Review is written by Staff @ The Ring and is based on • Interviews with this vendor • Interviews with past brides
Elegant décor combined with the natural, rustic charm at The Black Forest Inn create a beautiful, one-of-a-kind wedding that you and your guests will never forget. Unique in the Tri-Cities, The Black Forest Inn offers a complete wedding package, which includes a customized four course meal, a complete photography package, beautiful wedding décor, wedding cakes that inspire, a professional DJ and your very own Certified Wedding Specialist. We recently sat down with the Wedding Specialist herself, Jessica Ferguson to find out more about this country venue. Here's what she told us...
Personally speaking...
The Black Forest Inn’s Certified Wedding Specialist, Jessica Ferguson, is the one who works with you every step of the way and helps turn your wedding dreams into reality. Jessica comes to the Inn with a diploma in Event Management and years of experience managing and planning events throughout the Tri-cities , having coordinated every type of event from fundraisers to community events and everything in between. The hopeless romantic in Jessica lead her to The Black Forest Inn where she is the in-house Certified wedding planner. “I love seeing a couples wedding vision come to life,” says Jessica. “It's a privilege to get to know the couples and be apart of a very special and important day in their lives.”
We think that having Jessica to guide you through the planning process is likely to provide peace of mind and take away a lot of the stress that comes with planning a wedding.
Alicia Titley agrees, she held her reception at the Inn for her June 2011 wedding. She told The Ring, "I absolutely loved working with Jessica. She was so personable and always made you feel at ease. She was there any time along the way when I had any questions or concerns. She worked around my schedule to schedule meetings. She was there the night of the event to make sure everything was running smoothly. The team was amazing the day of as well. I received so many compliments about how great the staff was and how great of a job they did for us."
The all-inclusive wedding package
There are many reasons that The Black Forest Inn is a unique wedding venue, one being that they provide an all-inclusive wedding package, which includes all of the major services involved in planning your wedding. This takes pressure off the entire planning process and is often a huge time saver and stress reliever for couples. It truly is a ‘one-stop shop’ for everything wedding.
Alicia Titley told us that she would absolutly recommend the Inn to any couple getting married, "The stress of all the details was taken care of by the hall, the staff was so easy to work with, they made you feel at ease & never stressed us out. The hall was the perfect size for the amount of people we had in there (about 100) & it was beautifully decorated. The food and desert was some of the best we have eaten in a long time. And no one left that place with an empty stomach! The DJ was great, they had people of all ages up on the dance floor all night. And we stayed under our budget. What more could you possibly want?"
The quote you receive at The Black Forest Inn not only covers the fabulous, four-course meal, unlimited hors d’oeuvres, and decadent evening table, but your photography, décor, wedding cake, DJ services and Certified Wedding Specialist!
The added beauty of the all-inclusive wedding package is that The Black Forest Inn’s service providers have all been selected with careful consideration to provide you with the highest quality. Your Certified Wedding Specialist will guide you through the process as you customize your wedding. You will have control of all of the details in each service provider’s package to build a wedding that is uniquely you.
While the rustic charm at The Inn provides a natural backdrop, the décor they offer also complements this with tasteful, soft white linens and lights draped around the dance floor, balcony, cake table, gift table and head table. The head table can also be framed with your choice of three different backdrops that are decorated with lights and fabric and placed on a twelve inch riser. The ambiance of the room is completed with English gardens, satin bows and centrepieces on each guest table. Jessica says that brides and guests alike are often taken aback by the feeling of romance in the room, making this the perfect place for a wedding.
The photography package includes a complete wedding package with four different locations, bride's home, ceremony location, third location and The Black Forest Inn. You will receive 80 proofs in a presentation box, one 11” X 14” wall portrait, a wedding album, including fourteen 8” X 10” photographs in an art leather album and two folios consisting of one 8” X 10” and four 4” X 5” photographs. "The photographer is not only talented and aware of current trends, but also knows some fabulous photo locations, ideal for your wedding day," Jessica told us.
From elaborate to simple, traditional to modern, and everything in between, we were told that The Black Forest Inn's cake designer will "meet your expectations". Three different styles of display wedding cake are included and your selected display cake is surrounded by edible 8” cakes, (starting with a minimum of 2 cakes) intricately decorated based on the design you selected. "Our associate bakers are experienced and professional and will ensure that your wedding cake is a huge success!," says Jessica. There's also a wide range of cake flavours and cream fillings available for you to choose from., A personal consultation is available to ensure that on your wedding day you will be completely thrilled.
Great sound, exciting dance floor lighting and an experienced DJ are just some of the elements that you will enjoy with The Inn's associate DJ. "At every wedding they go the extra mile to ensure that your night is special and everyone is has a great time," Jessica told us. "Your song selection and music preferences always meet your expectations."
The all-inclusive wedding package at The Black Forest Inn definitely takes the stress out of a lot of the wedding planning. Plus, your Certified Wedding Specialist takes care of all of the details so you can spend more time with your family and friends enjoying the time leading up to your wedding.
Ina Sebastian was thrilled with her July 2011 wedding at the Inn, " It’s one stop shopping for the laidback couple!! BFI takes away the stress when it comes to planning your wedding. All the categories that are normally dealt with, DJ, decorating, photography, can be very stressful and pricey. With BFI you don’t have to worry about all that! You let them do the work! It’s one stop shopping for the laidback couple!! BFI takes away some of the stress when it comes to planning your wedding. All the categories that are normally dealt with, DJ, decorating, photography, can be very stressful and pricey. With BFI you don’t have to worry about all that! You let them do the work!"
A taste of The Black Forest Inn
Your entrée options include:
Roast Prime Rib of Beef - Slow roasted prime rib cooked to medium served with rosemary garlic jus and sautéed mushrooms.
Chicken Supreme - A pan seared roasted supreme of chicken dressed with sundried tomato, goat cheese Mousseline and finished with a shitake and oyster mushroom cream sauce.
Salmon Wellington - A salmon filet enveloped in phyllo pastry with spinach and shrimp duxelle and lemon finished with a white wine and parsley veloute.
Stuffed Striploin Roast - AAA marinated striploin roast stuffed with wild mushrooms and shallots topped with a smoked chipotle demi-glace.
Cornish Game Hen - Half roasted Cornish hen filled with a savoury bread stuffing topped with a sage and shallot cream sauce.
Cranberry Brie Chicken - Breaded chicken breast stuffed with cranberries and brie finished with a sherry espaguole.
Stuffed Pork Tenderloin - Roasted pork tenderloin with an apple & shitake mushroom stuffing topped with a peppered marsala demi-glace.
Vegetarian Strudel Delight - Portobello mushrooms, sweet bell peppers & zucchini with a roasted tomato salsa enveloped in phyllo pastry.
Planning your all-inclusive wedding
Because an all-inclusive wedding package offers a unique style to the planning process, The Ring thought we’d show you just how it’s done at The Black Forest Inn…
Your first step would be to schedule an appointment to meet with Jessica to view the facility and check out all of the details in person with your fiancé. If, once you’ve seen the facility, you would like to seriously consider it for your wedding venue, you would be welcome to place a tentative hold on a particular date without a deposit for up to two weeks. Once the two weeks is up, you would schedule another meeting with Jessica to pay your non-refundable deposit and to sign your wedding contract. Typically, reception facilities book 18 to 12 months in advance of the wedding date... but to be honest, it’s never too late to book!
Once you book The Black Forest Inn for your reception site, all of your 'inclusive' service providers are booked at once. It really is that simple... you can now spend time enjoying your engagement and the excitement of sharing your news with friends and family.
Planning meetings | Although the timing of your planning meetings are truly up to you and what works best for you and your fiancé, Jessica recommends meeting approximately four to five times throughout the planning process. Below is a sample of what you'll typically cover in each of the meetings...
Meeting #1: The first meeting is to sign the contract and pay your non-refundable deposit. This meeting typically takes place 12 to 18 months prior to your wedding date.
Meeting #2: After you’ve signed the contract and paid your non-refundable deposit, Jessica likes to meet with you approximately 7 to 9 months prior to your wedding date to confirm your wedding day timeline, décor selections, wedding cake style and flavours as well as discuss your bar details and your menu selections.
Meeting #3: The third meeting is typically 3 to 6 months prior to your wedding date and is the most intense planning meeting as you will plan 40 to 50 of your wedding proofs and also select the style and particular song selections for your wedding night. At this meeting you will also design a seating plan and discuss any outstanding details.
Meeting #4: This is usually the last official planning meeting and takes place 1 to 2 days prior to your wedding. At this meeting you bring in all of the ‘extra’ wedding items that you would like to have displayed at your wedding reception. For example your seating plan, guest favours, guest book and pen and family photos are typical items that are brought in for this meeting.
Meeting #5: Approximately 2 to 3 weeks after your wedding day, Jessica will contact you to come in for one final meeting where she will present to you your wedding proofs and enjoy one last visit!
Good to know...
• Friday weddings automatically receive a $5 discount off the regular price per person.
• Theatre quality lighting and sound is permanently built into the structure of the hall.
• Guest tables are rectangular and seat 6, 8 or 10 guests per table.
• All Service Providers have an open-door policy and you are welcome to contact them directly at any time throughout the planning process.
• The Black Forest Inn hosts an annual Wedding Open House in January of each year, a perfect opportunity for booked and non-booked brides and their families to view the facility decorated for a wedding and to speak in person with all of the inclusive service providers, plus other industry professionals.
• Jessica, your Certified Wedding Specialist, will oversee your reception from the time your guests arrive until you wave goodbye at 1 am... again adding to your stress-free experience and allowing you the time to relax and really soak up the whole experience of your family and friends that make your wedding day special!
Details, details, details
• The Black Forest Inn can accommodate 75 to 200 guests.
• A possible indoor ceremony location for a nominal fee.
• The price for the complete all-inclusive wedding package is $82 per person plus taxes and 10% gratuity.
• A confirmation of the number of guests attending must be given at least 2 weeks prior to your event.
• There is no hall fee for weddings of 135 adults or more. For functions of 100 to 135 adults, a hall fee of $500 will apply, or $1250 for functions of 75 to 100 adult persons.
• A temporary hold may be placed on the room for up to 2 weeks before a deposit must be made to confirm your booking.
• A non-refundable deposit of $1500 is required once the room is booked.
Elegant décor combined with the natural, rustic charm at The Black Forest Inn create a beautiful, one-of-a-kind wedding that you and your guests will never forget. Unique in the Tri-Cities, The Black Forest Inn offers a complete wedding package, which includes a customized four course meal, a complete photography package, beautiful wedding décor, wedding cakes that inspire, a professional DJ and your very own Certified Wedding Specialist. We recently sat down with the Wedding Specialist herself, Jessica Ferguson to find out more about this country venue. Here's what she told us...
Personally speaking...
The Black Forest Inn’s Certified Wedding Specialist, Jessica Ferguson, is the one who works with you every step of the way and helps turn your wedding dreams into reality. Jessica comes to the Inn with a diploma in Event Management and years of experience managing and planning events throughout the Tri-cities , having coordinated every type of event from fundraisers to community events and everything in between. The hopeless romantic in Jessica lead her to The Black Forest Inn where she is the in-house Certified wedding planner. “I love seeing a couples wedding vision come to life,” says Jessica. “It's a privilege to get to know the couples and be apart of a very special and important day in their lives.”
We think that having Jessica to guide you through the planning process is likely to provide peace of mind and take away a lot of the stress that comes with planning a wedding.
Alicia Titley agrees, she held her reception at the Inn for her June 2011 wedding. She told The Ring, "I absolutely loved working with Jessica. She was so personable and always made you feel at ease. She was there any time along the way when I had any questions or concerns. She worked around my schedule to schedule meetings. She was there the night of the event to make sure everything was running smoothly. The team was amazing the day of as well. I received so many compliments about how great the staff was and how great of a job they did for us."
The all-inclusive wedding package
There are many reasons that The Black Forest Inn is a unique wedding venue, one being that they provide an all-inclusive wedding package, which includes all of the major services involved in planning your wedding. This takes pressure off the entire planning process and is often a huge time saver and stress reliever for couples. It truly is a ‘one-stop shop’ for everything wedding.
Alicia Titley told us that she would absolutly recommend the Inn to any couple getting married, "The stress of all the details was taken care of by the hall, the staff was so easy to work with, they made you feel at ease & never stressed us out. The hall was the perfect size for the amount of people we had in there (about 100) & it was beautifully decorated. The food and desert was some of the best we have eaten in a long time. And no one left that place with an empty stomach! The DJ was great, they had people of all ages up on the dance floor all night. And we stayed under our budget. What more could you possibly want?"
The quote you receive at The Black Forest Inn not only covers the fabulous, four-course meal, unlimited hors d’oeuvres, and decadent evening table, but your photography, décor, wedding cake, DJ services and Certified Wedding Specialist!
The added beauty of the all-inclusive wedding package is that The Black Forest Inn’s service providers have all been selected with careful consideration to provide you with the highest quality. Your Certified Wedding Specialist will guide you through the process as you customize your wedding. You will have control of all of the details in each service provider’s package to build a wedding that is uniquely you.
While the rustic charm at The Inn provides a natural backdrop, the décor they offer also complements this with tasteful, soft white linens and lights draped around the dance floor, balcony, cake table, gift table and head table. The head table can also be framed with your choice of three different backdrops that are decorated with lights and fabric and placed on a twelve inch riser. The ambiance of the room is completed with English gardens, satin bows and centrepieces on each guest table. Jessica says that brides and guests alike are often taken aback by the feeling of romance in the room, making this the perfect place for a wedding.
The photography package includes a complete wedding package with four different locations, bride's home, ceremony location, third location and The Black Forest Inn. You will receive 80 proofs in a presentation box, one 11” X 14” wall portrait, a wedding album, including fourteen 8” X 10” photographs in an art leather album and two folios consisting of one 8” X 10” and four 4” X 5” photographs. "The photographer is not only talented and aware of current trends, but also knows some fabulous photo locations, ideal for your wedding day," Jessica told us.
From elaborate to simple, traditional to modern, and everything in between, we were told that The Black Forest Inn's cake designer will "meet your expectations". Three different styles of display wedding cake are included and your selected display cake is surrounded by edible 8” cakes, (starting with a minimum of 2 cakes) intricately decorated based on the design you selected. "Our associate bakers are experienced and professional and will ensure that your wedding cake is a huge success!," says Jessica. There's also a wide range of cake flavours and cream fillings available for you to choose from., A personal consultation is available to ensure that on your wedding day you will be completely thrilled.
Great sound, exciting dance floor lighting and an experienced DJ are just some of the elements that you will enjoy with The Inn's associate DJ. "At every wedding they go the extra mile to ensure that your night is special and everyone is has a great time," Jessica told us. "Your song selection and music preferences always meet your expectations."
The all-inclusive wedding package at The Black Forest Inn definitely takes the stress out of a lot of the wedding planning. Plus, your Certified Wedding Specialist takes care of all of the details so you can spend more time with your family and friends enjoying the time leading up to your wedding.
Ina Sebastian was thrilled with her July 2011 wedding at the Inn, " It’s one stop shopping for the laidback couple!! BFI takes away the stress when it comes to planning your wedding. All the categories that are normally dealt with, DJ, decorating, photography, can be very stressful and pricey. With BFI you don’t have to worry about all that! You let them do the work! It’s one stop shopping for the laidback couple!! BFI takes away some of the stress when it comes to planning your wedding. All the categories that are normally dealt with, DJ, decorating, photography, can be very stressful and pricey. With BFI you don’t have to worry about all that! You let them do the work!"
A taste of The Black Forest Inn
Your entrée options include:
Roast Prime Rib of Beef - Slow roasted prime rib cooked to medium served with rosemary garlic jus and sautéed mushrooms.
Chicken Supreme - A pan seared roasted supreme of chicken dressed with sundried tomato, goat cheese Mousseline and finished with a shitake and oyster mushroom cream sauce.
Salmon Wellington - A salmon filet enveloped in phyllo pastry with spinach and shrimp duxelle and lemon finished with a white wine and parsley veloute.
Stuffed Striploin Roast - AAA marinated striploin roast stuffed with wild mushrooms and shallots topped with a smoked chipotle demi-glace.
Cornish Game Hen - Half roasted Cornish hen filled with a savoury bread stuffing topped with a sage and shallot cream sauce.
Cranberry Brie Chicken - Breaded chicken breast stuffed with cranberries and brie finished with a sherry espaguole.
Stuffed Pork Tenderloin - Roasted pork tenderloin with an apple & shitake mushroom stuffing topped with a peppered marsala demi-glace.
Vegetarian Strudel Delight - Portobello mushrooms, sweet bell peppers & zucchini with a roasted tomato salsa enveloped in phyllo pastry.
Planning your all-inclusive wedding
Because an all-inclusive wedding package offers a unique style to the planning process, The Ring thought we’d show you just how it’s done at The Black Forest Inn…
Your first step would be to schedule an appointment to meet with Jessica to view the facility and check out all of the details in person with your fiancé. If, once you’ve seen the facility, you would like to seriously consider it for your wedding venue, you would be welcome to place a tentative hold on a particular date without a deposit for up to two weeks. Once the two weeks is up, you would schedule another meeting with Jessica to pay your non-refundable deposit and to sign your wedding contract. Typically, reception facilities book 18 to 12 months in advance of the wedding date... but to be honest, it’s never too late to book!
Once you book The Black Forest Inn for your reception site, all of your 'inclusive' service providers are booked at once. It really is that simple... you can now spend time enjoying your engagement and the excitement of sharing your news with friends and family.
Planning meetings | Although the timing of your planning meetings are truly up to you and what works best for you and your fiancé, Jessica recommends meeting approximately four to five times throughout the planning process. Below is a sample of what you'll typically cover in each of the meetings...
Meeting #1: The first meeting is to sign the contract and pay your non-refundable deposit. This meeting typically takes place 12 to 18 months prior to your wedding date.
Meeting #2: After you’ve signed the contract and paid your non-refundable deposit, Jessica likes to meet with you approximately 7 to 9 months prior to your wedding date to confirm your wedding day timeline, décor selections, wedding cake style and flavours as well as discuss your bar details and your menu selections.
Meeting #3: The third meeting is typically 3 to 6 months prior to your wedding date and is the most intense planning meeting as you will plan 40 to 50 of your wedding proofs and also select the style and particular song selections for your wedding night. At this meeting you will also design a seating plan and discuss any outstanding details.
Meeting #4: This is usually the last official planning meeting and takes place 1 to 2 days prior to your wedding. At this meeting you bring in all of the ‘extra’ wedding items that you would like to have displayed at your wedding reception. For example your seating plan, guest favours, guest book and pen and family photos are typical items that are brought in for this meeting.
Meeting #5: Approximately 2 to 3 weeks after your wedding day, Jessica will contact you to come in for one final meeting where she will present to you your wedding proofs and enjoy one last visit!
Good to know...
• Friday weddings automatically receive a $5 discount off the regular price per person.
• Theatre quality lighting and sound is permanently built into the structure of the hall.
• Guest tables are rectangular and seat 6, 8 or 10 guests per table.
• All Service Providers have an open-door policy and you are welcome to contact them directly at any time throughout the planning process.
• The Black Forest Inn hosts an annual Wedding Open House in January of each year, a perfect opportunity for booked and non-booked brides and their families to view the facility decorated for a wedding and to speak in person with all of the inclusive service providers, plus other industry professionals.
• Jessica, your Certified Wedding Specialist, will oversee your reception from the time your guests arrive until you wave goodbye at 1 am... again adding to your stress-free experience and allowing you the time to relax and really soak up the whole experience of your family and friends that make your wedding day special!
Details, details, details
• The Black Forest Inn can accommodate 75 to 200 guests.
• A possible indoor ceremony location for a nominal fee.
• The price for the complete all-inclusive wedding package is $82 per person plus taxes and 10% gratuity.
• A confirmation of the number of guests attending must be given at least 2 weeks prior to your event.
• There is no hall fee for weddings of 135 adults or more. For functions of 100 to 135 adults, a hall fee of $500 will apply, or $1250 for functions of 75 to 100 adult persons.
• A temporary hold may be placed on the room for up to 2 weeks before a deposit must be made to confirm your booking.
• A non-refundable deposit of $1500 is required once the room is booked.
