SqWires Restaurant & Market — Restaurant in St. Louis

If you are considering holding a wedding and reception at Sqwires I would encourage you to look elsewhere. It has taken me almost a year to be able to post a review as the experience was so upsetting.

The cons. We met with a wedding coordinator as soon as our daughter got engaged and did a food tasting. We went through every detail of the wedding with this coordinator. We were told we would be able to rent nice chairs from Weinhardt and store them at Sqwires until they could be picked up by Weinhardt on Monday. We were also told that we should not reserve a cart from Clementines with their own servers because Sqwires staff could certainly handle dishing out ice cream. We were told a higher number could be fit in the small front room if weather did not permit an outdoor ceremony and they we could do a cocktail hour in that room after an indoor wedding. We had menu choices we were very comfortable with.

4 months before the wedding we find out our initial wedding coordinator was no longer with them and we had to meet with the banquet manager and go through every single detail again. The meeting was so upsetting because many things we were promised by wedding coordinator number 1 were no longer true. We could not store chairs and would be charged to rent a u haul to have them stored outside the annex for Sunday to Monday. We were also told that menu choices we made were no longer options. Also very upsetting to find out that their staff could not serve the ice cream and we should hire clementines to scoop the ice cream. We had to get in contact with Clementines and their cart was no longer available due to it being such short notice. We were able to hire scoopers.

As you can imagine 4 months before the wedding it was very frustrating.

The reception and ceremony were also a disaster in my opinion. Granted as the mother of the bride I had high expectations. We had a rehearsal the night before outside by the fountain. Everything was all full of weeds and the benches were covered in bird poop around the ceremony area and on the limestone. I mentioned my daughters $2700 gown brushing over the weeds and my family there began digging the weeds. My husband then said he would get up early and spruce up the area. He got up at six with cleaning supplies and yard tools and cleaned the whole area the day of the wedding. They never encouraged a runner for her to walk down and I didn’t even think about it.

We had also practiced parents of bride and groom to recess after the ceremony. We mentioned practicing one more time and the banquet manager assured us we were fine. The day of the wedding all the sudden the officiant began to talk about reception and the parents were not able to recess. We will never have that photo opportunity again.

We were also told by many guests that they could not hear music or barely hear the officiant. This is the responsibility of wedding coordinator to communicate with DJ.

The day of wedding it got very very cold. We still held it outside. We were told we could enter the restaurant and cut through to annex. This is the parents of bride and groom, Bride and groom and 3 brothers. My son in laws mom is handicapped with MS and can barely walk. They sent us out. Saying that owner does not want us walking through the restaurant. It had been an hour outside and we we all freezing.

This led to another disappointment as the bride and groom had no where else to go except to enter the annex which threw their planned grand entrance completely off. It was absolutely the most awkward experience. My daughter had picked out a song that honored her grandmother and that was another lost moment.

The reception was absolutely uncomfortable. It was as if we were throwing a party with no hosts. There were no instructions that were given about food that could be heard. So people had to search for food. I know of several guests that were starving when they left.

During the toasts the bride and groom had nowhere to stand because the sweetheart table...

Pre-Event

Since learning sugar isnt vegan and that some liquors arent vegan, i reached out prior to the event to see what my options are. Hanna did an amazing job working with me and providing me with the requested information so that I can have a smooth time ordering drinks as a vegan. She provided the labels of the items and everything which was incredibly helpful. I appreciate her so much. That there is what you call awesome hospitality. I now know what to expect and what I can and can not have. I also know what I can order and the modifications i need to ask for. This is perfect.

The Event Atmosphere/environment/ Set up

It was so beautiful. The set up and atmosphere was a vibe. Shoot I hate i didnt get pics of the setup. They did an amazing job with this event. My ppls Wedding Brunch Cocktail Reception was everything! We had an amazing time. It was definitely a celebration. They took really good care of me, the only vegan in attendance. My fiance is vegetarian and he had a separate meal as well. He was able to eat more of the provided foods like the appetizers and donuts etc due to being vegetarian, dairy and eggs.

The only appetizers i would have been able to eat are the potatoe cakes but it came with dairy so the manager, Stephanie, personally went back to get me some without the cheese. And on top of that they gave me some hummus and this olive mixture. Everything was so delicious but baby, those potato cakes. Those were the dish of the evening. It was everyone's favorite, with and without the cheese. Lol.

My fiance had a vegetarian lasagna that looked so delicious. Didnt get a pic. And my vegan meal which I think was the Tofu Truffle Skillet. Tofu, spinach, mushrooms, red onions, and potatoes. It was so fire. I think it was supposed to come with toast but it was so much i definitely didnt need the toast.

My fiance went to get my drinks from the other side and he said its just as beautiful on that side as it is in the side we was on for the wedding Reception. Those bar tenders on that side was amazing as well. They did not disappoint. Drinks were perfectly strong. The 2nd bar tender was our favorite because he gave us larger cups while the first one gave us smaller cups. But i think the first bartender drinks were stronger lol.

My only regret is forgetting about my dessert, a sorbet. I thought about it after we made it back home. Lol

We will definitely be back! It was an...

WOW. Honestly, I don't know that words will do the experience I had here justice, but I'll try.

We booked SqWires for our engagement party dinner and then cancelled a day before because circumstances changed. When booking, they offered us the private room free of charge. Hannah, I believe was the woman who we spoke to. She overcommunicated with us about our day, which we loved as an out of state couple making plans. She assured we'd be able to have the restaurant menu, that our 15-20 person party would be accommodated and that the place was wheelchair accessible. All was true.

Even though we had to cancel, we ended up here for our engagement dinner anyway because we had some issues with another establishment. Although the private room wasn't set for us (because we cancelled) the staff quickly pushed tables together that worked for our large party.

Our waiters, whose names I forget were FANTASTIC. Seriously, the best service I've ever had in St. Louis. Incredibly patient, were able to control our large hungry party and got all our drinks, apps and food out without forgetting or messing up anything. They went above and beyond. They let us bring in our own cake, they cut it for us, they served people the slices they wanted and boxed it back up for us. That's good customer service! That's unmatched customer service. After such a horrible experience at another restaurant earlier that night, SqWires being able to get our large party and seat us in about an hour of us calling them was unmatched service. Thank you to AJ, the general manager (?) who helped make this possible as well. The owners should be proud of the staff they've hired.

Lastly, the food was great! Came out hot, well seasoned and good porty sizes. I had the pork tenderloin and it was so delicious. Like, melt in your mouth delicious. I tasted some of my fiancé's meatloaf as well, also very good. The drinks were great as well, fun creative cocktails and good wine and beer options for those who wanted them.

I really can't recommend this place enough! If this is how we were treated at the end of a busy Saturday on such short notice, I'm sure the service is just as great throughout the day. Thank you SqWires for accommodating our last minute changes. Keep doing what you're doing! We'll be back when visiting STL,...