The University Club at the University of Pittsburgh Reviews
Reviews
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4.9 out of 5 rating
4.9 out of 5 rating
42 Reviews
97% recommend it
Awards
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![Michael]()
Michael Sent on 07/22/2019Working With Jessica is a dream
As a vendor who has worked at this club for years, I can tell you that they make it so easy to help create a fabulous day for each bride. Their staff is helpful and friendly. The last thing a vendor needs are a grumpy group of people as you are setting up. Jessica offers to help in any way she can. I was lucky enough to be a guest at a wedding recently. They go all out! -
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![Damien]()
Damien G. Sent on 11/04/2019UC and Jess Transue, making dreams happen.
Our wedding on the rainy but perfect day of 10/26/19 was made perfect mostly due to having our reception at The University Club with 186 people, and the unflappable and accommodating nature of the UC’s wedding coordinator, Jessica Transue. She sincerely deserves a raise. During the entire planning process, which lasted in excess of 15 months, included question after question and email after email to Jess. Rachel and I never failed to come up with something new we were curious about, and Jessica knew every single answer and how to accomplish our goals and Rachel’s vision. She was also insightful and offered recommendations based on her experiences planning copious weddings. Rachel’s dream wedding was realized, and we could not have done it with the UC staff and Jessica. We would often joke that if we asked for something ridiculous, like ninjas coming from the ceiling during our entrance, that Jess would likely say, “yea we can do that.” The service staff and the building manager were also very very helpful and accommodating. The food was delectable, drinks were made in a timely fashion, and guests were comfortable throughout. We rented the Gold Room and used that as a cookie room, and that was a nice place for sound sensitive folks to hang out if the music was too loud. Everything was accessible for people with disabilities. We also rented the college room for an after party. There was some cheese sauce of some kind there that I vow to get my hands on again. My father passed 11 days before the wedding, and the venue staff were all extremely supportive and sensitive to that incredibly difficult time in our lives. The emotional intelligence of the entire staff is something to behold. The day felt like a dream. We were never told no, and we were always told upfront any extra costs or other things that the UC did not do themselves. They worked seamlessly with our vendors. The space is incredible. Beautiful, classic, regal. We were unable to have our cocktail hour on the terrace, due to weather, but the lobby was perfect enough. Thank you to the University Club from Damien and Rachel Gabis. -
Megan Sent on 11/05/2019
Perfection!
Having met at Pitt during our freshman year of college in the dorm across the street, we knew the University Club would be the perfect spot for our wedding reception from the moment we stepped inside (and outside on the terrace!). What sealed the deal for us was how kind, knowledgeable, and accommodating the wedding coordinator Jessica was. I instantly felt at ease when we started discussing initial plans and Jessica continued to help me throughout the entire planning process, answering every single question that we had promptly and providing the best recommendations. For any special requests that we asked about Jess always responded that she could make it happen, and on our wedding day, she made sure every detail was exactly how we envisioned it. It was so nice to be able to truly enjoy the day stress-free knowing we were in good hands. Jessica's assistant Brenna was also so sweet and let us sneak up to the terrace for a bit during the reception and spend some time together, just the two of us, soaking in the perfect day we had. After the wedding all of our guests told us how great the food and service was, how much fun they had, and how amazing the terrace was for cocktail hour. The entire experience we got at the University Club was a dream and would not have been as special, or even possible, without Jessica and her team! -
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![Bonnie]()
Bonnie D. Sent on 11/26/2019A Magical Day
Look no further for your venue. I was an out of town bride and Jess made the planning so easy. She answered every email right away. Our venue surpassed all my expectations. Classy, elegant and fun at the same time. I don't know how but she read my mind. The ballroom was stunning. I really did feel like a Princess. The food was amazing too. The salmon was truly the best I ever tasted. Our guests raved about the food and my family is picky. Also, they provided plenty of it, my guests were stuffed. We had an open bar for four hours and they were constantly available. The staff had the best personalities. Also, there was plenty of champagne and food in our waiting areas before we were introduced. The price was very reasonable compared to other vendors and you receive a discount for using Heinz Chapel. The University Club and Jess made my dreams come true. -
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![Breanna]()
Breanna Sent on 09/07/2019Best. Day. Ever!!!
We couldn’t be happier with the University Club! From the food, to the kind staff, the building, the location… the list goes on. But someone in particular that made this day extra special was Jessica Transue, especially since we planned this wedding from Texas. In fact, we joke all the time that we would get married ANYWHERE that Jessica is working at; She was a great added bonus to an already amazing wedding venue! -
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![Brittany]()
Brittany Sent on 10/03/2019Incredible Venue, Exceptional Service
I had my wedding at the University Club of Pittsburgh in August for 200 guests. The event exceeded our expectations in every way! This is an older building with a lot of character and great bones. It is not your typical cookie cutter wedding venue. Our guests loved the different settings for the reception, from the awesome rooftop terrace for the cocktail hour, to the beautiful ballroom for dinner and dancing and the use of the charming Gold Room dedicated solely for the Cookie Table. We especially liked the variety and choices of food in the different packages for dinner, choice of hors d'oeuvres for the cocktail hour and what was included in the price. The food was delicious and the service was excellent. Another selling point for us in choosing the University Club was being able to have the reception end at midnight instead of the usual 10:00 p.m. end time.
Jessica Transue, the Banquet Manager, is exceptional. From our first meeting we knew we were in good hands. Jessica was very knowledgeable, flexible, accommodating, helpful with suggestions, extremely prompt and courteous in answering our numerous emails. She was a pleasure to work with and a true professional. There was absolutely no need to hire a wedding planner because Jessica takes on that role and so much more. When I arrived at the University Club for the reception I realized we had beat the bridal party, who was still on a shuttle at Heinz Chapel. Jessica whisked me away into another room, helped me remove my veil, fixed my hair, and bustled my dress. I'm sure she had 100 other things she could have been doing in that moment, but you would have never known. We didn't know how crucial Jessica was going to be in our planning process, but we could not be more grateful for her! -
![Erica]()
Erica K. Sent on 08/22/2019Absolutely exceptional experience
I simply do not know where to begin to explain how absolutely wonderful our experience was at the University Club, from the day we booked the venue to the very end of the night on our wedding day. As many of these reviews mention, the wedding coordinator at the University Club, Jessica Transue, is an absolute dream to work with. There is simply no need to spend thousands of dollars on an outside wedding planner when you have someone like Jessica at your venue making sure every single detail is taken care of and perfect. She made the entire planning process so incredibly easy and stress-free for us. Throughout the planning stage, she answered all of my (many, many!) e-mails almost immediately, and had an answer to every single question that I asked. The Club has weddings every weekend, but Jessica always made me feel like I was her only bride! More importantly, she made every single special request that we had happen without hesitation. She accommodated tweaks to the dinner menu, bar menu, venue layout, etc. Anything that we wanted or needed, Jessica made it happen with a smile. Many of my friends who have planned weddings at other venues in Pittsburgh have mentioned to us that they were “nickeled and dimed” for every single thing throughout the whole planning process, or that their venue wouldn’t accommodate any special requests without charging an additional arm and a leg. Every time they turned around, it was another bill that they weren’t expecting or another up-charge for this or that. We couldn’t have had a more different experience - we knew exactly what everything would cost going in (and it was VERY reasonable for such a gorgeous venue and the level of service) and were never up-charged for special requests or surprised with random bills. Thanks to Jessica’s meticulous planning, our wedding day went off without a hitch. Every detail of the day was absolutely perfect. It was a truly stress-free day thanks to Jessica overseeing all of the set up and all of our vendors. We received endless compliments from our guests on the cocktail hour on the stunning rooftop terrace (there is truly nothing else like this beautiful terrace at any other venue), the gorgeous ballroom, and the food and drink. Maybe one of the most outstanding aspects of this venue is the service. Our guests were served dinner so promptly, their wine glasses were never empty throughout dinner, and there was never a line at the bar. The Club also trayed our cookies for us, and the cookie table was beautiful. We had a staff member dedicated solely to our sweetheart table, and she (and Jessica, who was at the venue all day and night) made sure we were able to enjoy our dinner in peace before we had to greet guests and that we had everything we could want or need all night long, checking in on us several times to make sure we were happy. We are still blown away by how wonderful the entire team was - servers, bartenders, etc. It was truly a beautiful day and I cannot recommend this wonderful venue enough. There are many lovely choices in Pittsburgh, but the University Club is simply “the total package,” and I am so happy we chose to have our wedding here. -
![Ellie]()
Ellie Sent on 08/02/2019Amazing is an understatement
Jessica and the University Club staff went above and beyond in helping us make our wedding exactly what we wanted. Jessica was always available when I needed her and always had answers to my questions. Anytime adjustments needed to be made (including the day of) she made sure everything got done on time. She’s someone you can tell truly loves their job because she puts what the bride and groom want first and makes it happen. The set up in the university club was absolutely stunning. We planned to have the cocktail hour on the rooftop, but since it was the hottest day of the summer,in the upper 90’s, jessica also included a cocktail area inside for guests that didn’t want to be out in the heat or couldn’t be in the heat. The food was amazing and I got so many complements from guests on how awesome the staffing was during the reception. Couldn’t recommend this venue more! If I could give them more than 5 stars I would! -
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Sara Sent on 10/23/2019
Relax and enjoy your day - details are taken care of
We had the most perfect wedding day at the University Club. It wasn't just the spiral staircase, rooftop cocktail hour, chandeliers, beautiful ceilings, multiple ballrooms, and actually delicious food that made it so wonderful.
Jessica, the event coordinator, there, is fantastic. I was able to relax and enjoy what really mattered on our wedding day because I knew she had all of the details covered. She met with us several times, took careful notes, answered my lists of crazy/ nervous bride questions with patience and flexibility. She allowed us to do pretty much whatever we wanted to make our special day truly ours. -
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![Michelle]()
Michelle Sent on 03/18/2019Beautiful venue with amazing service
I had my wedding ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception at The University Club in January 2019, with about 160 guests. The space was gorgeous and perfect for our winter wedding. We loved being able to have distinct spaces for the ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception, and were also able to have both sides of the bridal party get ready in the venue. Given that it was the winter, we actually were able to do all of our bridal party pictures within the venue as well, between the stairwell and the pristine, snowy rooftop! In addition to being a gorgeous space, the staff and service were everything we could have asked for. The venue coordinator, Jessica, was such a help to have leading up to the wedding, to work with our vendors, and to help us pull of the day. The entire staff was great to work with on our wedding day—it was awesome to have attentive service from the start of the day all the way through the end of the night while cleaning up. Food and beverage was great, and it was very convenient having dessert options at awesome bakeries as part of the package. I can not recommend The University Club enough for an easy experience and gorgeous, unique setting! -
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![dierdre]()
Dierdre Sent on 02/13/2019Incredible Venue!
My husband and I had our wedding reception at the University Club in November and we cannot say enough about how wonderful everything turned out! From the beginning to the end the coordinator Jessica was extremely accommodating and helpful with everything we needed. She was quick to respond to any questions and made sure every detail was what we wanted. The reception turned out beautifully and we had so many compliments on the beauty of the ballroom and especially the FOOD. Many of our guests made sure to tell us how amazing their meal was. We have so many wonderful memories of the day and are so happy we chose the University Club! -
![Jamie]()
Jamie Sent on 10/02/2019Venue is Beautiful and Jessica the Wedding Coordinator is an Angel
The University Club was the perfect choice when my husband and I were looking for places to get married. The venue is beautiful from top to bottom. We got married in November of 2018 and it was the first snow of the season so aside from some pictures outside we had our wedding inside. From the first day of planning until the actual day of the wedding I knew everything would be perfect because of the University Club's wedding coordinator Jessica. She answered all of my obscure emails and did it quickly which was helpful for me because I am out of town which was added stress. On the day of Jessica set everything up exactly as we wanted and was there to direct us and make sure we had everything we needed to have the best day. The food was amazing and all of the guests commented on how good it all was. The servers were all fun and personable and you could tell they were all happy to be there even though it was a Saturday night. I honestly don't have one bad thing to say about my experience. I couldn't recommend the University Club more it really is the perfect place to get married! -
![Amanda]()
Amanda Sent on 01/08/2019The most beautiful reception!
With so many reception venues in the city, it was difficult to make the decision on location! I am so glad I chose the UC because the entire experience was wonderful. Jessica was awesome and offered so much help with the planning and overall encouragement, because what bride doesn’t need some extra support. Everyone raved about the food, seriously the crab cakes were amazing. If you are getting married in Oakland, you absolutely need to consider the University Club! -
User2662592 Sent on 06/26/2016Absolutely thrilled with our wedding at the University Club! My husband and I are both academics, so we liked the idea of having our reception at a place connected to a university. Additionally the decor and general aesthetics of the University Club were exactly what we were looking for: elegant, classic, traditional but not stuffy. The service was top notch from the beginning to the end. I was organizing the wedding from out of state, but Kaila, the wedding coordinator, easily worked with my mother to choose the food and other details. Kaila was very knowledgeable, and always available over email to answer questions. The food was delicious, and the staff was extremely professional and courteous. The event itself was an absolutely wonderful party, and the University Club easily accommodated our guests, which included about 15 children. The ballroom was beautiful, and looked perfectly elegant. "Upgrades" like fancier linen are truly unnecessary in this gorgeous space. Take my word for it! The chairs, linens, china and general decor (those curtains and windows!) are all beautiful alone without any embellishment.
All in all, I couldn't have asked for a more beautiful and elegant place for my wedding reception. For its location in the heart of Oakland, the University Club is reasonably priced and absolutely beautiful (and the staff knows what they are doing!). Don't hesitate to book with them!
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