My husband and I were married here in September 2009. We wanted a Gorge location with beautiful views, but not too far from Portland, as we wanted our out of town guests to stay in and explore the city. The Inn is only about 30 minutes from downtown, so we were able to shuttle everyone there and back for the day without too much trouble.
We loved that we had the entire property to ourselves for the event, though only from 3-10 pm. And they don't mess around come 10 pm either, they want you out! The grounds are absolutely beautiful and the interior of the inn is gorgeous, very little decor was needed. The exterior of the inn is in need of some serious cosmetic renovation.
The only reason I am giving 3 starts is that In the end, our day went off without any major issues and we had a lovely wedding. But getting there was a constant headache and huge amount of stress...They have serious management issues. I would give 2.5 stars if I could.
We booked our event 15 months in advance. From the time we booked to the day of our wedding, they went through 5 wedding planners. Literally. It was a revolving door, and we were rarely notified when someone had left. I spent quite a bit of time talking & emailing with the first one when we initially booked, so it was very disconcerting to call one day and be told that she hadn't been there for a month. The first time I wasn't too upset, I mean, these things happen...but 5?! The girl who ended up being there as our day of coordinator had already quit as well - our wedding was her last event.
We signed up for their email list, and shortly thereafter started receiving desperate sounding emails begging for donations, saying that they were barely hanging on and may have to close their doors. Also very disconcerting after giving them a large nonrefundable deposit for an event more than a year away. When we called nervously to inquire, we were always reassured that everything was just fine. But I ended up getting wedding insurance, just in case.
They also went through several chef changes during the year plus we were planning, at least 3. Food was very important to us; we wanted one fish, one vegetarian, and one vegan option. I was told I could work with the chef to come up with something creative and seasonal, but I was never able to actually communicate with the chef and they were pretty inflexible and rigid about the whole thing. I wanted to taste the veg/vegan options I was given before choosing, and they made us come out for dinner one night and pay for them all. We chose the Alaskan halibut, mushroom lasagna, and polenta with ratatouille. On the wedding day, my entree, the polenta dish tasted completely different than what I had tasted 6 months prior (different chef) and it was not good. It was just totally bland and disappointing. From what I hear, the other 2 were quite good. Their food and alcohol costs were pricey.
They made my parents pay for the balance of the reception that night, as we were wrapping up, which I thought was rude. My mom, without her glasses, and a few glasses of champagne deep, did not notice that we were overcharged for 16 guests from our actual attendance. When she contacted them later to get the difference refunded, she was basically told, tough luck, it's not our fault you didn't notice the error, no refund. To this day I am not sure she has ever seen that money.
In summery, beautiful wedding location, but expensive and poorly managed. If I were doing it all over again I am not sure I would have my wedding there. There used to be all sorts of negative reviews on both yelp and citysearch, which have all mysteriously disappeared...shady.
P.S. I have been there for brunch on a number of occasions and it is really good.
Pros: gorgeous grounds and view, food is usually excellent
Cons: terrible management
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