Rosehill Venue Lounge

This is a hidden gem. We looked at almost every venue in Toronto for our wedding, and I mean a ton of venues. From the national ballet, to the Rowing club and everything in between. We were down to the Berkeley venues and the Rosehill Venue. We chose the Rosehill and we had an amazing reception. Wish we could do it over, it was so great.
Our wedding reception was on Oct 11, 2015 with about 200 people. Had a cocktail style reception with food stations. The best thing for us was the amazing customer service. The owner is so nice and caring. I am extremely indecisive and he made me feel so calm and assured that everything would be fine on the day of. With all the vendors I had to deal with, it was so refreshing to get to work with someone who is calm, caring and really tries their best to ensure you have a great day.
We went with Pe Se Catering for the food, they were fabulous, I keep hearing how amazing the food was. We did 3 food stations laid out throughout the venue. It worked well. Also had passed hors d’oeuvres which was nice as the venue is so beautiful and people could just spread-​out and the appetizers came to them. We bought our own DJ and the sound system was perfect, our DJ was so impressed with the sound system, he still claims it is the best he has ever spun at and he spins all over Toronto, Ottawa and Montréal.
There are so many golden aspects of this venue. To name a few, leather sofa’s, so nice for people who want to chill. Then the venue comes totally equipped, you don’t have to rent anything! They have the tables, chairs (nice ones too) and all the cutlery– just something you don’t have to worry about or pay extra for. Then there is a private room in the basement that you can use, multiple washrooms and stalls, so no one is waiting to use the washroom and lastly TV screens. We played old black and white movies during our reception and took a break to show the Jay’s game as it was an important game– our guests loved that we switched to the game and there are TV’s spread throughout the venue that everyone could see them.
Close to a subway and a parking lot right next door, when I say this place is perfect, I just can’t find a negative thing to write. All my guests loved it. If your contemplating, don’t…this place is perfect for any kind of event. The price is also great for a beautiful downtown Toronto venue.

If I could give this place more stars, I would.
My fiancée and I had booked Rosehill Venue Lounge for our engagement party.
We spoke to the manager, Tony, in person inside the venue when first looking for venues. After a little shopping around at some trendy venues in Toronto, it was clear that none of the other places were as responsive and professional as Rosehill. We went back for a second meeting where the place had been set up for a function. The first time we saw it, it was a blank canvas but seeing it all dressed up sold us immediately.
We met with another manager, also named Tony. They were willing to go above and beyond to ensure a successful night for the two of us and come the day of, they definitely lived up to that. They were very friendly, professional, worked with our budget and timing, and were easy for our vendors to work with. All of their staff the night of our event were cheerful, friendly, and fun to be around while at the same time being on the ball and ensuring a successful night.
The venue itself was the perfect size for our party of 100 – 120. It included all furniture (tables, chairs, couches, chivari chairs), glasses, plates, cutlery, DJ booth. everything you need in a venue. The DJ was able to use their equipment without any issues.
Our guests all complimented on how nice the venue was. It has many small chandeliers, a very large chandelier, brick walls, a bar with glass backsplash, tvs, bridal room downstairs, an area for a ceremony, and a reception area. We brought in some uplighting and a few additional decorations and the entire place was beautiful the night of our party.
I have dealt with a good number of venues this past year, and none of them came close to the level of service and communication that Rosehill had offered. Even at popular venues in the city, most of the event managers were not on the ball when it came to meetings and responding to calls and emails. Rosehill did not disappoint. I look forward to working with them again!

We just had my daughter’s Bat Mitzvah and the entire night, from planning to execution was incredible!!!
The venue itself is so different. For us, we were looking for a «home» feel, and the leather couches and earthy tones truly made everyone feel warm, welcome and cozy.
The professionalism of the staff was nothing «homey»: They were attentive to details, courteous, prompt to respond to any inquiry, patient with the million detailed requests and eager to offer suggestions such as blue limeade for a «blue and brown» themed event (which were a hit!).
We had 125 guests, who could easily transition between the adult/​quiet area and the kids/​dancing area. The space felt full but never crowded. It was kept immaculately clean and neat at all times, and service was extremely efficient.
The venue is a fantastic place to hold any celebration, and the team of professional staff make the planning a breeze and take a vision and turn it into reality!

I wish there was a way to give this place two ratings.
My Husband and I were married here (ceremony and reception) this year.
The venue itself is awesome. I give it 5 stars. It’s steps from Yonge Street, beautiful inside (deceptive from the outside), accessible, beautiful décor and the rental cost which is not applied to your total bill as it is at many venues, includes the use of all of their house-​owned furnishings (leather couches, cocktail tables, Chiavari chairs, etc.) and bar glassware.
As anyone who has planned an event or a wedding knows, there are many hidden costs and it matters not where you go. So in addition to the rental fee, you pay for a security person (this is apparently an OLGC requirement where there is alcohol being served), a floor manager, a coat check person and bar staff. At an hourly rate higher than market, this can add up, of course. Plus there are taxes, gratuities, «landmark fees” — your guess is as good as mine, and other additional overcharges.
There are things to know about this space. I give it 3 stars for these reasons. First, there is no parking (welcome to Toronto, I guess) but there is a Green P lot next door. It just means your guests have to pay, which isn’t ideal and isn’t the case at downtown hotel venues. The venue does not provide food catering services but does provide all of the bar services. This is fine if you like food and were stoked to find the perfect menu from the perfect caterer. The problem, you see, is that this venue has a list of «approved» elite caterers. Ones that I would never use. I had to have my selected caterer go through the process of being approved which was annoying, but it all ended up fine.
There are also approved rental companies, DJ services (just one… hmm), etc. It seems too incestuous and «friends helping friends» to me, but what do I know. All of the sound and lighting equipment is right there, in the DJ booth (the place used to be a bar/​nightclub) but if you choose to bring in your own DJ, they can’t use any of it. They have to set up a second DJ booth so that effectively, you have two.
As far as staff, the bar staff were all amazing and helpful. The doorman was great. The manager, on the other hand, was clearly about the bottom line and couldn’t respond to e-​mail enquiries in anything that would be considered a timely fashion but could requisition his bill for overages the second your wedding was over, literally and then have the balls to follow up about your payment of it a week after sending it when, especially if you are in the business of weddings, you should know that PEOPLE ARE ON THEIR HONEYMOONS. Seriously? He was insistent and rigid on a bunch of things which we didn’t know about until after our deposit had been made and could not be refunded. He claimed he was saving us money here, there and everywhere which, after going over-​budget, didn’t seem to be the case. He also had a terrible memory for details and I had to re-​confirm things with him umpteen times. If I did this in my profession, I would have been let go long ago.
So, while the venue is beautiful and there is some value in going with a place where you don’t have to haul a bunch of expensive rentals in (though we did have to rent many things, including linens), the front line person to deal with is less than favourable. But if you have your heart set on the venue, it’s probably still worth it to go with it. Just make sure to put on your game face right from the beginning so he knows you won’t be «had».

Now that the wedding is over, I’m coming back with my full on review. And I’m happy to report that the Rosehill lived up to my pre-​emptive 5 star review.
First off, the space is great for a group around 100. You can fit a dance floor with seated dinner if you have this size group, the space doesn’t feel overwhelmingly large or teeny tiny… just comfortable. The ambiance is really nice with the exposed ceilings, brick walls, laminate/​brick floor, and sofas in the lounge area.
Our guests loved that we were able to have the ceremony and reception here, so they didn’t have to travel from one spot to the next. The ceremony area is small-​ish but fits 100 people nicely. It was set up as wide semi-​circles instead of standard rows which gave an intimate feel. The staff was on-​the-​ball and had the event flow seamlessly from the ceremony into cocktails, when they take the chairs and shuttle them through the kitchen to be used for dinner. They were so unobtrusive that our guests were able to hang out in the space or right by the bar and then return back to the ceremony area without feeling the least bit distracted.
Bar service was good too — all of the staff was very friendly and efficient.
The wares they keep and let you use are really good quality. Chivari chairs, nice glassware, etc. As I mentioned in my last review, these items alone make up the rental cost, at least based on quotes I got from other spaces.
Kirby — the venue manager — is a dream to work with. Super-​responsive, very helpful, and really cares about his clients. He had another manager working on our day and any correspondence that we had with Kirby had clearly been passed along since there wasn’t a single glitch between what we had discussed and what was executed.
The house DJ was perfectly fine and knows the space well and how to transition between different parts of the night.
David Balfour Park is just down the street (further east of Yonge on Rosehill) so you can take formal pics there if you want some outside shots.
If you’re looking for a space that’s a little different, easy to get to from downtown, and not a banquet hall, check it out.