Jess Minzner on The Knot 4 months ago
11/19/2022, 01:28 AM
TLDR: have your wedding at Friends Lake Inn!!!
I can honestly say that reviews from The Knot convinced me that Friends Lake Inn (FLI) would be the right place to have my microwedding. I wanted a cozy, elegant, STRESS-FREE, and meaningful wedding day, and I can honestly say without any reservations that I got those things and more.
Our event took place over the course of 3 days (2 nights) on a Monday–Wednesday in October. We chose the Petit Wedding Package and made a few add-ons, like an extra hour of photography, the bridal lounge for hair and makeup, and some snacks. While a weekday wedding asks a lot of your guests, it was an incredible way to save a little money—and we just happened to get the Inn mostly to ourselves. We enjoyed all of the amenities: dry/steam sauna, hiking trails on the property, game room with a pool table and board games, complimentary breakfast, outside fire pit for s’mores, and even a bridal lounge stocked with delicious snacks from the kitchen for the hours leading up to the wedding. I highly recommend that any couple stay in one of the Lake Rooms with a private entrance and a fireplace—we were so cozy the entire stay, and it felt very intimate and romantic. The Inn itself is so incredibly charming, cozy, and warm—what an amazing backdrop for any wedding.
FLI may be in the middle of nowhere (that’s kinda the appeal), but it is staffed by consummate professionals who truly understand event planning and execution. Jullie, the Wedding Coordinator at FLI, is incredibly warm, understanding, and easy to work with. Jullie is a very competent person you can trust to take a list of what you want, and make it happen without any effort on your part. She’s just a gem of a human being too—5 minutes before the ceremony, she got me tissues and a glass of water as the “my grandma can’t be here because she’s dead” waterworks started.
Jullie and her staff were incredibly attentive to food allergies. Including myself and several other guests, we have about 4 different food allergies between us. Jullie made sure we knew what ingredients were in every dish and even had her incredible chef run out for different crackers when an allergy my family didn’t communicate to me popped up. That being said, with our meals being gluten-, dairy-, soy-, and nut-free, we had incredible welcome-night and wedding-night meals. Our guests were completely blown away by the quality (and quantity!) of food.
The other part of this wedding that blew me away was the extra mile Jullie and her staff went for little details. She made sure that my specialty s’mores ingredients were plated up beautifully and waiting for us on the patio after dinner. When we wanted to do toasts during the reception instead of dinner (and forgot to tell Jullie), the photographer told her the plan and she very quickly moved all the glasses and made sure everyone had prosecco in hand within 5 minutes. The appetizers during our reception were tiered with tasteful fall decor, and our wedding favors were artfully arranged in the dining room with our cake. The attention to detail Jullie and her staff have is incredible, and not something you can guarantee when you’re planning a wedding.
As a bride who booked this wedding without ever visiting the Inn, my leap of faith completely paid off. Get married at Friends Lake Inn!!!!