The Mountain Lakes House Reviews

This the house the infamous Mendez family lived in at one time

The Mountain Lakes House is such a stunning venue! We were so excited to have our ceremony and reception at this location. We couldn't have asked for a more perfect location. After booking the venue, they hired a new house manager, Liz. She was very quick to respond to emails and called us a few days before our wedding to make sure we didn't have any questions or concerns. The Mountain Lakes House does not supply rentals or catering on site. However, they do recommend catering groups that are familiar with the venue. I highly recommend this gorgeous place!

It was an absolutely perfect location for our wedding. We had a Sunday brunch wedding and it was wonderful. The venue was beautiful and the ceremony was amazing under the big tree. There was a perfect amount of shade and air conditioning. Liz and Mike were wonderful to work with and made everything very simple. I would highly recommend this venue to anyone.

Amazing venue with all the right special touches to make your event unique. Very professional and accommodating staff that will take care of your needs from beginning to end. My daughters sweet 16 was absolutely beautiful overlooking the lake and serving our guests indoors. I can't wait to host here again!

Everything about using this venue was easy and delightful. They helped me plan my parents' 60th to a tee, assisted with hiring vendors, coordinating rentals, etc. The staff was so helpful in coming up with the right layout, and making sure all my needs were seen to. I can't recommend them enough!

We were so happy we chose the Mountain Lakes House for our wedding. It was perfect!

We were lucky with the weather (a breezy summer afternoon/evening) and had our wedding on the terrace. Everyone had a great time and enjoyed the view of the lake. We used the slate patio as the dance floor and had some lawn games on the side. Our guest list was about 50+ adults/5 kids and the main terrace space was a perfect fit for our 6 tables with a lot of wiggle room.

The side room on the first floor (wallpaper room) was a nice space for a bridal suite with use of the mirrors and larger bathroom. My husband used the upstairs room to get ready in, and I can see how that room can also be used for a kids room when they get tired - it has a couch and TV/DVD player.

The only comment I would like to add is that you might want to bring a sign to hang on the 1st floor bathroom, that also says there is an additional bathroom upstairs. It is an unmarked door, and there are many doors, which confused some guests, and I wish I would have thought of that sooner.

Sally was a delight to work with. She was accommodating and her response time was so fast! I often felt guilty because she answers her brides so quickly and politely, even if your asking a question in the middle of night. (Thank you, Sally.) We signed our contract over a year ahead of the date, just so we wouldn't lose the slot - our first date was chosen within a week of our inquiry.

I would definitely recommend Mountain Lakes House for your venue for its simple charm, beauty, and the opportunity to make the place your own with it's "blank canvas".

I had my ceremony and reception at Mountain Lakes House and it was the most beautiful day I could ever have imagined. The place itself is just an amazing backdrop, if not somewhat of a blank canvas that you fill with your creative ideas of what you want your day to be. Sally, the administrator, was warm, friendly, flexible and beyond helpful with any questions or concerns regarding creating what my day was to become. She doesn't get involved in any aspect, unless you ask her to be, which was perfect for us. If you want a private, scenic, intimate setting for your wedding day, where you provide all the creative details yourself, this is the place to be. It was like having the wedding in someones beautiful lake front home, without the owners looking over your shoulder. Not to mention, this is in the heart of acres of nature preserve, so did I mention it was private? I would STRONGLY recommend using a caterer, florist and DJ who know this place inside and out, so do see my other reviews for a reference to who I used. Every one of them did an outstanding job in this very unique and charming venue.

I love, love, love this place! We used it for a pre-wedding party in June 2013. Sally was extremely nice, helpful , professional and prompt with all inquiries. She accommodated our special requests and even offered to let us use the decor items and lighting that had been left behind by previous guests. Since our event was in the summer, the pictures from the event were absolutely gorgeous with the beautiful greenery around the house.

One word of caution - I nearly stepped on a tiny snake near at the patio.

Mountain Lakes House was the perfect location to carry out our wedding vision: a "chic picnic" in a place that felt more like a private house than a wedding venue. Despite being less than 2 miles from downtown Princeton, when you enter the Mountain Lakes Preserve you feel miles away from everything. The House manager, Sally, was extremely helpful and responsive throughout the entire planning process, and even gave us access to the House the day before our wedding to set up, saving us precious hours of work on the Big Day. Overall, we don't regret for a second choosing Mountain Lakes House for our wedding, and we would recommend it to anyone looking for a unique and conventiently located venue.

We LOVED it! It was perfect for an outdoor wedding - beautiful setting, relaxed atmosphere, and the site manager, Sally, was very helpful. All of our guests loved it too. Highly recommend it as a venue for any special event.

We had both our ceremony and reception at the Mountain Lakes House because of the beautiful setting that wouldn't need too much dressing up and the flexibility from having enough indoor and outdoor space (with plenty of greenery) for any contingency. They've recently put in a new permanent covering (with glass panels) over the back terrace area which is really nice, letting light in but allowing you not to worry about having to set up tents in case it rains. Sally responded promptly to all the questions I had for her and was so nice and helpful while we were setting up the place. They know what they're doing when it comes to weddings, so if you're looking for an alternative to hotel ballrooms or such places to hold a wedding and you want a blank canvas (but not too blank) for your wedding, with beautiful views and enough floorspace not to have to rent a dance floor, definitely take a look at Mountain Lakes House.

We had both our ceremony and reception at the Mountain Lakes House. It was a beautiful quiet setting on a wildlife preserve with a beautiful lake as a backdrop complete with a crane and a blue heron. We loved it from the second we picked it. Sally was wonderful, ever helpful, and I couldn't have asked for a better place to have our wedding. It was just perfect!!

This venue is beautiful. We had our wedding outside, the ceremony on the back lawn with the little pond in the background. There is a great outdoor patio that is big enough to have space for dancing also. It was really easy to rent, and it has a great kitchen for the caterers. It is a great place for somebody who wants a blank canvas for decorating! Also, there are plenty of bathrooms, space for the bride to get ready, etc. Perfect!

Mountain Lakes House is a great off-the-beaten track venue for smaller weddings in the Princeton area that is not in actuality all that far off the beaten track (1 mile from downtown Princeton). It is a mixed indoor-outdoor venue; for warmer weather, you can use both the indoor rooms and outdoor (weather-protected) patios for seating. There are dressing rooms for both the bride and groom, and you can use the venue to prepare for 4 hours in advance of your scheduled start time. We were also fortunate in that there wasn't an event the day before our wedding, so we were given access to the house for the entire day before, allowing us to decorate to our hearts' desire.

Sally who runs the site is responsive, professional, and very accommodating. She is not onsite for the actual event, but all of our interactions with her were positive.

The venue itself is quite picturesque - an old-fashioned (but updated) house set on acres of a nature preserve with a lake in the backyard. We were able to hold our ceremony right on the lake!

One note: this venue isn't for the weather faint-of-heart. We were fortunate to have excellent weather, but had also made peace with the alterations that would have needed to be made in the case of inclement weather. If you would be stressed out by last-minute weather-related decision, probably best to choose a different venue.

Only a non-5 for flexibility because - while the venue was perfect for us - the fact that it is a government-owned property imposes certain limitations, such as a required end time of 11pm.

Mountain Lakes House is a beautiful outdoor venue, perfect for a Spring, Summer, or early Fall wedding. We chose it because we wanted to be surrounded by natural beauty on our special day, and this location did not disappoint. The outdoor patio is great for a small wedding, and the surrounding property includes beautiful trees and a lake. The indoor space was plenty of room for getting ready, setting up dessert stations, and a photo booth.

Beautiful location and Liz is terrific to work with you have the entire house and grounds the entire day and you do as you wish....only no fire but that's a township thing not them

We had the most beautiful wedding at Mountain Lakes! The venue is basically a blank canvas for you to create your perfect wedding. The lawn was a great spot for lots of yard games and pictures. All of our tables fit on the outside terraces and the dance floor fit all of our guests.

The only thing to keep in mind is that you have to bring in almost everything yourself. The contract allows you to enter the house about 4 hours before the start of the reception so it may be a little tricky to figure out who can go over and decorate during that time frame.

We got so many wonderful compliments from our guests about the unique setting.

The Mountain Lakes House was the perfect venue for our wedding! Both of us are outdoorsy people, and we were having trouble finding a venue that would allow our love for the outdoors shine but also be able to accommodate our group should the weather not be ideal. The Mountain Lakes House was the very last venue we looked at, and I joked that we saved the best for last: it truly was the perfect place. Sally was very easy to reach via email, and she was always prompt in responding to any questions. I loved the fact that it was pretty much a blank slate that we could make our own, and that we were able to utilize both the patio and the inside rooms was such a plus! We lucked out with gorgeous weather on our wedding day, but Plan B was closing the "curtains" on the patio should we have gotten rain. Our ceremony was right by the lake and was breathtaking! This venue is absolutely amazing!

Originally we signed our contract with Sally, who was not personable and truth be told we love the space so that didn't matter. When I found out that Sally was no longer there and my new contact with Celia I was a bit concerned so I made an appointment to meet with her. She was very polite, went over all of our paperwork, and assured us everything would go as seamless as possible. The day of the wedding she allowed me to gain access to the property very early and the caretakers we're more than happy to help with the list of things that I needed to have done right away. My opinion is that they certainly could improve upon little things (exterior near caretaker house. Replace the storm doors from the great room, to name a few) but over all we were very happy with the location and in the beginning of September the foliage is amazing !

We chose the Mountain Lakes House because it was quaint and private. It was beautiful the day of the wedding and our day was amazing.

We used the Mountain Lakes House for an anniversary party and an engagement party in the same day in June 2016. When I first contacted Mountain Lakes they were in the middle of a management shift and the response time was poor but once Celia took over, everything went smoothly and replies were prompt. The setting was perfect, the suggested floor plans for table placement was helpful as was the list of vendors provided by the Mountain Lakes staff. They even had a screen for us to use for a video presentation. The only difficulty was that the internet connection was spotty so it made streaming music a challenge. Overall, I would highly recommend this location for special events.

Is Mountain Lakes House a gorgeous venue? Yes. However, it just stops right there. Initially, the venue coordinator, Sally Comerford, was pretty much everything mentioned below: accommodating, responsive, and professional. And then it stopped. Oh, Sally doesn’t like what you’re planning to do – Sally makes up her own rules. What to challenge them? Oh well her connections must run deep because within minutes, literally minutes, she has people backing up her ridiculous claims and rules that make NO SENSE. She is a cold, malicious, cruel woman. Want a place that will help make your day special and as stress-free as possible. Not here folks! Look elsewhere and don’t be fooled. After she has all your hard earned money, various rules will pop up leaving you looking like an idiot.