vendor reviews: reception locations

more vendor

reviews

suggest a vendor! email us if you've received outstanding service from a vendor on your special day!

tell your story! announce your engagement, connect with other k-w brides, post questions and take part in discussion topics!

read k-w planning tips: planning timeline calendar; eat, drink & be merry; same old song & dance?; red tape made easy...

brides unite!

Join The Ring.

• up-to-date tips and events emailed to you each month

• hands-free chat boards registration and set-up

• photo avatar for chat profile

• free advice from the experts at any time with any problem

• enough local tips and information to save you about four months worth of work!

click for details

Holiday Inn's Spitfire Grill offers ballroom elegance, flexibility, and high end service to Brantford area brides

Interviewing Sandeep Charles, Banquet Manager, Spitfire Grill & Banquet Facilities @ the Holiday Inn

Holiday Inn is one of Brantford's most popular reception ballrooms. This locale is for the bride and groom who dreams of waltzing across a large hardwood dance floor under crystal chandeliers while guests toast to a new life with sparkling champagne.

Located within 'Spitfire Grill', Holiday Inn's banquet facilities, local brides can find both an upscale elegant ballroom and the confidence of Holiday Inn's reputation. With 3 banquet rooms to choose from and space for up to 180 guests, Spitfire Grill & Banquet Facilities at Holiday Inn can host both your ceremony and reception and full service catering. Once you meet Spitfire Grill in person, it will be easy to understand why this wedding location is on most brides' must-see list. The staff at The Ring sat down with Banquet Manager, Sandeep Charles, to find out everything we could about the Brantford area wedding locale.

About Holiday Inn

Choosing to host your wedding at the Holiday Inn Banquet Facilities with the catering of Spitfire Grill means you can be assured that you will be taken care of and no detail will be overlooked. Walking into the Holiday Inn, you know immediately that you are in good hands. You are greeted with a smile and a feeling that you are important.

The Holiday Inn took over the previous hotel establishment in 1999 and has been providing brides and grooms with a beautiful venue - all newly renovated - for their weddings ever since. Sandeep Charles and his team of professionals have organized and executed countless successful events from intimate gatherings to large wedding weekends, hosting an average of one wedding per weekend throughout the year.

Personally speaking...

Charles is most often your first contact for Spitfire Grill at Holiday Inn. Charles is an expert in the art of banquet and event planning, with a portfolio that could win over even the most scrutinizing couple.

In the past twenty years, Charles has worked in the event industry, and his experience spans over six countries including India and Bermuda. And because Charles also spent years working in the Cruise ship industry, he's no stranger to service - a crucial element to achieving dream-wedding status. This extensive hands-on experience means that Charles has literally planned just about every kind of wedding. He quickly becomes your right hand in the months leading up to your wedding date.

From themed weddings and formal weddings to authentic ethnic weddings, he says, "it all depends on the bride and the groom's budget and desires. Whatever they want, they get." He is quick to point out that working with brides of Holiday Inn is no exception. That's why he pays such close attention to every detail, taking in your requests and preferences in order to ultimately tailor your wedding day around the vision you've painted for him.

Charles is happy to go that extra mile to make your wedding different and more unique than any wedding he's helped plan before. "No wedding is the same." For him, it's all about taking care of the details so that you don't have to worry about anything except saying 'I Do'. "My goal is to make sure the bride feels as stress-free as possible."

Planning with Charles

Charles is committed to his job and making brides' weddings successful. A self-admitted workaholic, you can find him working seven days a week. This also means you're guaranteed to reach him for help when calling to inquire about your wedding. Charles says that he enjoys offering his time to the couples that choose the Holiday Inn's Spitfire Grill & Banquet Facilities, "I love talking to people and trying to make brides feel less stressed when planning such a special day!"

Charles is driven to make your wedding day as unique as you are. He is detail oriented and loves a challenge so he will customize their location, menu and options to your preferences. His specialty is being creative and helping you to make memories that will last a lifetime. 

Flexibility is key

Because the Holiday Inn can customize their services to your needs and requests, they stand out from many locations where there is little or no room for alterations. There is flexibility in the details that make up your wedding, the packages available, and the use of their hotel space. "What we can offer at the Holiday Inn and Spitfire Grill is a complete in-house wedding ceremony and reception package. If a bride and groom want to keep their reception and ceremony all in one venue, the Holiday Inn can offer that to them."

The possibility of a ceremony church-like setting being transformed hours later into a stunning grand ballroom is a great opportunity for any bride with a lot of out-of-town guests... or just a couple who wants the convenience of an all-in-one location. Charles says that it's a great option and they can accommodate your guests throughout the day, "We had a wedding where we had the ceremony take place in the reception hall and completely designed the room with an aisle and chairs to feel like you were in a church setting. We then had all the guests mingle in the foyer while we arranged and set up the hall for the reception."

Tasting your options

The gem of hosting your wedding at the Holiday Inn facilities is the catering of Spitfire Grill. All the food is made in-house and nothing is contracted out. While there are pre-set packages and options available, Charles says that customizations to your tastes are welcome. They can work with you to design a menu to suit any ethnic or dietary requirement.

Spitfire Grill at the Holiday Inn proudly offers taste testing to each of their couples, along with their parents, if they'd like to be part of the process as well. This gives you the opportunity to choose and have input on what your guests will enjoy at your reception. Charles will walk you through the process to determine what best suits you, your reception style, and your guests' tastes, "I like to add that customized touch to each and every wedding I organize."

Beyond the traditional wedding fare, Holiday Inn's Spitfire Grill also has a separate fun-filled menu just for children. Most venues require purchasing adult meals for kids, often resulting in too much food that the children don't even enjoy. Instead, choose from chicken nuggets, grilled cheese and more for your little guests.

All the specifics...

Every wedding at the Holiday Inn's Spitfire Grill & Banquet Facilities is customized to suit each bride and groom, including small and large budgets. There are three different ballrooms to choose from, depending on your guest list size, each newly renovated and a great back-drop for your wedding ceremony, reception, or both!

The Brant Ballroom ~ up to 180 guests

$800 rental plus GST with no food or beverage services

$500 rental plus GST with food and beverage services

The Paris Ballroom ~ up to 50 guests

$225 rental plus GST

The St. George Room ~ up to 25 guests

$175 rental plus GST

If you choose one of the popular wedding packages that Spitfire Grill at the Holiday Inn offers, many of the extras and add-ons that could be extra are included in one reasonable price. With the packages detailed below, included are hall set up, tables and chairs, cutlery, china, glassware, professional serving staff, podium and microphone, and complimentary use of the Brant Ballroom. You'll also receive a complimentary honeymoon suite for the wedding night, and a special reduced room rate for your out-of-town guests.

Holiday Inn's Spitfire Grill & Banquet Facilities offers a large, mouth-watering selection of hot and cold hors d'oeuvres. Add these with cocktails to your welcome reception or late night buffet.

Including alcohol at your reception

Adding alcohol service to your wedding reception is possible as either a cash or host bar. If you would like to take care of all your guests' drinks for the evening with a host bar, each drink costs $4.50. If you'd prefer to offer a cash bar, each drink will be $5.25 for your guests. Pop is offered for $2.25 each. You may also bring in your own wine, if you'd prefer. The corkage fee that will apply is $8 per 750 mL bottle and $12 per 1.5 L bottle.

Midnight Snacks

At Holiday Inn, you are welcome to bring in you own caterer, something that many people take advantage of when it comes to their sweet table. Or Charles and the staff at Spitfire Grill can take care of the snack table for you for a small fee. "Some people love to take care of the table themselves. But it's just more work on a day that's busy enough. We can do it for them for a small fee and no stress."

Staying overnight at the Holiday Inn

The guest rooms at the hotel start at $89.00 for a night. The Jacuzzi/Honeymoon suite is $225.00 though they often give it free to any couple who books their wedding (catering must be included) at the Holiday Inn's Spitfire Grill & Banquet Facilities.

Guest rooms are designed to be bright and spacious with high-speed internet included. Your friends and family can also expect a daily newspaper, in-room coffee & tea, a hairdryer, a full-sized ironing board & iron, in-room movies, and access to the heated indoor pool, laundry facility and fitness centre to be complimentary.

detailsdetailsdetails

• Charles suggests booking as soon as possible for your wedding date, "The sooner the better! We are flexible and will work within whatever timeframe, unless we already have another event booked." They still have some dates available for 2007 and they could easily handle your booking as late as a month in advance.

• A $500 deposit is required at the time of booking. This deposit is non-refundable.

• 72 hours prior to the event a final count of all guests and full payment for food is required.

• Your remaining balance for the bar tab is due 2 days after your wedding.

• Gratuities are given at your discretion.

More info...

To contact Sandeep Charles for more information on the Holiday Inn's Spitfire Grill & Banquet Facilities, give him a call at 519-758-9999 or send an email to sandeep.charles@rogers.com. Check out the Holiday Inn Brantford and Spitfire Grill online at www.holiday-inn.com/brantfordon for more information about the hotel and its services, or in person at 664 Colborne Street in Brantford. Click here for a map of their location.

- The Staff at TheWeddingRing.ca

* Prices are all approximate and are subject to change and verification by authorized staff and management of Spit Fire Grill & Banquet Facilities