Ritz Carlton

[audreysu]

Hi BW22

My sis had abt 45 tables and I think Joey was her coordinator. The service that she rendered was quite alright until her actual. I was very disappointed with the food, as it was really way beyond a 6 star hotel is providing. The waiter actually spilled 2 glasses of red wine on 2 guest and they're not apologetic about this, but becos my sis & BIL is making a lot of noise, they had no choice but to compensate 3 tables. The ballroom door is suppose to be open at 7pm sharp, but in the end the door is only open at 7.45pm. By 7.15pm, about 80% of our guest has arrived, and it was a big mess outside the ballroom. The reason they give is they're very shorthanded cos during the SARS period, a lot of experience worker is retrenched, so now they're recruiting the part-timers to do the setup. But to us, this is not a valid reason, it's just excuse. So I'm definitely disappointed with the kind of service that they provide.

Anyway, I'm holding my own wedding at Oriental. To date, they've provided me excellent service as compared with the service my sis get from ritz

 

[bw22]

Hi Audrey,

I'm sorry to hear about ur sis's wedding. I will bear all these things in mind and make sure that they don't happen on my wedding. I better warn my wedding planner on the possible screw ups so that he can pre-empt all these things. Thanks Audrey for ur info.

 

[aureus]

Hi Audrey,

not sure if you still come into this forum, but i would like to ask a few questions, like when did this happen? and besides the compesation, how did the hotel settle with the two guests?

my reason is coz, i was a guest at ritz, and the waitress spilt soft drinks all over my fiance and me, and i must say she was apologetic about it, and it was also not directly her fault as she said someone banged into her. she was helpful and all, but what i did not like was the way the banguet manager dealt with the sitaution.

Like you said, they were not apologetic at all. They were unable to get the stains out from my shawl (thank goodness the rest of our attire was black!) and he just claimed that the stains were stubborn and that was it. We are still trying to see what they are going to do about it. Oh yes, in addition, the banquet manager just added, that it was not the waitress fault, and that she also claimed that someone banged into her.

I am rather disappointed that such a high class and 5/6 star hotel has such bad serivce. I do not blame the waitress as she is only a part time staff, but as a banquet manager, i believe that you are a full time staff and should have more pr skills than that. I really question the service of the hotel!

 

[minky]

Hi,

I've booked my wedding dinner (Jun 05) at Ritz. Gotta admit we didn't do much homework before we settle on the venue. But now that i've jus gone thru all the postings... getting kinda worried abt our choice as there seem to be quite a fair bit of -ve comments abt Ritz.

Anybody recently attended or had their wedding dinner at Ritz? Would love to hear your comments pls

 

[sunshinebabe]

Hi everyone
I'm new to the site as I'm just planning for my wedding coming up in June 2005. After browsing through the various comments posted in this site, I have finally concluded that each hotel had their share of highs and lows. At the end of the day, perfection is relative to so many things such as expectations, background, tastes, guests, size of wedding etc.
After attending lots of events in Singapore, I must say that still nothing comes close to what the Ritz offers. I'm quite decided to hold my wedding at The Ritz-Carlton.
For those of you who are still in the midst of plans, think about why the public has nicknamed The Ritz as the only six star hotel in Singapore. I still believe they have the best people, best ballroom and most creative ideas. I also saw the options they have in terms of table settings, etc. They have probably three times more equipment than other hotels. Whenever they have a wedding showcase, it's a must to see what they can do.

 

[minky]

Hi sunshinebabe

I agree that one's idea of perfection is rather subjective and made even more so by the various contributing factors. just that being almost clueless about wat r the things that we shld look out for in deciding on the venue, tot the comments made by those who had experiences w the hotel wld sure be of a great help to at least give me an idea

in any way, i felt really relieved after reading ur comments and absolute confidence in Ritz

oh btw, seems like we're both hving our wedding in Jun 05 at the same hotel... curious to know which day is yours?

 

[chantelle]

hi,
i held my wedding at the ritz last dec adn it was a very wonderful experience..... it's worth every penny spent..... at ritz u pay a premium for everything and they do live up to one's expectation of a 6 star hotel..... during dinner, we had a waiter spill wine on a guest.... the waiter actually went out and bought another shirt for the guest in the same colour and sent his soiled shirt for dry cleaning... all foc..... we were very impressed with everything at the hotel.... the banquet coordinator joey was awesome and all the staff very very courteous..... u wont regret having your weddign held there..... their ballroom is the best i've seen in s[pore and the deco is taken care of up till the intricate details like tableware colour etc..... there's no other hotel that pays this much attention to detail as them

 

[aureus]

sad to say, i did not have that experience, i must admit that ritz looks great and our waitress was nice and stuff (read my previous posting), and im sure that they have other great banquet managers, im just sad to announce that i still havent gotten any reply from ritz or that particular banquet manager yet!! in fact, they still havent even sent back my original stained shawl.

i have absolutely no idea where my shawl has gone to, and they didnt even offer to dry clean our clothes. The banquet manager whom i spoke to the next day didnt even apologise to me. All he could say was the stains are stubborn. Great reply from a banquet manager from a 6 star hotel!

i actually had to throw out a piece of clothing coz it was stained and sticky. Imagine having to sit thru the rest of the dinner with a wet dress and sticky body. and all i can say is im thankful that it was not hot tea!

 

[aureus]

Hi,

its me again, just want to ask a general opinion about what i should do now. It's been almost 2 weeks, and ritz still has not replied to me, nor even returned my shawl to me. What would you gals do if in my situation?

thanks

 

[rainbow]

Hi Aureus,

Would like to send you a private message. Is it convenient for you to leave an email addy? Thanks.

 

[aureus]

hihi rainbow, i just sent it to u via pm....

 

[jullchae]

Hi all,

Does anyone know if Ritz Carlton have lunch banquet and wat's the package like?

 

[tengteng]

Hi girls... just something to share with you

I used to work as a part time banquet waitress at Ritz Carlton about 6 years ago... these are the few things I have seen:

Something bad:

a)Dirty dishes... some of the cutlery are damn dirty,because the dish washer cant seem to get rid of some stubborn food residue. when we set up the table and we happen to find any of this, and there is no more plates for us to use,we will just scrapped the residue (food stucked or left by the previous guest) and place it on the table...

b)Food- the quality of the food is only so so... you can get better quality food if you go to other hotels paying the same price.

Something good:
During the period when I was working, the banquet mangaer was an Ang Moh and he keeps stressing to us that "we are ladies and gentlemen serving ladies and gentlemen".

1)Spillage
When spillage occurs, we are taught how to handle it, eg. getting soda water for the guest to clean the stain, offer him a shirt (if he is a guy), or offer to take the shirt for dry cleaning. Whenever a spillage occurs, the manager on duty (I still remember his name was Kelvin Tan a.k.a Tua Bak (meaning big eye)will apologise to the guest, and once I heard that he even allowed the guest free night stay with Champagne and chocolates when a guy spilled red wine onto a lady.(but the lady was very bitchy and demanding, she was smoking away in the ballroom and emptying the ashes into the tea cup)

b) Responsibility- the same manager I was talking about, he checks on the quality of food prepared... there was once when the lamb chop was too hard and he advised the chef before it was served... think they change last minute or something..

It has been some time since I last work at the place... don't know how they are operating now : ) But I really miss those days ...

 

[snipsnap]

This thread has been dead for a while. hehe. Anyway anyone have a wedding at the Ritz coming up? Or anyone has had a wedding there recently? We are thinking of booking the place and need some tips and advice on negotiation etc.TIA

 

[lazeeladee]

I've booked my wedding dinner with Ritz. Wedding will be in June 05. Have been there once for a D&D. Food was not too bad. Service okay. Those who have had their wedding at Ritz, will they contact us for food tasting, selection of decor & stuff?? Or are we suppose to call them up?? So far after the 1st 10% payment, no news from them yet.

 

[snipsnap]

hi lee ... have question for you ..did you manage to get anything extra besides the basic package in your contract? we are planning to book the place too for next year. thanks in advance

as for the food tasting I remember them saying it is about 1 month before the wedding? i would call them before hand about the other items though! hah I'm kan cheong like that. they also gave me the names of the florists and invitation card makers to be in contact with.

 

[lazeeladee]

Hi snipsnap...hmm..as i've said, have not really been in contact with them ever since the 10%payment..extra..will see what we can request. Yah..they will give the name of the florists and invitation card makers and we are free to visit them to see what they have in store. Can't really give you much feedback abt Ritz yet. Will try to update when it's possible. If you want to book and it's ur final choice..do book early. As they have only 1 ballroom, it will be taken up by functions & weddings.

 

[heynsl]

hi lee,

me also had booked my wedding banquet with Ritz Carlton but in Sept 05... actually we were supposed to book it earlier around june 05 but was taken up and the other days not match our preferred dates, so in the end have to settle for the month sept... (guess maybe u make a step faster than me)

so how many tables u going for it? which package u going for?

 

[pepperpower]

Hi folks!

Happy to c this thread up and about again. I've booked Ritz for May '05, and since the 10% downpayment, haven't given it much thought yet. Will probably need to start fussing about it soon, cos still got certain matters like contents of menu, and ballroom theme/decor to look into. Recently saw the ballroom done up for a wedding of about 70 tables...still looks pretty 'empty' to me... so am wondering about ways to fill it up for a more crowded yet cosy feel.

Must say the exquisiteness of their table setting quite takes your breath away, particularly the thick glass plates with 'xi' (double happiness character) sculpted (not printed, engraved, mind) within the centre. Looks like some form of glass art to me!

Snip, you may want to note the items you really-need, absolutely-must-have and see if they can include it within your package before you sign on that dotted line --- with or without using your bliss stars. For eg, they threw in white seat covers for me without expending any bliss stars. But for our wine and hard liquor requirements, we had to bargain quite a bit with what's left of our quota of bliss stars.

 

[snipsnap]

hi pepper! yah i saw the table settings and really loved the double xi characters

very unique. also like that the hotel is new and more modern (compared to shang hehe). We have to share tips and advice on decor once the weddings draw near

are you guys goign to do the ROM ceremony there too? we are planning on it.

yah they mentioned to me about being able to throw in seat covers, but I am more concerned about the corkage. do u mind letting me know what kind of deal they gave you on the corkage? (u can email me too [email protected]) It will really help me when I negotiate the final contract with them. thanks a bunch!!

 

[heynsl]

hi pepper...
mind sharing the "extra" that they gave u?

i was quoted 2k for free cockage free for unlimited no of wines and liquor leh...

how abt yours?

also does anyone of u knows where to get a pianoist or a band to play music for the banquet?
i saw it at my frd's wedding in bangkok (he is a rich thai chinese) and he told me it costs only $300 singapore dollars for that in thailand...

 

[snipsnap]

thomas ... arhgks they quoted me 2.5k for unlimited corkage leh! heh but now i know to ask for less! did u get anything else thrown into the contract? i'm asking for an extra room also heheh

 

[heynsl]

hi snippy,

so far we never bargain much when signing the contract but verbally they promised to give us more things without using the bliss stars such as free decorations at the reception and using sunflower as the main theme for our wedding banquet if my wife wants it...

how abt yours? anything they throw in free into the contract or promised u?

 

[pepperpower]

hi snippy and thomas,

I got free corkage for up to 40 bottles of wine for 50 booked tables (using 6 bliss stars). They never mentioned anything about paying extra for unlimited corkage. When I confirm the exact no of tables (should be about 60) nearer to the date, am thinking of asking for more. How many bottles of wine and hard liquor should I prepare for?

So-called freebies: seat covers, projector and extra day-use room (no overnite stay)?
What did you guys request for?

PS: I did use 8 bliss stars for two barrels of beer. They didn't throw in beer for free.

 

[snipsnap]

I asked them the question about corkage before. She had mentioned to budget for approximately 1-2bottles per table to be consumed.

thomas> sunflowers sound really nice

are they an extra charge? i haven't decided on my flowers yet! not sure what will look good in teh ballroom. Was looking at pics of diana ser's wedding and the pink roses she used didn't seem to match the beige color of the ballroom very well.

i requested an extra room and also seat covers, projector to free up my blisspoints. They are preparing the contract so will let you know when I have more info

 

[dumbdumb]

Hi, we are getting married in Sep 05 at Ritz as well... Joey is really really nice. Professional yet accommodating. Best "Ballroom scouting" experience should go to Ritz if anything.

BTW, there was mention that prices will be raised, just wondering if they actually are

 

[pepperpower]

Allowing for 1.5 bottles of wine per table then, I'll need about 100, arrrgh..that means I need to top up $1800 juz for corkage alone??!! And that's not even taking into account hard liquor requirements. How much hard liquor, quite apart from wine, will you fellas have? By this line of reasoning, I tink the $2k unlimited corkage a pretty okay deal then. Did anyone of you go for it?

 

[dumbdumb]

Pepper, why don't you use 12 bliss stars to get 80 bottles free corkage then? $1.8K to top up for corkage is not cheap.

BTW, we're considering not having any hard liquor at the dinner. Apparently, nowadays ppl don't drink hard liquor

 

[pepperpower]

Hi Serene,

If I get additional bliss stars after ascertaining the exact number of tables, I'd probably end up converting them to corkage. Which is such a waste of the bliss stars, considering some hotels, and not even 5 or 6-star, actually offer complete waiver...sigh

 

[dumbdumb]

Actually it's true, some hotels include everything in their package as well as waiver, but then again, few of them have the exclusiveness as Ritz. What are you going to exchange for your Bliss Stars anyway?

 

[snipsnap]

hi ladies

Pepper, Actually there isn't much I want from the blissstars. Things like the guestbook you can purchase yourself and it will probably be nicer too. I'm probably going to get the invitations from them, the barrels of beer, the musical trio. and use the rest for corkage. i wouldn't mind an extra night's stay in the suite (maybe negotiable). The boxes for the guests sound nice..but I'm not sure they're worth 10 bliss stars. Chair covers and projector should be negotiable. *I hope*

i don't really like the stage decor so will pass on that.

What are u looking to use your blisstars for?

 

[pepperpower]

Hi all!

I've expended all my bliss stars for invitations, beer, gift boxes, and corkage.

Snippy, what are you gonna do for the wedding favours, if not use the gift boxes? Joey mentioned that the gift boxes come with either choc or cakes within...that's why 10 bliss stars. They are also exchangeable for chopsticks or teddy bears or what other favour Ritz has in store. I figured if I should buy the favours on my own...and supposing each is about $2 (if and only if I can find such economical ones!), I'd spend close to $1K for them. So, this roughly works out to THIS : 1 bliss star = $100.

That's why I didn't choose their photo montage thingy. 4 bliss stars (roughly $400) is a tad expensive, compared to what I can get outside.

And yes, if have more bliss stars than I wish, would love the musical trio (sigh..), overnite stay (double sigh...) and anniversary dinner (triple sigh......).

 

[dumbdumb]

Hi pepper/snippy,

We are going to use our Bliss Stars for essentially the same things that you guys are having as well, mostly for corkage and beer.

However, I thought that 4 bliss stars for a photo montage is quite cheap, some videographers are charging $600-700 for a montage!! and that is on top of the basic package that you have to sign up for.

 

[heynsl]

does Ritz Carlton provides musical trio during the banquet?

i heard from my colleagues that some couple actually gives out 4D slip as gifts for the banquet. quite interesting.

 

[snipsnap]

Hi Thomas ... i think you need to exchange your blissstars for the musical trio. 4 if I am not wrong ..as u can see I am studying the list very well

Pepper, did you get to see the boxes and cake? I'd be curious to see if they are nice hehe. Haven't seriously thought of the favors yet. Was toying with the idea of buying chocolates (hersheys kisses or customized m&ms) and packing them nicely in a box or bag.

Serene ... what is the photomontage? Is that the presentation that you put up before the wedding? Do you know if they do this themselves or who they outsource it to? Curious hehe

BTW Was anyone also thinking of getting a real wedding cake? But I'm not sure how it will work making a cake for 500+ people!

 

[pepperpower]

Hi Snippy!

Din ask to c the boxes...or other favours (chopsticks, teddy bears, etc) for that matter... cos not too particular about them as long as provided for within the deal. The photomontage offered by Ritz is actually outsourced to an external agency (dunno who tho..). Like you, I'm veri interested in a real cake, cos cutting dummy cake a bit ludicrous, hehe! But the costs of a real multi-tiered cake for 500-600 people quite
prohibitive, but do tell if you've any good lobang to share! Dunno if Ritz would allow outside food tho... so guess should check with the consultants first if the cake needs be done in-house.

 

[lindy_koh]

hi!
am new to this thread.so just wondering if anyone could give me some tips on what to expect as i'll be viewing the Ritz sometime soon for my wedding in aug'05. i'll only be lookin at the smaller function room as my guest list only bout 150pax.they told me they will mail me the packages so waiting for that to arrive..

i've been to a function lunch there b4,pretty nice..do they also throw in nites stay in a bridal suite?

cant wait to view the hotel!! love to hear more from you guys or anyone whos done their wedding there for comments!=)

 

[minky]

hello all

really glad to see that this thread is getting active again

we booked ritz abt a couple of months back. our AD is in Jun 05. as my MIL was the one who went down to make the deposit etc so til now me and my hubby hv yet to get the chance to talk to the banquet manager.

me too

tot hving a real wedding cake wld be nice. btw, which menu did u all go for? we went for the jade menu set for 60 tables (wkend) but was thinking of reducing the no. of tables to abt 50 or so and upgrade to the ivory set while still paying the same amt... not too sure whether can be done.

btw, my fren's fren had her wedding at ritz abt one or two yrs' back. she had abt 90+ tables and was given 5 free rooms (overnight stay).

 

[snipsnap]

hi pepper still researching the cake issue

I think the ritz also provides cake? but apparently it is served to the guests and not part of a real cake and you have to exchange bliss stars for that too!! Heard on another thread that it would cost $700-800 for a cake for 100+ people. That would be several thousand for a cake for 600!! *gulp* Wonder if there is a discount for purchasing in bulk LOL. Perhaps we can get a smaller cake and have sheet cakes of the same flavor made for the masses hehe. Please share ideas if anyone has any hehe.

hiya minky!! My AD is Jul 05. Was also thinking of reducing the number of tables. We asked the coordinators and as long you are making up for the reduced number of tables by topping up the menu, it should be ok. Wow 5 rooms eh? But they have 90+ tables hehe have more bargaining power!

 

[minky]

Morning gals!

Snippy: hey think that's an idea worth exploring... abt getting a smaller cake (for family & close frens) and sheet cakes of the same flavour made for the rest

i assume it would be much cheaper this way? but the cake oso cannot be too small hor cos the ballroom so big. anyway, if we were to get the wedding cake fr ritz will require 8 bliss stars... quite a lot hor.

hmm yah.. 90+ tables so definitely more bargaining power. but 90 tables 5 free rooms so maybe 60 tables shld at least get 1-2 free rooms oso mah

oh btw gals, who's ur coordinator huh? ours is Shamini... anybody hving her as well? wonder if she's nice, easy to bargain type etc or not?

 

[snipsnap]

Hi Minky ! My coordinator is also shamini. She seems pretty nice so far...but a bit slow to respond. Maybe my expectations are too high

Yah realized the cake is quite a big headache lor hehe. Wonder if the bakeries will give us a discount coz we are buying in bulk haha. actually a big wedding translates to a big headache. Imagine getting favors for 600 people!?!

anyway how are your wedding preps going? have you gotten your gown and photographers yet? confession ... I have been quite lazy and slacking off recently heheh the only thing I am doing on a consistent basis is surfing sgbrides lol ... mom has been nagging me liao

 

[pepperpower]

Hi folks!

60 tables --> 2 free overnite rooms (including bridal suite)? If anyone has managed to wrangle this (or more) from Ritz, PLEASE lemme know... haha

Snippy, am as lazy as you are...haven't even booked my photographers yet, designs of gowns not quite ready (Tan Yoong's too tied up..)and mine is in May, earlier than yours and minky's.

Anyone doing away with table-to-table photographs during the dinner? 60 tables is quite a huge number to accomplish... need about 1.5-2 hrs?? More than half the duration of the dinner, arrrgh! So any alternative ideas regarding photo-taking would be much appreciated, thank you!

 

[snipsnap]

hi all- long time no talk. Hope you had a good x'mas and new years!!

Are any of you using bliss stars for the wedding invitations ? I believe they are provided by American Wedding Treasures. Has anyone seen their cards? Thoughts? Also how far in advance do you need to start worrying about the cards and mailing them out?.. I also have some overseas guests as well so should I send those earlier? Or should I do a save the date card first hrmm

pepper .. I believe we managed to get 2 free overnite rooms (one bridal suite and one extra room)!

yah man the thought of taking photos for 1.5 hrs is really killing me too haha ...especially with the peeps you don't know so well.

 

[pepperpower]

Hi All! Dis thread's a bit slow recently...

Snip: With overseas guests, you're prob better off mailing them off at least 1-1.5 mths before. I haven't checked out the cards from AWT, cos no hurry at the moment, tho would prefer something in which I could insert some wedding pics...muz do the pics some justice by circulating them

And about that extra overnite room thingy ...tink (sigh) it's time to go back to the negotiation table....

 

[sicang]

Hi guys,

I have a $15k deposit with Ritz that I would like to transfer. Willing to transfer at $13k (neg). The deposit can be transferred to your wedding account with the Ritz.

 

[astro_boy]

Dear all,
Intend to hold my big day @ ritz carlton. Can someone help me by giving me some feedback of this hotel. Thanks !!

 

[sicang]

Hi Astro,

I had intended to hold my wedding at the Ritz as I have been very impressed with all the wedding celebrations I have attended there.

As my husband and I will be stationed overseas, we had to cancel our wedding celebrations. Thus far, all negotiations with Ritz have been attended to with attention and care. Service by the wedding consultants has been impeccable. Its certainly worth considering the Ritz.

In fact, if you are interested, I have a package with the Ritz that I would like to transfer.

 

[vinmei]

How much is per table for Ritz Carlton? And is there any minimum table to commit? My Wedding date is fixed in Feb06.

 

[estee]

Hi Vinmei,
I think their package is about S$1050 nett onwards, i am also thinking of having it at ritz but the min. gtd for wkends is 60 tables. only willing to commit 55 tables.

 

[sicang]

Hi Suzanne,

I've booked the 838+++ package with Ritz in 2004. However, as my husband and I will be stationed overseas, we would not be holding our dinner at the Ritz.

Ritz has raised their prices this year, but if you take over our package, you could enjoy the privilege of paying 2004 prices.

Thank you.

cheers!
Cynthia