The Howard — Local services in Oshkosh

We recently had our wedding reception at The Howard, and while the venue itself is beautiful, the customer service from the Howard's staff is in need of some work. Our experience working with them was disappointing for several reasons...

First, their lack of communication. Weeks would go by where my contact at the Howard, Carol, would ignore my emails and leave questions I had unanswered. I understand everyone is busy and short staffed at the moment, but after several unanswered emails and phone calls, I believe it's common courtesy to at least let your customer know that you'll get back to them as soon as you can. There were never any apologies for the lack of response and it was very unnerving trying to plan a wedding when your venue just stops replying.

Second, their failure to plan and communicate in a timely manner. We met several months before the reception to go over menu options. Carol let us know that she would get in contact with the chef and give us our final menu with pricing within a week or so. One month passed before I was able to get in contact with Carol again, with several unanswered emails and phone calls. About one week before our reception I received another email from Carol saying the menu needed to be paired down even further due to not wanting to "waste" food and some of the food being "too expensive" that they didn't even want to give us a quote. It seems like their kitchen/chef didn't have the capacity to handle the menu items we had selected, and she decided to wait until a week before the reception to let us know.

Finally, the service the night of our reception from the bar staff was horrible. There was a male bartender that was incredibly rude to all of our guests. I had 10+ of our guests, from friends to grandparents, approach me during the night to let me know about the situation. When I brought this up to the manager on staff that night, they told me that my guests were the issue and would call the cops if needed. I could understand if it was one or two guests who had too much to drink, but the problem was clearly the bartender and I did not appreciate them blaming my guests.

Overall, if someone is looking for a venue, I would say look elsewhere. The space is beautiful, but there are other venues that prioritize their guest's...

I became obsessed with the Howard the moment I walked through the doors a year ago when my husband and I were looking at wedding venues. It exudes class, elegance and grandeur - nothing else in the state compares, in my opinion. After seeing the Howard, I didn't have the same reaction to anywhere else and we were lucky enough to be able to book it as our wedding venue.

Lizz Redman, the chefs and staff at the Howard are absolutely exceptional. My husband and I are total foodies and love enjoying/preparing healthy, fresh food - this is exactly what the chefs do here. They have an extensive, well curated menu to choose from and everything is so tastefully done. We could not have been happier with our total experience from everyone there who made our day seamless and so so special. Everyone we talked to who attended our wedding commented on how amazing the venue is, how polite the staff was and how great the food was. Lizz, who is the events coordinator, is so professional and responsive throughout our whole wedding planning process. I plan to come to as many events as I can at the Howard from here on out - any excuse to get in that beautiful...

The Howard is a must-see and everything you want in a venue and an experience! We’ve had several different and unique experiences at The Howard ranging from dinner shows to girl’s nights, in addition to enjoying their café and new bowling lanes. Every time, the service and food has been exceptional! I actually feel like I’m experiencing culinary art when I eat there. It is very affordable considering the quality of the food and ambiance provided. The building itself is a piece of art with so many ornate details that make you feel transported into another era. I love escaping for a night out with my husband and friends at The Howard. A piece of art and history should be...