Austria Vancouver Club — Attraction in Richmond

Terrible event venue! It may be a great place for a Friday night schnitzel, but as a wedding venue...one star isn't a low enough rating

I was the Master of Ceremonies at my brother’s wedding at this venue. -Weeks in advance, the menu was agreed upon – my brother is a Celiac disease sufferer, so he CAN’T have any gluten *The venue owner, Angela, decided to change the menu, telling my brother two days before the wedding they would be making schnitzel (gluten-filled), he had to argue to return to the agreed upon menu. *The gravy was gluten-filled anyway, and there were NO gluten-free desserts, so the groom couldn’t have dessert at his OWN WEDDING RECEPTION!!! -The decorators arrived, and Angela was nowhere to be found, so all issues had to go through the cooks. *no tablecloths were on head table, cake table and gift tables, the family members that were helping set up had to strongarm the cooks into opening the tablecloth cupboard. *one of the cooks yelled at the maid-of-honour, saying “Angela would never make a mistake!!!” -Extra tables were just piled in the corner of the reception, without any concern for the decorating, or the need for guests to be able to walk back and forth -When we arrived, the DJ told us that the police had been called to an event a couple of weeks prior, so Angela was making us keep the music volume down. -No water was available for free (we had never seen a venue refuse to provide free glasses of water!!!). All beverages had to be paid for, so I had to buy water for many guests who weren’t able to pay for water! -When the sheet cakes arrived, Angela became angry, and didn’t want to store them in the fridge, it was very hot in the venue…the cakes would have melted completely! -The staff wouldn’t cut sheet cakes, and only informed us during the reception, so we had to ask one of the wedding guests to cut the cakes -We asked Angela to bring out the sheet cakes, and she said it wasn’t the right time, and wouldn’t bring them out, so we had to ask the guest to sit and wait for her to decide the right time. -The bride & groom had brought bottles of champagne for every table, so that each guest would have some for toasting. *Angela wouldn’t allow the bottles on the tables, likely because if the guests had champagne to drink, it would reduce her bar proceeds. Even when we said we were ready to have champagne on all the tables, she still insisted on filling some glasses and handing them out. -The venue has an air-rifle shooting gallery, which was a big attraction, and the bride & groom had arranged to pay for the lane for the evening. *Angela wouldn’t let us open it. We were originally told that it would open at 6:30, but when we spoke to Angela at 6:29, about opening it (there was a large, lit “OPEN” sign above the door at this point), she said “You only paid from 7:30 to 9:30, you can’t say it’s open until 7:30! -Angela wouldn’t let us open it until her husband, Francois, came out and played a totally unwelcome accordion “performance”. *The performance was him playing several (presumably Austrian) songs, that none of the guests knew, and dragging the groom up to participate in the “performance”, in the middle of his wedding reception! *The accordion performance was unwelcome, and poor. -The venue has ceiling fans, but no air conditioning. -The venue wouldn’t clear the tables - guests had to clear plates and glasses themselves! -While the guests were trying to sign the guestbook, staff made them sign the venue’s book first, so lots of the guests didn’t end up signing the guestbook at all! -The worst was, at one point in the middle of the reception, the bride and groom noticed two people walking around beside the dance floor filming. *I was asked to find out who they were. *The strangers informed me that they were “just looking at the venue for an event” …When I said it was a private function, they said “Angela said it would be fine!” -Finally, Angela presented the bride & groom with a bill, two days before the wedding, for a $300 “gratuity”. This should have been...

Our family rented the space at the AVC Hall for a memorial reception and we are very pleased with the experience. Angela at AVC worked closely with our caterer and funeral director to coordinate all the setup on the day, and efficiently managed the food service during the event. We hadn't thought to ask for a microphone to be available and they produced one right when we needed it. Angela even thought to take photos of the final setup for me as I wasn’t able to attend. The facility offers a spacious and welcoming atmosphere and the reception was very well received. We highly recommend booking this venue...

Really enjoyed their Oktoberfest event with meal included in ticket price for $93 for two people. Much greater community feel than the money gouging Harvest Haus. Had a great conversation at the table, followed by abundant dancing choreographies and opportunities for public to join the dance floor. Also authentic good selection of beers from Germany and its region, well priced at $8 for a stein. Thanks for the warm welcome and will be back next...