Sunday, March 27th - City Club Wedding Workshop & Champagne Brunch

WEDDING WORKSHOP & CHAMPAGNE BRUNCH
Join us at The City Club of San Francisco for a wedding workshop that will help set the tone for your special day.

To purchase tickets, visit:

http://www.cityclubweddingworkshop.eventbrite.com/

Sunday March 27, 2011 10am-1pm

The Stock Exchange Tower
155 Sansome Street, 10th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94104

$35 general admission
$40 at the door

Registration and Meet the Partners
10–10:30am

Brunch
10:30am

Champagne Brunch featuring Robin Wilkey

Editor-in-Chief of San Francisco Brides

“Tips & Trends for 2011,How to feature your Wedding in San Francisco Brides”

Rehearsal Dinners: Kicking-off your wedding celebration
Whether you’ve thought about it or forgotten about it,

join Kathy Goodmanowner of Well Rehearsed to learn how to plan a creative, stress-free rehearsal dinner that will set the tone for your wedding day.

Perfect Your Tabletop Décor

The City Club of San Francisco and Classic Party Rentals willteach you how to select the right
tabletop pieces for that extra special touch that your guests will appreciate.

For more information please call Catering Sales at 415.362.2480.
Featured Partners: San Francisco Brides, Classic Party Rentals, Well Rehearsed

To purchase tickets, visit: http://www.cityclubweddingworkshop.eventbrite.com/

______________________________________________________________________
Click to view this email in a browser
http://hosted.verticalresponse.com/155688/6b12b3b411/TEST/TEST/

2011 has a nice ring to it!

Happy New Year! Thank you to all of the Members and Guests who hosted events with us in 2010. December was a joyous month. The Club looked amazing decorated for the holidays and we enjoyed several events including our Grand Holiday Celebration and a divine luncheon with Paula West. Photos from these events can be found on our Facebook page.

The New Year brings many special occasions from birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, annual galas, corporate celebrations and business meetings.It is customary around this time of the year that many couples are engaged and begin looking for that special venue to celebrate their union. We bring back after two successful years, The City Club 2^nd Tuesday Wedding & Event Open houses.

The next open house will be Tuesday, February 8^th from 5-7pm. We invite you to visit us and enjoy complimentary Champagne and Hors d’oeuvres. Our special featured partner for this show is none other than our very own Member, Natasha Miller from Entire Productions who will be providing live musical entertainment. We invite you to join us and ask about our preferred wedding pricing for 2011.

This month the Sales & Catering team is working with two very special organizations who have opened up their events to our Membership and guests.

Information about both events are below:

Tuesday, January 25, 2011 - 6:30pm

Exiles, Emigrants and Entrepreneurs: Archaeology of Van Diemen’s Land (Tasmania)

The island of Tasmania, long renowned for its unique geology, pristine landscapes, and delicious food and wine, is also home to five newly inscribed UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Join us at The City Club of San Francisco where Eleanor Conlin Casella will take us on a tour of Tasmania, including its archaeological sites and memorable landscapes, through an exploration of the history of the island and its founding as a penal colony. She will discuss the famous male convict sites incorporated within the recent World Heritage listing, and then turn towards some of the results of archaeological excavations she's directed at the Ross Female Factory - a Tasmanian prison site established for exiled British female felons and their dependent children. The sites she will discuss offer some of the best-kept records of convict history anywhere in the world. Followed by a reception featuring a Tasmanian wine and whiskey tasting.

Please contact jklahn@aia.bu.edu or 617.353.8709

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Please join us and over 150 Bay Area professional women for the Women's Business Luncheon: EXPERIENCE. EDUCATE. EMPOWER on January 27th, 11:30 am - 2:30 pm at The City Club of San Francisco. The guest speaker for the evening is Kathy Tierney, Executive Vice Chairman of the Board of Sur la Table.

All proceeds benefit Immaculate Conception Academy, an all-girls high school in the Mission District of San Francisco. Tickets available online: http://icaluncheon.eventbrite.com/ or call Caroline Curran at 415 824 2052 ext40

We look forward to a prosperous and exciting New Year!

Best Wishes,

The City Club Team

Weddings at the City Club Whinston & Kim 4.03.09

One of the things that I love about weddings and particularly about the wedding venue is how every couple makes it their own. Each couple selects the venue that they feel is perfect for their day and if you ask they reasons that they find it so well fitted the answers run the gamut. Whether it be the location, the food, the atmosphere and decor or some combination of it all, eventually the decision is made. Chances are, other people have also been married in the same location so personalizing the venue to reflect you as a couple and your journey to that day becomes the next step!

Julie and Adam did such a wonderful job doing this and I think that was one of the main reasons that I’m still hearing compliments about this particular event. From the first conversation that I had with them I could tell that they were true adventurers always looking for their next destination. They happened to become engaged on a trip to Morocco and had decided to work this into the wedding day. It was really important to the couple that who they were as individuals and a couple shone through and that their guests had a wedding experience as unique as their relationship.

A Moroccan themed print (picked out on the trip) was present from the Wedding Invitations, to the Ceremony Programs all the way to the Cake made by Carolyn Wong. They customized a masterfully prepared menu by Executive Chef Michael Munoz, including Seasoned Veggie Skewers, Panzanella Bread Salad and Moroccan spiced Tri-Tip, all served family style. A photo-booth provided by Photoboof, Henna Artist from Henna Gardens and jeweled trinket boxes for place cards all helped to complete the theme. With San Francisco street names as table numbers and a personalized song about their life, there was no doubt where this couple was from, where they’ve been and where they are going! Congratulations to Julie and Kim on beautiful day!

All Photos by Traci Griffin
To see a slideshow of the day, click here

-Cassie Harris, Sales & Catering Manager

A Decadent Affaire

As we all face challenges with the economy everyone is being creative with their budgets. Planning a wonderful event is just a few innovative ideas away. Earlier this year I shared Carmen and Jim’s budget friendly afternoon event. At the City Club’s 2nd Tuesday Open House last month another couple shared another great idea with me. They are looking to host an afternoon dessert and drinks reception. I’m talking about a delightful, delicious, decadent dessert display (sorry, I couldn’t help myself).

The timing for this kind of event is highly important. You don’t want anyone to show up thinking they will be having a big meal. Strategically placing the event between lunch and dinner is the way to go. The couple is planning on inviting their guests to a ceremony starting around 1 or 1:30 giving their guests plenty of time to grab lunch before they head over. After the Ceremony in the Main Dining Room, the guests will then be invited to Café for the party, where they will be greeted with Champagne, Cocktails and a variety of non-alcoholic, refreshing beverages. And don’t forget the dessert, cookies, fruit tarts, petite fours, an ice cream bar and much much more. The event is slated to finish around5 or 6 giving their guests to go and grab dinner or head out into the City for a post wedding celebration.

The best thing for the couple, aside from looking fabulously creative and unique, is that their guests will get to sample a wonderful array of treats (something you don’t get to do every day), and the couple doesn’t have to compromise on all of the wedding traditions; toasts, slideshow, cake cutting and first dance.

-Cassie Harris, Sales & Catering Manager

Weddings at the City Club De La Cruz & Oshima, 1.3.09

In our budget conscious economy, finding ways to stretch your dollar a little further is the key to planning a successful wedding. One of the best options to bring prices down is to consider moving your celebration to what are considered “off” times. Since Saturday evenings are the most desirable dates and times they are also the most costly. Why not consider hosting your event on a Friday or Sunday evening, where rental and vendor fees are sure to be lower? Or, do as Jim and Carmen did, and host your Wedding on a Saturday or Sunday Afternoon! They chose Saturday, January 3rd in the afternoon and it was truly a wonderful event.

Compared to the evening events, I felt like to focus of the afternoon was really on the couple and on the marriage. The ambiance was mellow and open and the Club had a fresh, bright feeling. On the budgetary side of things, for “lunch” they hosted a variety of different heavy appetizer stations including an Asian Station with Dim Sum as well as a Prime Rib and Salmon Carving Station along with a variety of passed hors d’ oeuvres. This option got them away for the per person full meal price but still offered enough food for their guests to enjoy a hearty afternoon nosh. They also saved on the beverage bill by choosing to host a variety of non-alcoholic beverages along with wine and beer.

A couple of other great ideas from this couple…
1) Higher a great coordinator, wait you are thinking, that costs money, but not when it’s Jessica Goldblatt with Dreams on a Dime, who specializes in working with budget conscious events.

2) Rather than the traditional tiered wedding cake, the couple purchased a sheet cake from Tartin and had them cut it down into smaller pieces. The smaller peices were then frosted on all sides and once strategically displayed it had the same great effect!

3) They used their family as a great resource for assistance. Cousins and other family members were responsible for floral, folding origami votive boxes and other décor.

I hope you will away at least one money saving tip from this couple that did it right! They had a wonderful wedding surrounded by friends and family and did it without breaking the bank.

Happy Planning!!

-Cassie Harris, Sales & Catering Manager

City Club Weddings to Remember- Ron Smith & Rick Ritt 10.19.08

I have been enlightened. For any person planning a wedding, I have a tip that will guarantee that you will have a wonderful wedding. I was enlightened through planning the wedding of Ron Smith and Rick Ritt, who were married at the Club on Sunday, October 19th. The tip, plan a party, not a wedding. Mr. Ron Smith, a lover of all things party, food, family, friends and fun, dreamt of a truly splendid event. From the pre-ceremony reception of hors d’ oeuvres by Chef Michael Munoz and open bar (he figured there was no reason to make his friends and family wait until all the way after the ceremony to start the celebrating), to the rocking Swing City Band led Bradley Connlain who played throughout the dinner (again, Rick wondered why make people wait to dance?) it was a truly sensational event.

They choose to let the band be the centerpiece of the reception, and placed them in front of the fireplace, dance floor next and then the couple’s King’s head table, all surrounded by tables of their family and friends. Rather the band take a break when dinner was served, the dinner was served when the band took a break! The guests enjoyed a delicious meal of Char gilled Angus Filet and Seared Blue Nose Sea Bass and then got right back to the dance floor. Aside from the great music, décor and food, the most spectacular part of this wedding was the love in the room. I have done a fairly good amount of weddings but this one brought me tears, not once but twice. The story about Rick, the last of I think 11 siblings, to finally use the family knife to cut the Challah was truly touching.

At the end of the night, everyone was full to the brim of food and drink, dance and merriment and most of all love and isn’t that the true essence of what we all want at our wedding? So take a tip from this couple, take little notice of the little details but focus fully on creating and event that will inspire love.

Photographs by Fred McMillan

See what Beth Spotswood of SF Gate thought about the event too!

-Cassie Harris, Sales & Catering Manager

It was another beautiful wedding at The City Club on Saturday, September 13th. Ruba and Danielle put together wonderful event and with their all-star cast including Pico Soriano for flowers and Robert Barbutti as their photographer, how could they miss! Not only were the centerpieces beautiful and pictures timeless, but both Pico and Robert were professional and easy to work with.
As Brides and Grooms begin to plan their big day, they begin to realize how important their vendors are to creating a successful, well executed and enjoyable event for not only the guests but more importantly for the Bride and Groom.

So what’s a couple to do? Be careful with whom you choose, take advice from other friends and family that have used local vendors, shop around, and the biggest tip, once you find a vendor you really like (including a venue), ask them for recommendations. Great vendors
come in packs and nothing creates a more seamless event than using a group of professionals that have worked together before. You are going to get the best pictures when the photographer has shot at a venue before and knows those spots with the best lighting and hidden details. Your floral and design concept are going to come out better if your florist has experience with the lighting changes and subtle coloring differences of the rooms.

I guess the moral of the story is trust the ones who know. Hiring great vendors is the easiest way to having the day of your dreams!






















-Cassie Harris, Sales & Catering Manager

City Club Weddings to Remember- Sakkal & Guzman 7.19.08

Doing something different! Who would have thought that pink and purple were the way to go in our Art Deco themed space? Take a look at what Natalie and Robert choose to accent their special day along with the help of their Planner, the always wonderful Cindy Danbom of Belle-Notte Events.

Photographs by Jennifer Skog

It just goes to show how versatile our space can be. It is always wonderful to see the classic Art Deco weddings because everyone always makes it their own but it’s also great to see clients challenge our expectations and create an event that is truly unique. Stay posted to see other ways couples traded in a classic theme for something really special.

-Cassie Harris, Catering and Sales Manager

A City Club Affaire- The City Club's Wedding & Event Show

The catering team at The City Club was pleased to host its 2nd Annual City Club Affaire- Wedding & Event Show this past Sunday, October 5, 2008.

Thank you to those who attended and gracious thanks to all of our participating vendors.

Our vision for the show was to create an intimate setting where guests could capture the feeling of a City Club event. We poured complimentary champagne, passed Chef Michael Munoz’s hand crafted hors d’oeuvres and delectable sweets and showcased only those vendors found on our recommend list. Each vendor on our list has developed a relationship with our team, worked events at the Club and provides services we trust to be exceptional.

Thank you to California Parking valet services for providing us with complimentary valet services. Peter Rudolfi for arranging the solo guitarist who welcomed guests upon arrival. Northern California Brides & Today’s Brides for their magazines and Marianne Kent Music for providing the lovely D’Jazz entertainment on the 10th floor Café.

Thank you to Classic Party Rentals, Napa Valley Linen, La Tavola Linen Company, for the gorgeous linens and table top displays. Floramor Studios, Floreal, Designs by Ricardo, Stacey Miller Designs, Branch Out for the beautiful, creative and coordinated flower centerpieces and arrangements. Special thank you to Elle Music & Entertainment for providing the lighting which really enhanced the overall feeling in the 11th floor Main Dining Room and created an evening ambiance during the day!

Compliments to Kathy Goodman from Well Rehearsed for representing her services by bringing in a yellow umbrella, table top displays and house-made tasty cupcake pops. All of your attention to detail really shined. Armel Reyes from Kimpton Hotels for providing the fun garters for the “Single to Sunrise or Naughty Girls” loved them!

Carolyn Wong, Cakework and Have Your Cake for the tasty cake treats and detailed cake displays. Amy Kuschel for showcasing two of her lovely designs from her latest gown collection. Stacey Wong from California Chocolate Fountain for providing the wonderful dipping items that we all enjoyed. Hyegraph Invitations & Stationary for providing gorgeous new ideas. Patrick McMichael from Denon & Doyle for greeting all of our guests with warmth and cheer.

The Galleria Park Hotel, Nordstrom’s Fine Jewelry, Thomas Hughes Film, Tara Arrowood, Carol Irvine Photography, I DO! Wedding & Event Designs, One World Designs, and Sylvie Gil for showcasing past events at The City Club and hopefully inspiring all of our future bride and grooms.

If you missed the show this year, we do hope you can visit the Club soon as we would love the opportunity to walk you through our space and share more about all of our wonderful vendors.

See you next year. Did we mention- it was complimentary admission!

-Michelle Kimmins- Director of Sales & Catering