The 21st annual Newport Wedding Show kicked off with a reception at Gardiner House. Pranzi catering provided the nourishment for this “out of the world” evening. Whether that was the theme of this year’s wedding show is anyone’s guess. But the evening’s entertainment included a female martian with a disco ball on her head. It certainly was a delightful scene, nevertheless.
Gardiner House was selected as the venue for the reception. We couldn’t be more thrilled! We love boutique hotels and prefer them overall to their chain cousins. The VIP tickets also included the entry into the Newport Wedding Show the next day.
Newport Wedding Show: Data Farming Warning1
This notification is about data farming (February 29th). Newport Life was a major sponsor this year. The VIP tickets included an annual ‘hard copy’ subscription to the magazine, but we passed on it. Moreover, Digital subscribers have been increasing, and we are one of them. Even when we are jetting off, we still prefer to keep travel items as light as possible.
We have included this very important data farming warning to this event. We have received several complaints of email notifications from vendors, many of whom the attendees did not visit. Furthermore, none of the attendees provided data to these vendors. The Social Diary is aware of this situation and is monitoring this2.
Newport Wedding Show
Pranzi Catering
Pranzi is a success story of magnitude, and one everyone should read about. They have catered several events where we were guests. They always do a consistent job of it too. This evening’s menu included chicken, duck, oysters, beet feta salad and vegetarian pizza. Everything was delicious, but sometimes it’s a blur. For this reason, it would help guests to see a small menu card. It can be no bigger than a postcard. As a collector of menus, we love to see what the kitchen has prepared.
The food was tasty and well prepared, in bite size increments. It’s amazing how hors d’oeuvres can fill you up when you have enough of them. The servers made sure we always had a bite or two. They consistently returned with more bites. They were so delightful, pleasant and thoughtful. We grew up on canapés, so we really enjoy cocktail receptions. The champagne was overflowing this evening. A cash bar was also available.
Gardiner House
Gardiner House is a developing boutique hotel in downtown Newport. It had a soft opening in September and has been receiving guests since. It is currently undergoing renovation to its restaurant. We already have ideas of how they can use their spaces. The decor is very artistic and has a mediterranean vibe, especially the foyer. We visited the studio bar prior to the reception.
Gardiner House is located in the heart of the downtown scene. The reception incorporated the Sun room, which is a perfect space for a Sunday brunch buffet with a juice bar. Here, we had an amazing view of the ocean and the sun set, which was a perfect start to our evening.
Newport Wedding Show: Rosecliff
Rosecliff is an iconic mansion and part of the Newport mansions collective.
Checkin was a bit confusing, but once finalised it was on to the show. Some of the men were handed pink bags meant for engaged women. Don’t you love equal opportunity at wedding shows? Regardless of this bit of wrangling at the beginning, there was a lot to see. We had to still figure out where everyone was located. In this regard, the map was not helpful. Wandering around a big space is a feat unto itself. Our suggestion for next year is to have the tables numbered to correspond with the map.
Other than the Newport International Boat Show, we don’t do any “convention” type events in Newport, so this show was our first. It’s on its 21st leg! So it begs the question, where were we all that time?
We would highly recommend arriving early. It gets very busy and stuffy as the day progresses. We mostly have a plan when we attend social events, but for this community event, we were a fish out of water.
Wooden Pin Baking Company
Our first order of business, however, was to find the cake tasting. There were two cake vendors, but the clear winner for us was Wooden Pin Baking Company. The sales associate impressed us, and we love supporting small businesses, especially the newer ones!
We sampled two different cakes. One was a Red Velvet and the other was a Vanilla. The butter cream frosting was smooth and well incorporated. The slice held together well and did not come apart. Whilst the vanilla was moist, the Red Velvet was a tad bit dry3, but that could be due to temperature variance from refrigerator to venue. The portion size was equal to an actual cake tasting.
The House of Kitty Dunbar
At The Social Diary we make it our objective to support small businesses.
The House of Kitty Dunbar is another mention. When the associate at the event was providing an overview of their services, we immediately thought “Bobbi Brown.” The story of another “empire builder” is intriguing.
Dunbar offers door-to-door makeup service. Anyone involved with a wedding party, or even planning one, understands the stressful nature of the job. Part of the reason we outsource is to alleviate stress and give us more time to do other important things on our checklist. That’s where Dunbar steps in, bringing her wealth of knowledge, skills and experience. So, sit back and relax because it won’t be a bumpy ride.
Newport Wedding Show: Craft Brewery
We first met Newport Craft Brewery during the Wine and Food Festival in 2023. After our Festival brunch at Rosecliff with Chef Burke and Chef Kevin, we moved to the tasting tent set up on the lawn. This year, the Craft Brewery was the second venue for the Newport Wedding Show.
The Newport Wedding Show provided a trolley between the two venues. There was never a long wait and the drivers were friendly. It was a great way to sightsee Bellevue Avenue and downtown Newport.
Attendees to the show wore pink wristbands. How appropriate was the colour choice! The brewery staff greeted us at the door. All the action took place upstairs, first with a glass of bubbly at the entrance. We arrived in time for a fashion show that snaked around the rather small space. Afterwards, we worked our way to the familiar and also welcomed a surprise encounter.
Audrain Motorsport & Museum
Audrain was one of the sponsors for the Newport Wedding Show. Anyone who has attended the Concours & Motorweek understands the value Audrain brings to the community. Each year, Audrain Motorsport hosts Cars and Coffee. We have been attending the event since 2022. If you love classic automobiles, you will love this event!
The first Cars & Coffee of 2024 will be on April 14th. Additionally, check out the Audrain Museum on Bellevue Avenue. Every quarter, they host a new automobile exhibit.
Kitchen Companion Catering
The Newport Wedding offered many catering options but Kitchen Companion was the clear winner. Besides, we love putting a spotlight on businesses that may not be as well known. They pulled out all the stops with their menu, which included scallops, mini tacos and chips and salsa. It was Alfresco dining at the Newport Craft Brewery. The live edge serving boards were a nice touch.
The sophistication of this catering company is obvious. Every hors d’oeuvre offered had an elevated level of taste. The ingredients weren’t simple. There was a level of complexity and it all worked well together. The best performing catering companies know how to portion size their bites, especially on the tasting menu. One or two bites is ideal. The black hors d’oeuvre spoons were perfect for the scallops in one bite.
It’s a Wrap!
The Newport Wedding Show was a fun excursion to add to The Social Diary for 2024. If you attended, contact us with your favourites. Now to enjoy afternoon tea with some delicious biscuits from the show.
- The images below are examples of the unsolicited emails from the Newport Wedding Show. None of the attendees visited these tables, or provided any personal data. The first spam email to the left has been spamming daily. ↩︎
- The Social Diary has made the decision to DELETE the email associated with the Newport Wedding Show. We advised our subscribers to do the same. We had provided tips on how to successful do this. Please check the forum for more information. ↩︎
- There are several layers of building a cake, not just the layers you have to add to a wedding cake. The first step is to crumb coat the cake. It helps with the frosting later, and also locks in moisture. The cake also goes in and out of the refrigerator during frosting process, and before it arrives at its final destination. ↩︎
Newport Wedding Show – Spam Emails
