Blaisdell Manor

Booked this venue for my wedding. They messed up the over priced cake, gift area, cocktail napkins and parting gifts to the guests.
Required us to have security for the end of the night (a good idea), but the off duty police offer STAYED inside as the guests departed.
We had table assignments that we went over with the Manor in advance and they served the father of the bride towards the end of the plated dinner service.
The cleaning staff was super eager to keep the reception venue clean and kept discarding drinks of guests as they were dancing.
Additionally they threw away everything we left– table arrangements, etc. (which if they would have told us, a bridesmaid would have picked up).
Too bad– the venue is cute, great layout, and good food. They are outside of downtown, so don’t have the event tax and you can order the beverages from a liquor store to save money.
Overall– The event staff is lacking and a disappointment. Hire an outside wedding coordinator to keep them on track!

Went to a wedding here. Air Conditioning. The venue was lovely and the staff was all really friendly. Air Conditioning.
From the outside the place looks like an old Victorian Home. Inside its been refurbished to be somewhat of a site of entertainment, for parties or what have you. Air Conditioning. For the wedding, both the ceremony and reception were held in the same room. They did a great job clearing everyone to cocktail hour to set up for the reception. The food was surprisingly delicious and the beer & wine was flowing and constantly being refilled! Air Conditioning.
For our food, you had a choice (which was on the response card for the wedding). I had the salmon, MP had steak. Other people at our table had chicken, vegetarian and a kids meal! Food seemed to be enjoyed by all. When the waitstaff brought our food they were all in tune and did everything as rehearsed. Bravo.
One thing they lacked. Air Conditioning. Not sure if I mentioned that?!? People were literally dripping, I can’t even imagine how the waitstaff was feeling. At one point they brought out fans… for serious. If the air conditioning had been working in that room, I think Blaisdell would have definitely been closer to 4 ½ stars. I don’t think its equipped to hold over 100 people in one room without getting snow machines or something…
I really think this place would be beautiful in the fall or winter. The wedding was lovely (except air conditioning). It does have a bit of an outdated look to it, but I think that’s what this place is going for…

I spent an evening at the Blaisdell Manor for the Malpractice Ball on Saturday. The Malpractice Ball is formal gathering of law and med students from the University of Minnesota (read about the whole concept in Melissa L.‘s review from last year). Basically, it’s a grad school free-​for-​all… in party dresses and suits.
Blaisdell Manor has a mega-​outdated look to it, like a granny’s parlour room that is never used. Except this place IS used, so it also has a spilled beer mustiness that comes from hosting fraternity and sorority formals (I’m sure we did our duty too, with the open bar and all).
The venue spans multiple levels, and it bothered me that everything (and everyone) was so isolated. The main floor is a big high-​ceiling ballroom, and upstairs is less expansive but has a pool table. I spent most of my time in the basement, oddly enough, where they had karaōke set up.
I loved that there were so many sitting areas available when my dogs were barking from dancing, but the place could use more restrooms. The two burgundy bathrooms downstairs are actually quite nice but looked like they had been decorated by my mom. Seriously, my parents’ guest bath is almost identical.
Compared to last year, the staff was better equipped to handle us and I never had to wait too long for a beer. They had one bartender serving only tap beer. She was awesome. Aside from her though, I thought the Blaisdell Manor was pretty lackluster.

The professional schools at the U — think Law, Medicine, and Public Health — got together to hold their annual Malpractice Ball at Blaisdell Manor this year. That’s when people can take a shower and put something on other than scrubs (med school), pleated jeans (law school), or holey sweatpants (public health). Although I saw a guy wearing zebra-​print jammers. Essentially, it’s like prom for grad school. But this time, you can drink! And there are no chaperons!
It’s not like the enormous mansions on Summit Avenue or anything. The inside is built for holding social events. There’s a terrible dark green carpet from the early nineties and it looks like it was decorated by my old neighbor, who favored pastel floral wallpaper and white wicker furniture.
The second floor is pretty small, but there is a pool table. The main hall is on the first, complete with disco ball. No one was really dancing at first, but after the first few drinks, people were busting moves and such. There was also a lot of grinding, which is disgusting. This isn’t high school anymore. I’m glad I sat far, far away from the dance floor.
The problem with offering all you can drink for $ 20 a person is that you also need to provide food. Cubes of cheese and fruit don’t cut it. I understand this is the catering plan the planning committee chose, but frankly, I was expecting cocktail wieners or mini-​tacos. You know, stereotypical party food. Fortunately, Eat Street is two streets down if you get the drunkchies.
Pros: Kind of fancy. Bigger than my apartment. No chaperons. Pool table on the second floor. McDonalds and Eat Street is two streets over.
Cons: Young adults grinding. Lame snacks. Dubious décor.
Also, there were only two bathroom stalls in each of the bathrooms. TWO. There were at least two hundred people attending and when you have that many people drinking, it gets ugly fast. Oddly enough, guys decided to crash into the ladies room to pee, although they could have gone outside since, you know, there are bushes EVERYWHERE.