The Mulberry at New Smyrna Beach — Attraction in New Smyrna Beach

First of all, the venue - it’s GORGEOUS. Starting with the sweetgum tree (commonly mistaken for a maple tree) where the ceremony is usually held - absolutely beautiful. Aside from that one area, the detail paid to the mulberry trees, the jasmine, the grounds, in general…it’s PERFECT. The whole property is manicured to precision.

Our entire day went almost exactly according to plan thanks to so many people but one of the ones who needs MAJOR accolades was Billie, the property manager of sorts. She truly wears all hats - security-like tasks, parking attendant, grounds keeper, behind-the scenes cleaning and organizing and errand running. Simply put, she is and was a saint and a godsend to all things having to do with our wedding day. I’d venture to say her attention to detail is unmatched. When I turned out to not have absolutely everything I needed for signage, she took it upon herself to run an errand and get me a photo frame for a sign I ultimately wasn’t even worried about (I had shrugged my shoulders and said “oh well” and had no clue she had even left to handle it until she came back with a frame ready to go). Not to mention, her phone number is posted right on the fridge in the bridal cottage for basically anything you need. We also had our dog on property and she treated him like her very own - she even had toys and fed him treats and loved on him like no tomorrow. I didn’t have the pleasure of having as much interaction with one of the other Mulberry employees, Debbie, but the little conversation I had with her, she was also a Jack of all trades and helped immensely in the making of our beautiful day. They’re both beautiful people. 🥰

The use of the bridal cottage is everything you could dream of for a space to get ready and celebrate with your bridesmaids/mothers/mother-in-laws/family of all kinds. It’s beautiful, clean, huge, and covered in Instagram-worthy opportunities & items. On top of it all, I was so comfortable, cool, and felt right at home. (They even have an awesome speaker for your getting ready music!)

Although the groom isn’t the type to rave about an event space, he wasn’t going to go to a venue without a groomsmen’s quarters. The guys LOVED it. Between the bar (with 2 fridges & a sink) the TV, the amount of room, and the A/C cranking to keep about 6 people comfortably cool in tuxes, the venue really has everything you could think of.

The venue does require that you use one of their event coordinators/wedding planners after you book your date. This was initially a challenging sell for me as a DIY bride. However, I can’t speak on any of the other planners but if any or all of them can bring your vision to life like Ivy Myers (from Roots to Stems) brought ours…your day will be made. The calm and organization that Ivy brought me was immeasurable. If I could go back and consult the bride I was at the beginning of this process, I’d tell her to NEVER question the need for a planner ever again.

The other vendor you’ll be required to use is their bar services - Drunk In Love. The bartenders - Ryan and Justin - went above and BEYOND to make sure ALL of our guests were taken care of. Not a single guest could come up with anything negative to say. They were friendly, they were sociable, they were fast, efficient, and generous. Justin personally told me that if I ran out of my drinks, he would go to the store himself and get me more. Very impressive service.

All of our vendors, Jessica (the owner of the Mulberry), Priscilla (one of the event coordinators/planners that we didn’t wind up working with but who is Jessica’s right hand person & very helpful), Billie, and Debbie all made our entire night a total dream. Our wedding absolutely would NOT have been what it was if not for the entire Mulberry staff. So many, many happy memories were made on 4.14.23 and I cannot thank any of them nearly enough for making our day like the highlight reel of a movie.

If you have ANY doubts about picking this venue, just know you will be missing out...

Beautiful venue. If we did not absolutely love the venue we would not have moved forward with booking due to lack of communication from the owner Jessica and Assistant/Planner Priscilla. They are extremely hard to get ahold of. I am not the only one to experience this as others have mentioned in their Google and Knot reviews. It is unprofessional and extremely frustrating. Their contract is tight and my questions seemed to aggravate/annoy them. Majority of my questions were left unanswered until I hired a coordinator, who was equally frustrated with the lack of communication from Mulberry. I know of another bride that got married a few weeks before me, experienced the same thing. This made me feel better that it wasn’t just us, that others go through this but don’t say anything because they’re in love with the spot. It is a shame that we had this experience with them because it truly put a bitter taste in our mouths and scared us for wedding day.

On the day of our wedding, a tour took place while we were getting ready which we felt was rude since we paid for that day and time. Another issue was flying ants at our reception. When I say flying ants I do not mean 1 or 2. I mean THOUSANDS. So much so they were in and on our clothes, hair, shoes, swarming everywhere, in our cars, etc. We actually did sparklers as our exit, luckily an hour earlier while it was still light out, and thank goodness we did because there is NO way we would have had a grand exit with this infestation. One of The Mulberry employees told us “This happens almost every night during the summer” and if this is so common, we were not made aware of these bugs by anyone when we booked. Also, our wedding was on a Friday and I was told our security deposit would be mailed back to us on following Monday. It has been almost 2 weeks since our wedding and we did not hear from anyone at The Mulberry regarding the return of the check until I asked my coordinator to reach out to the owner Jessica. Jessica was on vacation and told my coordinator on Monday 5/20 I can pick up the check but then did not respond to when the barn was open or when she would be back so we could physically retrieve the check. We finally picked up the check yesterday 5/23.

Billie the day of manager, was outstanding. She made us feel welcome and made us feel heard. She made sure the day ran smooth. She kept everything in pristine condition. We have nothing but great things to say about her. She ran a tight ship and we loved it. The actual venue is stunning. The grounds are well kept, the buildings are updated and clean. It is...

The people and location is really nice to hold a small wedding if no more than 100 guests. The staff was super nice and provided excellent service. The location has a great, relaxing and cozy vibe. The ceremony is right next to the reception area which is great for your guests. There’s no need for additional transportation to another location. It’s an all in one venue location.

Unfortunately, Florida just suffered from Hurricane Ian and several locations were flooded and caused a foul odor of old fish, but the venue has several fans and heated lamps that helped push the odor away.

I do advise this venue to invest in a larger sign at the entrance as I was speaking with several guests, they couldn’t find the location. Myself included missed the entrance because it was similar to a small street entrance. A large sign or two would help find the location easier. I love “The Mulberry” lamp light at the venue on a green leaved wall. Possibly 2 of those in the front of each side of the street with larger lettering so in the day it’s legible but also at night it lights up.

The venue is very well cared for even after a hurricane, but the area where the cars are parked would of been better if paved as it’s not ideal for ladies coming in heels. One must prepare to come in sandals or shoes and then switch to heels inside the venue. I’m sure there has been a guest or two fall just from coming out of their car to walking inside the venue.

The lighting is really pretty as well. I’m sure more lighting and decorations can be added to make your evening more magical upon request.

Overall this location is really nice to celebrate your special event, wether it’s a sweet 16, quinceañera, wedding, anniversary, birthday or more. With a few improvements this venue could be the ideal venue in NE...