In April of 2005, my wife and I (who live in a suburb of the Twin Cities) received a phone call from the young man who was dating our daughter. Chad was in the Navy, stationed in San Diego. He was calling to ask our permission for him to ask our daughter to marry him. Of course, we said “yes.” He also wanted us to find a place for him to ask her to marry him. We did so, and late in April, Melanie accepted his proposal.
Her “yes” set off a 14 month long process of planning a wedding. We knew the wedding service itself would be at our church. The size of the guest list for the reception and the desire for a dance ruled out the church dining room as the reception site. The first order of business, then, was to find a reception site. Among the requirements that guided my wife in her search for an appropriate site were:
An attractive facility
A reasonable distance from our church
Easily accessible from our church
Convenient parking, preferably free
Plenty of space for guests not only to eat, but to mingle away from the tables
Room for a dance
My wife got on our computer and googled “Wedding Reception Sites in the Twin Cites.” There were plenty to choose from! One of Melanie’s early thoughts was to have the reception in one of the historic houses or mansions that are common in the Twin Cities. We quickly discovered that few of the houses would be able to accommodate the 300+ guests who would be present at the reception. We did not like the idea of dividing guests into separate rooms to eat, as was the case in a few homes, and it was important to us that the guests would be able to mingle and roam about freely.
Another possibility was a beautiful building on the campus of the University of Minnesota. It, however, suffered from space problems; it would have required the use of two rooms, and parking would have been in an expensive ramp or a significant walking distance away.
International Market Square (IMS) was our choice from the time we saw its website. Located at 275 Market Street, Minneapolis 55405, IMS is just off Interstate 94 near downtown Minneapolis. The General Manager can be reached at (612) 330-9478. The IMS was, at one time, a Munsingwear underwear factory that has since been converted into numerous shops intended for people who are building and/or decorating their homes or businesses. Each shop specializes in a particular area of home or business décor. The shops are built around a large central opening or atrium where receptions are held. The atrium itself is a glass-roofed, five-story area with multiple levels built within those five stories. The area can seat anywhere from 50 guests to 2000 guests for a reception or other event. For our group of 300+ guests, we used the main floor for eating and the dance. A raised area above the main floor was used for guests who could not be accommodated on the main floor.
During the search for the site, we learned a crucial distinction between different sites. Some rented only the space and the group was free to find their own caterer or to fix their own food and bring it to the site. Other sites had their own caterer and if you rented the site, you were required to use the exclusive caterer.
The International Market Square was the second type. The exclusive caterer was D’Amico Catering, 275 Market Street, Suite C25, Minneapolis 55405, phone number (612) 238-4444. We also discovered that there was a minimum food charge for the reception, depending on the time of the year and the day of the week. Certain days were prime days and had a larger minimum charge. Other days were not in as much demand and, therefore, had a lower minimum. Whether your guest list was large or small, the minimum charge was the same.
While the exclusive caterer arrangement seems limiting, it actually relieves the client of the burden of finding a caterer or being tempted to provide the food for the wedding. Our decision focused on what to serve. We were helped in that decision by a “tasting party” during which several entrée options, side dishes, and cake flavors were served. It was a meal in itself and greatly helped us in finalizing the menu for the reception.
One great thing about IMS is that the atrium is already decorated with trees and plants. There was no need for any additional extensive decorating. We opted for some large decorative umbrellas scattered throughout the area that were included with our rental.
We had people go to the IMS on the day of the wedding to set up centerpieces, but for the reception itself, all we had to do was show up. All the details of serving and cleaning up were taken care of. Oh, one thing: getting an accurate count of dinners to be served is important. If you order too high or if several people who make reservations don’t show up, the caterer keeps the leftover food, but the customer still has to pay for it. That doesn’t seem fair, but that’s the way it is. That may not be true for all caterers, but it is for D’Amico.
IMS met all of our requirements. It was attractive. It was relatively close to the church. It was easy to get to. There was plenty of free parking close to the building. There was more than sufficient space for the guests, both for eating and for wandering around. And there was room for a dance.
Other than having trouble at times getting in touch with our contact person from D’Amico, we were very pleased with the location, the service, and the food.
Source for information about the International Market Square and D’Amico Catering:
www.imsdesignonline.com/catering.asp
