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Weddings

The MacArthur Reviews

The MacArthur View more information

Reviews

4.2 out of 5 rating
11 Reviews
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90% Recommended by couples

Awards

11
  • S
    Shane Sent on 12/23/2016
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    beautiful work!!! great service!!
  • User2540825 Sent on 02/23/2016
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    Lovely lovely lovely venue! They have been so so helpful so far--especially with our liquor choices!
  • rar62686
    Renee Sent on 09/17/2012
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    I had the most amazing wedding at the park plaza. Every detail of planning my wedding was handled efficiently.
    My guests all loved my venue. The place is beautiful. They handled everything professionally and my day went so smoothly and perfectly. Trisha is very helpful with the details and planning.

    It is such a beautiful venue and it really gives your wedding a "wow" factor.
    So glad I had my wedding there!!!

    I would highly recommend this venue to anyone looking for a very cool and over the top place for their wedding!!
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  • T
    Tiffany Sent on 07/02/2012
    5 out of 5 rating
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    Perfect venue for our wedding. We fell in love with this venue the first time we visited and then we met Susana who sealed the deal that this would be our venue. She works hard at making sure that you will enjoy every minute of your wedding, thanks Susana!!
  • S
    Susan Sent on 05/22/2012
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    When we started out looking at venues last year for our wedding, we had looked at half a dozen hotels and golf courses in Orange County and when nothing seemed to stick out, I had my wedding coordinator focus her search in Downtown Los Angeles. I was hoping to find something spectacular and breathtaking, and boy did we find it when we entered Park Plaza! As soon as you pull up, the giant building adorned with angels is amazing, and it doesn't stop there. We walked in, and immediately, I knew this was it. This was where our wedding was going to be. I didn't even have to tour the place. Trisha at Park Plaza is so sweet and helped make everything seamless. The day of, our guests were in awe! Two weeks later, I still get comments of how amazing our venue was. Thank you Trisha and Park Plaza for making our wedding day so memorable!
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    Jin Sent on 01/12/2011
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    When my (now) husband and I were looking around for a venue for our wedding, we searched far and wide. His family lives far south of LA and my family lives far north of LA so we looked at places in Orange County (a few country clubs and golf courses - too impersonal), Cerritos (performing arts center - too expensive), Walt Disney Concert Hall (too small for our 250 guest list), and the list goes on. We thought we were being too picky but wondered if we will ever find a place where we thought, "THIS IS IT."

    Since we are both in the entertainment industry, we wanted something that reflected our style - dramatic and unique. When a family member told us to go and check out the Legendary Park Plaza, we thought it was just a hotel but decided to check it out anyway since we had no other option at that point. When we parked across from MacArthur Park, the infamous park where people go to get fake id's, drugs, etc., we were like, no....

    But the building beckoned at us. Though tall and beige, we saw that there were a few angels or gargoyles on the side. Knowing this was an old building, we were curious how it would look inside. The glass and metal arched door opened and we stepped inside. We both gasped as we took in the majesty of the place. From floor to ceiling, there was not one detail of the lobby entrance that didn't take away our breath. The huge staircase in front of us is a perfect place for a smaller wedding and for pictures, the ceiling was painted in gold tones reminiscent of the Sistine Chapel, and a large vintage chandelier hung from it. We felt small and modern in this old giant building and we knew from that point on that we had entered a special and very well-kept historic building. We walked through all the rooms.

    The Gold room is probably the smallest room at PP and perfect for a small gathering. It has a bar, it leads out to the courtyard, and is the closest to the women's bathroom. Next to that room is the Bronze room, which has an Art Deco bar and is perfect for a larger group of people and right now, it has a large dance floor covering the floor so it's perfect for a dance.

    Up the stairs or up the vintage elevators, there is my personal favorite room, the Grand Ballroom. As soon as we stepped into this room and saw the rows of arched windows, streaming the sunlight from all sides, the stage, the rows of columns and chandeliers, and the bar, we knew we were going to get married in this room. Here is a good picture of it from their website: http://parkplazala.com...

    We decided to get married facing away from the stage, towards one of the windows for a more ethereal and intimate feel. Then, we went to see the Terrace Room, which is the biggest room in PP. This was the only room that could accommodate 250 seated guests for dining so we had no choice but to have our reception in this room. However, this room was my husband's favorite room because the ceilings are even higher than any of the other rooms, there is a main stage, an organ, a huge bar, and multi tiered levels for seating and viewing. I was honestly a bit scared to have to shell out the money to decorate such a large space but we ended up embracing the grand architecture of the entire building and not spending that much on flowers or decorations at all.

    We were nervous about talking to Trisha Harako, our point person for PP, about the possibilities of having a budget friendly wedding at such a grand space. We didn't think it was a possibility. However, after our initial meeting and pricing presentation, we slowly realized having our dream wedding at this location was a possibility! There are many packages and Trisha was very flexible in accommodating all of our requests, from the general to the most minute details. For example, on the day of our wedding, we asked to use PP's red carpet and ropes inside (usually it is used outside) in order to help us create our Old Classic Hollywood theme. We were able to create signature drinks for our bar menu, coming up with personal names for each cocktail. We were allowed to add a dish to the appetizer menu that wasn't initially offered by Summit Catering (one of the preferred catering companies PP offered that we went with). I was able to talk to Greg from Summit Catering to customize the vegetarian option (will review Summit Catering separately). We brought in whatever element we desired to make our big day spectacular and we truly felt that this venue was like our second home in how many times we had visited it prior to the wedding and after.

    Thank you so much for such a wonderful planning experience, the flexibility, the pricing options, and for the great follow up, Trisha!

    If you are looking to have a vintage or classic Hollywood or Retro Glam, roaring 20's, historical or grand event, this venue is the best option by far and the people who work here are amazing to work with.
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    Tammy Sent on 04/10/2010
    4.8 out of 5 rating
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    This venue is gorgeous! When I first saw it I loved it. Jackie and Trisha were helpful and responsive throughout the process. We used Jackie as our day-of coordinator and she was great! There was a slight hitch with the bridal room being cleaned when we arrived because there was a wedding the night before, but after that was taken care of everything went extremely smoothly. We were a little concerned with the safety of the area, but the valet really helped and is recommended. If you want a breathtaking and unique venue, definitely check this place out!
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    Caroline Sent on 08/03/2010
    4.4 out of 5 rating
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    I was surprised that there aren't more reviews for the Park Plaza online. Overall, it was a beautiful venue and easy working with Jackie and Trisha. Although I started off working with one person more than the other, they tend to split their time in the office so it's most efficient to just email both of them if you want a quick response.

    Price: At first I thought the venue would be way out of our price range. However, if you work with Trisha & Jackie you can customize what you're looking for in terms of parking, food & beverage, etc. Just beware of things that may get built into the package price already.

    Food: We had our food provided by Lawry's and it was a pleasure working with Melissa but you can bring in your own caterer for an extra cost. The one thing that I wish had gone differently was our guests didn't get enough wine/champagne throughout the night. We had brought in our own and the servers only poured it once. I'm not sure if that was because of Lawry's or Park Plaza (See Lawry's review for full details on that vendor).

    Venue: We utilized the Tuscan Patio for our ceremony and the Grand Ballroom for the reception. If you want lanterns in the patio like they have pictured on their website your florist can probably take care of it. Our ballroom was gorgeous and there was room for a few cocktail tables and a photo booth behind some pillars. Although I was worried the ballroom would be very dark it turned out to be well lit even after I cut the uplighting from my budget. I was happy to have gold Chivari chairs and overall the place looked very classy at night. One of my friends who didn't attend the wedding even asked me afterward if it was held at the Langham when she looked at my pictures. Although there was another wedding there on our wedding day using the ballroom right across the landing, there was very minimal confusion so it wasn't a problem.

    Safety: One of my parents biggest concerns was safety. It's not in the best neighborhood but it didn't turn out to be a problem given how we arranged the parking. The security guard helped some of my guests get cabs at the end of the night.

    Overall, I think it was worth spending 2/3 of our wedding budget on having this venue & having Lawry's cater the wedding.
  • User1322557 Sent on 09/10/2013
    3.6 out of 5 rating
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    This place looks amazing and provides a great value for the money. They are also more flexible than most other venues. They were a little disorganized; some of the items that were previously discussed would be lost or forgotten and had to be reconfirmed or renegotiated. Another thing to know before selecting this venue is that you are basically getting an empty box and you need to plan on spending more money and time on lights, power generator, serving plates, insurance, decorations etc.

    I enjoyed this venue and guests were really impressed.
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    Brandalyn Sent on 09/03/2010
    3.2 out of 5 rating
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    Let me start by saying the Park Plaza is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen and my wedding was equally as amazing. Here is my review:

    Service: I interacted with Jackie from Jan 2009 up until my wedding on August 7, 2010. She was always professional and explained things well. She was friendly enough. I didn't build a relationship with her to the point where I was completely confident and relaxed about how the wedding would go the day of.

    Responsiveness: At first I wasn't happy with how long it would take to get an email response back but that could be because of how far my wedding was at the time. It did get better the closer I got to my wedding though.

    Professionalism: I always felt Jackie and Trisha were professional when communicating with them. They were never rude or nasty. I took away 2 stars because of what happened the night before my wedding at my rehearsal:

    Their contract states that they can never gaurantee your rehearsal. Period. I am assuming because they rent out their venue to people who want to film movies and shows and last minute things could come up. I was fine with that as long as I got enough notice (at least a day) so we could rehearse somewhere else. All the way up until 2 DAYS before the wedding, I was told rehearsing the night before there would be fine. I had my ENTIRE bridal party drive to dowtown LA just to get there an find out the whole place had been rented out to filmakers for a show. We told by Park Plza's security we had to rehearse in the parking lot!!! Needless, to say I was livid and was not something I needed the day before my wedding. I was embarassed in front of my wedding party because I looked un-organized and I felt bad that they made that drive for nothing (the dinner was not in downtown). To top it off, Trisha and Jackie were NO WHERE to be found and instead we had to deal with a security guard who was clueless. We were all disgusted at the fact that not only wasn't I called and notified that day, but they were also not even there to rectify/assist in the situation. That is not how you treat a paying customer in my opinion. I felt that was extremely unprofessional.

    Value: The place is amazing. It was expensive...maybe a little overpriced. But the day of, people were amazed and I felt so wonderful having my wedding there.

    Flexibility- This venue considered a historical site. Therefore, there are rules to follow such as no open flames (candles) without a fire permit. Also, to get the permit you have to actually go to the fire department and show the centerpeice to get it approved. If you have florist you can ask them to do it, but for myself, I was DIY bride so my now husband and I had to take on this task. It's not an easy one at all. I also felt that since we were bringing in our own caterer and wine, they weren't very flexible with me with certain things either. However, the day of they didn't seem as strict and the day went smoothly and it was felxible in the sense that at least they do allow you to bring in your own caterer (licensed only).

    The bottom line: I do not regret having my wedding at Park Plaza because it was a beautiful place to have it. Just be aware, it's alittle pricey, make sure you follow the contract very closely and if you get their packages where they provide alcohol/catering it should be easier- but it's not DIY bride friendly.
  • M
    Megan Sent on 01/01/2014
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    I bought tickets to the new years eve party and waited 2 1/2 hours in line at will call while a mob gathered and the cops had to be called. Eventually at about 11:30, security let everyone in without checking any tickets or ID so no matter what level you paid for, you got into any room and got full open bar service. People that only paid 60 bucks got the same treatment as people who paid 300 and anyone could have gotten in free or underage. This was the worst party experience of my life and this place should lose its liquor license.