Help! Cannot find a nice wedding venue that allows you to bring your own food

@Spazzytazi-- Gorgeous!!! I hadn't thought about San Antonio. Very pretty!

Have you considered using not necessarily even a suburb, but a smaller city outlying these huge (and thus much higher cost of living) ones? Or even a city that is in a lower cost of living area? Since you're willing to have it in one of 3 cities which are considerable distances from each other, why not pick another city, say in Missouri or somewhere between the cities, for instance, and use a nice venue there. I'm in MO, and 50k would get you damn near a David Tutera style wedding here!!

@Mna that might be something to consider. Smaller cities do offer more affordable options.

@Doris: I figured since it's going to require travel from at least 2/3 of your guests, and possibly you and your DF anyway, why not?

The Chapel at Ana Villa

http://www.chapelanavilla.com/#!/WELCOME

My sister got married here. It was very lovely and is located in a suburb of Dallas TX

They allowed her to work with an outside caterer.

Good luck

I'm really glad this didn't go the way I was expecting it to. I don't have anything else to contribute besides "Good luck, Doris!"

The Old Red Museum in Dallas can accommodate 300 people and they allow outside catering. It's a lovely place that looks like a castle.

http://www.oldred.org/about-us/

ETA: Also, Moonlight Studios in Chicago has a list of something like 15 preferred caterers so they'll probably have something within your budget. Their biggest room can accommodate 500 for a reception.

http://www.moonlight-studios.com/

@spazzy I thought it was frozen pork?

I'd listen to JCloves.

$50k is a generous budget. Cut that list and have a well hosted classy wedding.

It was frozen ground beef. Not sure which would be worse. But I'm positive it was ground beef because we all told her that ground beef does not a great taco make. Carne Asada, Carnitas that's taco filling. But thank you.

ETA: OP I know guest lists are stressful. It's probably the biggest sticking point DH and I had during the planning. It's an exciting day and I understand wanting to share it with everyone. Especially if its traditional in your culture, but really if you want to save money cut your list. Catering is the biggest expense. If you can multiply $50 by 200 instead of 350 you would save thousands of dollars.

@Doris You are like the 4th Nigerian bride I met and they all have large weddings like this. Is it a culture thing? I'm not asking to be offense or snarky. I'm just curious.

I'm so confused. Wasn't there a frozen pork girl and they bought it 9 months in advance.

I still can't fathom 350 people who like me enough to travel for my wedding...

I'm afraid you're setting yourself up for disappointment. You'll move mountains to find a place that will accommodate and at your budget and then they won't show.

Sqwiggy, yes. Recently we had Miss 400 guests with 9 month frozen pork, but a while back there was a Miss 300 guests with frozen ground beef. It amazes me how many people continue to think self catering is a good idea.

Does anyone know what happened to cupcake bride?

Oh I missed the 300 frozen ground beef. I remember the girl who made her friends bake a ton of cupcakes.

Sometimes, if you find a caterer you're considering, they'll list venues they've worked at on their website. You can start there, and even call them asking for suggestions on places they can work in that would accommodate your guest list. That's how I made my back up list of locations because I knew above all else, I wanted to use a specific caterer.

You must not be looking very hard. Most of the venues I looked at in Houston allow outside food. Chateau cocomar, the crystal rice ballroom, olde dobbin station, the bell tower

ETA: the cupcake bride is Katie b to s, she is still here but changes her name

ETA again almost every city has a Noah's which is a large hall and you bring in everything.

If you have a budget of $50,000 and 350 guests, that is $142 per guest. You can afford the catering.

@OriginalLaura-- I tried the bell tower on 34th. Gorgeous place lots of space and the water wall is so beautiful. They quoted me at 70k. They do not let you bring in outside food. I will look into Chateau CoComar and the crystal room.

@JuliaT-- Yes, Nigerians generally have huge weddings. My dad could easily blow the wedding to 1000 people. Traditionally parents of both parties invite friends from America and extended family from Nigeria. It's a huge deal. Uninvited guest often pop up and the bride and groom are "forced to make room" for them at the wedding. My cousin was left with an additional $5000 bill because this happened at her wedding. Its super frustrating!

@JclovesDM-- Thanks for your answer. Yea, the guest count has been a difficult point to fight about. I've been fighting to cut it but I feel I'm not getting anywhere with my fiance. All the nice wedding venues seat 150-200 people. I'll be visiting the places some posters suggested in Dallas this weekend.

Does anyone know the price breakdown of the Chateau Cocomar in Houston?