An Intimate Cocktail Dinner reception (Lee & Zona : Our wedding diary)

I'm honestly adamant about having your typical 8/10-course Chinese reception dinner. Needless to say, after all those types of banquets, I've realised that not many people have their fill of the food anyway. I know it's more out of culture and that every dish signifies fertility, prosperity and happiness for the couple, but it's obviously not me. Nor Lee (despite his name =P). So I'm going to be very thankful that I won't have any family members, nor relatives crying disgrace, if Lee & I didn't have one.

So instead, the direction that we'll be heading would be for a cocktail dinner reception. Not cocktails and dinner, mind you. A stand-up, move around-eat-drink-and-mingle reception. Excuse me for having to spell it out, but this isn't a very common affair for Malaysian weddings. I know of fancy exclusive parties who do cocktail dinners, but I haven't been to one for a wedding.

My first and only experience of a cocktail dinner reception was at Lee's cartoonist friend's wedding in Canberra. It was pretty good, seeing as how because no one was tied to their tables people were milling about and chatting. The only thing I'd have expected more of a response was when the floor was open for dancing. By then, the number of guests had thinned down and mostly the bridal party were the ones dancing. Even though the three piece band they had were brilliant! Reminds me again that Malaysians don't quite dance at weddings either. Hmm...

The thing I love about the idea of a cocktail reception dinner is how intimate it could be that it allows the night's itinerary to incorporate interesting and interactive activities. Such as the money dance mentioned in the previous post, or even a couple of wedding games. Who says a wedding has to be so dull and formal? ^_~ Isn't this a time for guests to have a night of celebratory fun with the bride and groom? Especially since most of the guests wouldn't know Lee, I thought it'd be fun do to play the Mr & Mrs Quiz. Heheh... This means that the guest list will definitely be in the range of no more than 150.

The few most important things for me in choosing where and what to do for the reception would definitely take into account our Australian friends who might give us the privilege of their presence in KL. The menu definitely has to be Asian, if not just Malaysian flavour. I say this because I initially fell in love with Ciao Caffe Ristorante's garden dinner setting, but an Italian menu is not right for us. It's still very important for me that guests are fed well though. And have lots of good alcohol. Hehe...

I'm currently sourcing out quotes for some intimate places right now, and pretty much ruling out a lot of hotels because they require a minimum 15 tables (150 guests). So far what I've got in queue are -
+ Bijan Restaurant, Jalan Ceylon
+ Tamarind Springs, Ampang
+ Courtyard Garden, Damansara Heights
+ Bon Ton Restaurant, Jalan Conlay
+ Top Hat, Jalan Kia Peng

If you know of any other venues like the above, I'd love to hear your suggestions. Cheers!

Comments

Bankers Club isn't so bad - http://www.bankersclub.com.my/ue_200604_catering.htm (don't know about the stand-up part though but me and Nil have our eye set on this because we want a completely Asian feel in terms of food. :P )

Rahsia is another one - http://www.rahsia-kl.com/

Ceylon Hill - http://www.malaysia.alloexpat.com/kafe_ceylon_hill_kuala_lumpur.php (better off calling them coz their website is dead)

Passion Road - http://www.passionr.com/

Cafe Citron - http://www.urbanreporter.com/citron/

Mei | May 18, 2007 3:36 PM

A garden wedding & cocktail at Cyberview Lodge could be lovely too.

Eternity | May 18, 2007 10:34 PM

cyberview lodge's overrated n expensive.

banker's club's too "enclosed" . i'm looking for something with an extended courtyard area.

i will prolly look-up Passion Road (heard they have a new location); Ceylon Hill and maybe Rama V on Jln U-Thant.

The rest doesn't quite get my attention... hehe...

thanks tho!