Belle Mer: A Longwood Venue — Attraction in Newport

Belle Mer is absolutely beautiful, but you don’t need me to tell you that. Is it pricey? Yes, but you don’t need me to tell you that either. If the atmosphere is something you care a lot about, it doesn’t get much better than Belle Mer - it’s absolutely worth the price. The indoor/outdoor experience was just awesome. Being able to step off the dance floor and into to the fresh, fall, seaside air really created a special experience. We had our beautiful wedding in the Water Salon on a Saturday in late September, and everything exceeded our expectations. Guests were blown away by the location, the venue, and most importantly, the food! I was truly pleased and impressed with the quality and flavors of everything they served. Many of our guests told us the same.

I’m a very detail-oriented person, and often find myself disappointed when I hire professionals who can’t meet the level of care and attention that I expect them to bring. But I can’t say enough good things about Sara Leonard, our coordinator. Sara is a class act, a consummate professional, and never missed a beat! And I must add that she did all of this during perhaps the busiest wedding season ever (2021 - post COVID-19). I know that she was juggling much more than the coordinators are usually expected to handle, but she did not let it show. No matter what I needed, Sara delivered. She answered every single one of my questions thoroughly, and I never needed to re-ask or get clarification.

Sara really threw it over the top when, on our big day, the beading on my shoes kept snagging the lace on the bottom of my dress, and it didn’t take long before I had quite a mess at the hem. Sara didn’t hesitate. She sat right down on the floor in front of me with a needle and thread and was able to sew a piece of the dress lining to the outer layer to prevent any more snares. (She informed me that her grandmother taught her how to sew.) Just wow! I never expected this and thought it was above and beyond her call of duty. For Sara, nothing was beneath her. Clearly, whatever problem arose, she was going to handle it!

I tried my best to be a “chill” bride, but there was one moment on our big day when I was starting to feel worried and stressed. Just a few minutes before our outdoor ceremony was to begin, it started to rain. A bride’s worst nightmare! Guests were gathering, and everyone (and everything) was getting wet. Sara calmly came to tell me that it was just a passing shower, they were opening the cocktail space to let guests get out of the rain and to serve them some drinks while we waited. Of course she had no idea if the rain would continue or not, but her calmness in that moment was exactly what I needed, and she knew it. Lucky for us, she was right. After 10 or 15 minutes, the rain passed. The staff got right to work drying off all the chairs and ceremony table with towels, and before I knew it, I was walking down the aisle to our beautiful spot right in front of the ocean. Sara saved the day! Thank you so much, Sara! I will never forget it!

Every single one of the staff at Belle Mer was so friendly and fun. They are a big reason that our wedding day had the great energy and vibe that it did. But there is one other person I have to call out - Vula. Vula was my bridal attendant, meaning it was her job on the wedding day to be quietly at my heels and make sure I had every single thing I needed. She made sure I ate, made sure I had a drink when I needed one, and was just an absolute delight to be around. I felt like she was family. Every time I saw her she had a big smile on her face, and she was so down-to-earth. I really loved her. I felt lucky to have her by my side that night.

Our experience at Belle Mer was top-notch, and yours...

I had my wedding at Belle Mer on June 23, 2019. This was the first choice I made in moving through the Wedding process and I am so happy that I did! It was simply above and beyond!! Stephanie, our wedding coordinator, could not have been more fantastic. She was always quick to respond to any questions, extremely helpful and accomodating, incredibly efficient and always made things as easy as possible for me and for my mom. She was kind, patient and just overall did a phenomenal job assisting us in making this the most special, amazing day we have ever experienced. The day of, Chelsea, our day of attendant, and Stephanie were on top of everything. We had hors d'oeuvres brought over to the bridal party through photo shoots, there was always a drink in mine and Albert's hand, every moment was well coordinated and perfectly executed. The staff was fantastic. Our bartenders, Josh and Danielle were awesome and so accomodating!! The food was delicious. I think at one point I ate 4 tuna tartare bites one after another in the middle of photos (Can't wait to see how those came out 😂) We cannot speak more highly of everyone at Belle Mer or of the beauty of the venue itself and the location. Every aspect of the team to the location to the blessing of a beautiful sunny day after almost a full week of rain (and hail the day before) made our day one we will never, ever forget. We cannot thank you all enough (especially Stephanie for all of her hard work for months on end!), but we can try :) So thank you from the very bottom of our hearts! I've always thought it was corny and inaccurate to say that one day is the best of your life, but I can say very positively that Sunday was the best day of our lives. I will strive to have the rest of my days meet the feeling that we felt that day. Maybe one day we will, but I don't think anything could...

I don’t even know where to start!! We had our wedding here this passed Saturday (March 25th) and worked with Sara L the entire time leading up to our event. If I could give this place ten stars I would. Sara was the best event specialist we could have asked for. She made our day run so smoothly and I literally have ZERO complaints. It was outstanding and I mean that from the bottom of my heart.

Not only did we enjoy everything about our night, but so did our guests. Everyone keeps reaching out to tell me how delicious the food was and how incredible the dinner service was. I’m typically not the one to leave this wordy of a review, but I believe Sara deserves it. She worked so hard and had a smile on her face the entire time with us (even months leading up to our event.) I also want to mention how incredible Janet was being the bridal attendant for the night. She was just as good! My family keeps saying how much they loved everything about this place.

Sara and Janet work so hard and deserve it all. I will highly recommend this place to everyone I come across to have their wedding here and ask for Sara as their event specialist.

I’m so happy we picked this venue for our wedding and I’m so happy how everything turned out.

If you’re thinking about having an event here, I can’t recommend it enough! It will be the best choice you ever make!

Thank you so much to Sara & Janet for allowing us to enjoy our once in a...