The Columbus Athenaeum — Attraction in Columbus

Beware the Columbus Athenaeum. I will say that the Athenaeum takes great pains to charge you for whatever they can, and when they can't they find some late fee or another to throw in.

My biggest complaint is how I, the bride was treated when I had a legitimate gripe. We asked, Ann Clark once we got off the Trolley at the Athenaeum where we could store the cooler, which only had alcohol, in which was for the Trolley ONLY. We were told it could be stored behind the bar. I do know that the groomsmen tried to make a drink and the bartender told them that they could not do that, so the alcohol and cooler were moved. They sent us a final receipt and order that UPGRADED the bar from beer/wine to full liquor bar for our entire wedding guest amount. How would one (1) cooler pertain to 219 people and change the overall cost of Bar setup? If we were told that storing the cooler at the bar would have changed the setup fee, we would have never put the cooler behind the bar, we would have had someone put in their car. This situation was NEVER discussed with the bride and/or groom or even mothers during the event. This was a BIG mistake, seeing as how no other drinks were ever made by the bartender to make it a Full Bar set up. All night the 219 guests had ONLY beer, wine and non-alcoholic beverage served by the bartender.

According to the General Conditions; under Food/Beverage it states as following "If outside food/beverage items are brought into the TCA without specific written authorization, TCA reserves the right to remove items until the conclusion of the event and the client is responsible for any applicable handling fee" We found not wording of such in our contract.

Four days or several phone calls and an email to Ann Clark and members in the Accounting Dept., a man named Mike (Banquet Manager) called to explain the situation. His tone and demeanor was VERY unprofessional and he had no interest in rectifying the situation or even hearing our side of the story! He constantly interrupted me and was raising his voice, as if I was doing the same or gave him any reason to be upset. If anyone should be upset it was this bride! I was hysterical after I got off the phone with him! I could not believe the lack of respect, professionalism and common courtesy. Is this how venues treat they patrons, especially since word of mouth the best way of referral AND we had dropped thousands of dollars on this event? We should get exactly everything I paid for when making that kind of investment.

Overall, we were happy with the service during the actual wedding reception and with the planning beforehand with Ann, but after we made our last payment and final detail meeting we were just another number to them. The Athenaeum is certainly impetuous with their clients. If you plan events here don’t expect warm fuzzy customer service or any form of follow up. Which is sad to see when planning a joyous event that you are sharing with your loved one and to recieve such COLD hearted services from individuals you planned with for many months. Maybe, I just expect too much from people (shrug).

Words of the wise: More than anything else, MAKE SURE YOU GET AND PUT...

The Columbus Athenaeum was a lovely venue for our wedding reception! We had originally gotten married in a microwedding in February and, on a whim, decided to have a large reception in August. We only had about 75 days to plan everything. Natasha and Samantha answered every question that we had, and we had a lot! Jennifer and the staff decorated the Large Theatre beautifully! We had some special decorations to honor our loved ones who are no longer with us, and they placed those decorations with special care and attention. The food was great - highly recommend the mashed potato martinis! We chose 4 specialty drinks in honor of our 4 cats and the bartenders made each drink taste so good. Special highlights - using the theatre gallery box for a special surprise for our guests, the food and cake tastings where we got a bunch of food to try, and they managed our cookie table that our guests loved. They were very flexible - at the very beginning of the reception a guest accidentally poured red wine on my dress. Natasha and the owner (whose name I unfortunately forget) mitigated the damage to my dress by pouring club soda on the stains as I freaked out. This delayed dinner but the staff smoothly transitioned to the new timeline. I want to emphasize that my dress would've been ruined had Natasha and the owner not moved quickly to help me. A great thing about using the Athenaeum is that they have a bakery and a DJ/photobooth company that they frequently work with, so we didn't have to find those vendors. The cake was delicious, the DJ kept the party going, and the photobooth attendant was so helpful and kind! This next point only tangentially involves the Athenaeum but most of our guests did not end up parking in the garage that is recommended by the Athenaeum. They found their own parking so our advice would be to forego a contract with the parking garage and, instead, use that money towards upgrading your package to include the mashed potato...

We couldn't be happier with our choice of The Columbus Athenaeum as our wedding venue. From the moment we started planning, Francisco and Lucinda took charge of ironing out every detail, ensuring our day was as personal and special as we had envisioned. Their communication and willingness to accommodate our needs were outstanding, and they went above and beyond to offer solutions that helped us stay as close to our budget as possible. I didn't feel overly pressured or judged like I had while touring other wedding venues.

One of the biggest conveniences of this venue was the comprehensive in-house services they offered. We didn't have to worry about sourcing tables, chairs, linens, or head table backdrops—they had it all covered. The package included delicious hors d'oeuvres, a beautifully plated dinner, dessert, beverages, and bartending services. They even provided a photobooth, some decor, table numbers, and so many other fantastic add-ons that made our planning process so much easier.

Also worth a mention, T.C.A. has many Ceremony and Reception rooms to choose from which makes them so unique. In the end we decided to go with The Oak Room, but loved the historical charm and personality each individual room had to offer.

Lastly! You can't beat T.C.A.'s location. We loved the convenience of nearby parking garages and meters for out of town guests. We were also able to reserve a room block at the Renaissance Hotel - Downtown Columbus. Many of our guests were able to park at the hotel and walk to / from our reception. Very easy planning for us!

The Columbus Athenaeum truly made our wedding day stress-free and enjoyable. We would recommend them without hesitation and look forward to utilizing their services again...