating
  • Professionalism
    4.4 out of 5 rating
  • Value
    4.2 out of 5 rating
  • Flexibility
    4.1 out of 5 rating
88% Recommended by couples

Awards

9
  • K
    Katie M. Sent on 03/30/2021
    5 out of 5 rating
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    WONDERFUL micro-wedding experience at ASI

    My husband and I had the best experience working with ASI - and especially their coordinator, Nadya. We had planned for a small, intimate ceremony to take place in January...then February...then March. Nadya and the Institute were extremely flexible and understanding with the COVID restrictions and we greatly appreciated their patience in working with us. The day of the wedding, the service was exceptional and every detail we had talked about was covered. The food was AMAZING to say the least. We couldn't be happier in deciding to have our intimate ceremony and dinner at the Institute.

    20/10 would recommend to anyone and everyone.

    American Swedish Institute's reply:

    Katie and Garen! Again, congratulations on your wedding day!
    And thank you for such kind words. We really appreciate you taking the time out to share your experience with us. We also loved working with you and could not be more thrilled to be part of the process despite the uncertainty of the current situation.

    Cheers to LOVE!


  • Kendyl
    Kendyl Sent on 07/16/2019
    5 out of 5 rating
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    The Most Beautiful and Amazing Venue

    The American Swedish Institute and its staff were incredible. The staff was easy to work with and flexible and open to all of our ideas for our wedding. Amanda, our contact, was so helpful and her communication was impeccable. She was always on time to our meetings and always followed up with a thorough email outlining what we talked about.

    For the catering aspect, they have an in-house catering company called Slate and Stone, which has some of the incredible food that I have ever eaten! So that is a big plus!

    Also, for those looking to get ready at the venue or have a space to relax, ASI had 2 classrooms. These rooms were perfect for us when we were waiting and relaxing before our ceremony!

    In terms of the venue itself, we took advantage of all the spaces available for use at ASI. The mansion was a stunning location for our cocktail hour and first dance. The courtyard and outdoor space were perfect for our outdoor evening ceremony. And the Larson Hall (ballroom) was beautifully decorated and well set up for our dinner and dancing.

    Overall, ASI was an incredible venue, and our experience there was even better than we could have ever hoped. Our guests were blown away by both the old and modern details of the venue and spoke highly about how great the staff was, how delicious the food was, and how much fun they had at ASI.

    I highly recommend this venue to any bride who wants to have both old and new, and/or outdoor and indoor. It is in a great location within Minneapolis (5-10 minutes from downtown) with many options for hotels and Airbnb's close by.

    American Swedish Institute's reply:

    Thank you for the great review! It was a pleasure having you and your guests here for such a special event. Best wishes to you and Evan!
  • User1817348 Sent on 09/18/2014
    5 out of 5 rating
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    My daughter's recent wedding reception was held at the Swedish Institute. I was a little nervous about holding it there since I'd read some less than stellar reviews of the place, but my daughter and her fiancé loved the space and my entire family is Scandinavian. We decided to risk it, hoping that changing to in-house catering had also meant they'd improved their service. I'm so glad we did! Everything was perfect, thanks in large part to Kaitlin Astleford, who's the catering sales representative. Kaitlin worked with us from when we signed the contract through the reception. She was professional, responsive, accommodating and nice. She was there through the entire reception and made sure that all of our earlier requests were carried out and that everything ran smoothly. The Turnblad Mansion provided a gorgeous venue for cocktails and appetizers, and our guests also loved being able to explore the exhibits and upper floors of the mansion. Larson Hall in the Nelson Cultural Center was a beautiful space for dinner and dancing (we had 21 tables for guests, plus a 7 piece band and weren't at all crowded). Several of our guests remarked on the delicious food (courtesy of Slate and Stone Catering), and the service provided by the waitstaff and bartenders was professional and efficient. We couldn't have asked for a better wedding reception and would highly recommend the Swedish Institute!
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  • E
    Emily Sent on 08/16/2019
    4.8 out of 5 rating
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    Amazing Venue

    This was a beautiful venue with an awesome staff! Our wedding was supposed to take place outside and a storm started at 5:10 which was 20 minutes before the wedding. Amanda, our day of coordinator, was able to pull off a complete change to plan b which was inside. The staff made our day go by without any problems! It's also a fun venue to look around the exhibits and take great photos!
  • S
    Sharon D. Sent on 07/25/2019
    4.8 out of 5 rating
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    Swedish Institute is a Perfect Wedding Venue

    Our son’s wedding at ASI was beyond beautiful. The food was outstanding and working with the staff was a breeze. If you desire an interesting, beautiful, historic mansion, this is your place. The modern cultural center worked perfectly for dinner. Food was amazing. Staff was supportive and very helpful.
  • User1387353 Sent on 10/19/2013
    4.2 out of 5 rating
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    This was a wonderful place to have our son's wedding. It is a beautiful venue, inside and out. We were able to have the ceremony outside, and it was a perfect night for people to mingle both inside the mansion and out on the lovely porch. Our guests loved it! We can't wait to see the pictures - the mansion is truly amazing! The people were great to work with and we loved the big rooms for changing and the downstairs room for the dance. The only down side was not being able to have real candles or flowers inside the mansion, but there are so many ways to work around that. Would highly recommend it!
  • H
    Heather Sent on 12/02/2016
    4.1 out of 5 rating
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    I thought American Swedish Institute was an absolutely beautiful venue for our reception. We rented the mansion for the cocktail hour and then used Larson Hall for the dinner and dance. The photos on the grounds turned out beautiful. They are an operating museum, open to the public though, so that made it more difficult to get photographs in. One of the spots we really wanted photos was in front of the blue wall by the main entrance, and we thankfully did get some great shots there, but unfortunately, a staff member made us move out of that area. Maggie, the site coordinator/catering coordinator was very helpful and always responded very quickly to emails. The bar packages to me seemed a little strict. There was no option for the host to just pay by the drink. The food turned out well. The bar staff did end up cutting off some of the guests. I also would've suggested mopping the dance floor because my sister fell and injured her knee after a drink was spilled.
  • J
    Julie Sent on 10/21/2013
    4.1 out of 5 rating
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    This facility is very special. The old Italianate mansion contrasted with the new, Scandinavian event hall was perfect for our family that values the historic and the progressive. The excellent design is pleasing to the eye and functional for events.
    Our event coordinator Jen worked so very hard on our behalf to make the day perfect. She is a good leader with a good team.
  • User1761205 Sent on 08/12/2014
    1.8 out of 5 rating
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    ASI has the potential to be an awesome venue in Minneapolis. Unfortunately, it's got a loooong way to go.

    We were so happy to find a beautiful, unique, local venue that could accommodate a larger wedding. Until we found ASI, it seemed like for a wedding our size, we were mostly limited to hotel ballrooms and country clubs. Looking back, I wish I would have gone with the country club. While it was a unique and interesting location, that fact didn't make up for the terrible planning and day-of issues we kept having with them.

    The problems really started when, halfway through planning, they changed to an in-house catering setup and I had to spend several days on the phone and over email just to get them to honor our contract. Not to mention that they can't seem to keep employees longer than a few months because the people we were dealing with kept changing (and getting less and less competent). No one ever has any idea what is going on, and we were never able get a straight answer from anyone.

    On top of all that, the guy who was supposed to be on site during the reception disappeared as soon as the guests arrived. We probably spent a good hour or two of the reception running around trying deal with all of the little details that they were supposed to handle. To make matters worse, he never contacted me after the event to address the issues, even after I explicitly asked him to.

    All large events like this have some bumps in the road, but for me the reception venue is the one part of my wedding that I really regret, which is unfortunate because it is one of the biggest parts of the day. Looking back, I'd choose a more traditional venue that I can trust to do the job well over this place.
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