I was looking for a carafe that I can use everyday.  I am very clumsy so I prefer non-glass ones.  Then I found the Prodyne Acrylic juice jar.  It’s a clear carafe made of acrylic so it was perfect.  It comes with a screw-in lid either in white or black.  It also comes in two sizes: 56oz and 36oz.

When I got it, I was pleasantly surprised.  It looked like glass!  The lid is a screw-in so there are screw threads on the mouth of the carafe, but it still looks fine with or without the lid.  The lid has a little opening and a cover with a rubber stopper to seal it.  The cover does not open easily.  I guess it’s better tight that way so it won’t loosen so easily.  I flipped that carafe 360° several times (not slowly) to see how tight that seal was, and so far no spills.  The acrylic wasn’t very thick, but hopefully it lasts.  Unfortunately I can’t try to drop it to see how sturdy it is, sorry!  But I still highly recommend it if you’re looking for a non-glass carafe.

I’ve been looking far and wide for a great guest welcome bag.  I found a few and posted a poll to help me decide.  Reader Lisa also suggested a great boat tote that is very affordable.  In the end, I went with a bag that is not even in my previous list.  And it’s cheaper than all of the bags in my list except one.  And here it is…

It’s the Striped Canvas Bag from Paper Mart.  I ordered 25 of the blue ones (received in only 5 days) and I love them!

The stripes, the color, the rope closure are perfect for my nautical-themed wedding.  They’re a little big for a guest welcome bag, but the guests would be able to use them for a lot of things (e.g. beach bag, overnight bag, everday bag, etc).  They’re fully lined and has a zipper pocket inside.  The material is not the thickest, but it looks sturdy enough.

They cost more at $4.75 each than the boat tote, but I think they’re worth it.  I highly recommend them.

STAY DETAILS
December 27-29, 2009
Townhouse suite with continental breakfast
Rate: $89/night promotional rate at MillStreetInn.com

I highly recommend this inn for the location, comfortable bed and very friendly staff.  The inn was nicer than many of the Hyatt’s, Marriott’s, or Sheraton’s we’ve stayed at.

We got the holiday season special.  The rate was for a junior suite (the smallest suite at the all-suite Mill Street Inn).  But when we checked in, we were upgraded to one of their biggest suites, a Townhouse suite!

LOCATION
The location is great.  It is in downtown Newport and just a block and a half off Thames St.  Being able to park our car at the inn’s parking lot and walk to places is a huge plus in Newport.

PREMISES
The Mill Street Inn is a historic hotel and you do see its historic charm outside.  But when you get in, you are greeted with modern decor and amenities.  In addition, the inn smelled great.  The lobby was small, but adequate for the number of rooms and guests it can accommodate.

There were 3 floors and basement.  The entrance to rooms were in the 1st and 2nd floors.  The 2nd level of the townhouse suites occupied the 3rd floor of the inn.  The basement had a room where they served breakfast during the colder months.  The ice machine was also located in the basement.  During warmer months, they served breakfast at the  rooftop patio with a view of the river and bridge.

Read on…

I have originally planned to do my own flowers.  But it seemed to cost more than I was expecting to spend… from all the stuff I need (vases, buckets, tools, etc) to take to Newport, to the additional vehicle we have to rent to lug all these stuff.  After talking to a few professional florists and crunching the numbers, I found out that the money I will be saving from DIYing wasn’t a lot.  It is not worth the hassle and uncertainty of DIYing all my wedding flowers.  So I decided to hire a florist.

Image from Getty Images

Below are the Rhode Island florists that I inquired with (price comparison at the bottom)…

Florals by Alisa

Allie & Lisa were very responsive.  They usually email back same day or early morning the day after (when I emailed them at night).  They were able to give me a price quote based on my description of what I want in just a couple of days.  I love how they described everything.  The flowers they have chosen were perfect.  They were right on.

We met with Lisa to discuss more about what I wanted.  She was very sweet and even admired my centerpiece mock-up made of tissue.  She has that enthusiasm I look for in a vendor.  I requested a centerpiece sample ahead of time so I can pick it up at our meeting and use it for our menu tasting at Belle Mer.  It cost the same as the price quote.

Golden Gate Studios

Jay of Golden Gate Studios was very responsive in the beginning.  He called me early in the morning the day after I emailed him, and he was on his way to a wedding.  He took the time to let me know he got my inquiry and to talk to me more about my wedding, knowing that he was going away that week.  Since I couldn’t go to RI soon, I asked him if I could email him the details I have in mind and he could email me the quote.  After that, I didn’t hear from him.

I followed up after more than a week via email and still didn’t get a response.  Thinking he wasn’t getting my emails, I contacted him via his website like in the beginning.  But didn’t get a response.  A week after, I got a phone call from him.  He said he was busy with work for the holidays and he prefers calls instead of emails.  His other clients said the same thing, just call him and he answers or calls back right away.  Since then I just called him and he either answered his phone or returned my call just a few minutes after.

We decided to meet with him and get a quote at the meeting.  He was very nice and took the time to discuss all the details of what I’m envisioning.  He wrote his notes and gave me a quote right there.  Before we left, he gave me a bouquet of flowers.  He was very sweet!

Toni Chandler Florals

Toni Chandler’s assistant handled all the email correspondence.  It usually took a couple of days before I get a response.  I didn’t get to talk to Toni until 8 days after my first inquiry.  The phone appointment was set up by her assistant.

As soon as Toni and I talked on the phone, I felt very comfortable.  We talked like girlfriends.  She got my vision right away and made excellent suggestions.  She offered a lot of advice regarding my venue as well.  The conversation made me very excited to see her work.  At the end of the conversation, she told me that she would be able to send me a quote in 2 days.  I didn’t get the quote in 2 days, so I emailed her 7 days after.  Her assistant emailed me back that same day with the quote.

Pricing:  I will not be posting specific prices, but I’m including the differences between the quotes from the three florists.  Click here for the Floral Price Comparison.

Belle Mer offers free private menu tasting for the bride and groom.  Belle Mer no longer has a menu that you can choose from.  Their new “custom menu” works differently.

First, we discussed the type of menu we like for the wedding with our assigned Belle Mer event coordinator.  The Belle Mer culinary team then created a menu proposal based on what we discussed.  We were able to make changes or add or subtract items from the proposed menu until the tasting.  Note that the Belle Mer culinary team likes to create their own version of the usual items, like duck sauce for example.  They won’t provide the regular duck sauce you can get from the grocery store, they create their own duck sauce.

When we didn’t like an item, the chef discussed with us possible alternatives.  We then had to trust them to create something better or at least something we may like, as we would not be able to taste those alternatives as per Belle Mer policy.

Before I start saying what I thought about the food, I just want to say that I’m not a food connoisseur and my description of the food is not very good.

Now on to the food (click on images to enlarge)…

BUTLER-PASSED HORS D’OEUVRES:

Vegetable Fresh Rolls with Cucumber Dipping Sauce

I’m not a vegetable fan and I don’t like cucumber, so this wasn’t my favorite.  But it was a good vegetable option.  There was a good amount of vegetables and the wrap tasted great.

BLT on a Savory Spoon

This was John’s favorite and my second favorite.  The spoon was edible, but it wasn’t crispy as I was hoping it to be.  The portion was really really tiny.

Kumomoto Oysters with Spicy Mignonenette Gelle & Smoked Sea Salt

Oysters are my favorite, but I didn’t like these oysters too much.  I couldn’t taste much of the oysters, the taste of the Mignonette Gelle was too overpowering.  It didn’t help that the oysters were tiny too.  So we told the chef to replace the gelle with cocktail sauce.  The chef told us she’ll create something similar to cocktail sauce.

Lamb Noisette on a Rosemary Spear with Lemon Mint Aioli

This was my favorite hors d’oeuvre.  The lamb was cooked just right and the lemon mint aioli perfectly complements the meat.  It was a good portion too.

Buttermilk Fried Chicken Filet with Sweet Corn Relish

The chicken was tender and juicy.  It was really good.  However, I didn’t like the sweet corn relish (I’m not a relish fan) so we asked the chef to propose another garnish.  The portion size was big.

Bacon Dusted Sea Scallops with Red Pepper Jelly

John and I love bacon and scallops.  And Belle Mer’s version of the Scallops Wrapped in Bacon hors d’oeuvre is the bacon dusted scallops.  We loved it, but I didn’t like the red pepper jelly.  I thought it was too sweet and didn’t go well with the seafood.

Grilled Littleneck Clams with Spicy Parsley-Garlic Butter

I like the Spicy Parsley-Garlic Butter on the clams.  Unfortunately, the clams were chewy so we didn’t go with it.

COCKTAIL DISPLAY

We are having a Far East Experience cocktail display and requested some Filipino items included.  Belle Mer usually don’t include cocktail display items at the tasting, but I requested some of the Filipino items and here they are…

Pinoy Pork BBQ

The pork was tender and juicy and flavorful.  However the sauce was more on the sweet side and tasted more like teriyaki instead of barbecue sauce.

Lumpiang Shanghai with Duck Sauce

Lumpiang Shanghai is the Filipino version of an eggroll.  The eggroll was great, but the Belle Mer duck sauce was very sweet.  I had to ask the sauce changed.  I really wanted the regular Chinese duck sauce, but they create their own duck sauce so they said they’ll tweak it to make it less sweet.  Hopefully it will turn out more like the regular duck sauce.

SOUP

John and I both love New England clam chowder so we requested that to be included in our menu.  But the chef suggested something lighter, as New England clam chowder might be too heavy for a Spring day wedding.  So here are the soup we had…

New England Shellfish Bisque with Pernod and Red Pepper Rouille

It was very “seafood-y” in a good way, but still not as good as a New England clam chowder.  It is lighter and it didn’t have anything in it, just soup.

Mushroom Barley Soup with Goat Cheese Croutons

It tasted good, but it wasn’t something we would order over some soups that we regularly order.

SALAD

Caesar Salad with Baby Green & Red Romaine with Ciabatta Crostini and Parmegiano Reggiano

It was good and Caesar Salad is the only salad that I eat, so we went with this of course.

Field Greens & Watercress Salad with Haricot Vert, Shaved Red Onion, and Creamy Cucumber Dressing

I thought there weren’t enough dressing on it.  But it was alright.

INTERMEZZO

Champagne and Lemon Intermezzo

The lemon intermezzo was creamy while the champagne is more “icy.”  John preferred the lemon, I preferred the champagne.  So we decided to get small scoops of both.

ENTREE

The entree portion of the tasting was my favorite, even though I was already full by then. All the entrees were delicious! It makes me hungry now just thinking about them.

Olive Oil Poached Free Range Chicken with Crispy Pistachio Crust + Parsnip Puree & Bay Scallops Sautee with Garden Peas & Wild Mushrooms

The chicken was again very tender and juicy.  The parsnip puree perfectly complements the chicken.  I don’t like pistachios but the pistachio crust was great.  The peas and mushrooms were alright.

Grilled Filet Mignon with Sweet Onion Parsley Relish + Shrimp & Leek Risotto / Lobster Risotto & Vanilla Baby Carrots

Like the chicken, the filet mignon was tender, juicy and flavorful.  I loved the shrimp & leek risotto, it was creamy and not too seafood-y.  We were served lobster risotto as well as another option to pair with the chicken or filet.  I loved it too and chose it over the shrimp & leek risotto.

Truffled Spring Vegetables + Pearl Onions, Leek Puree & Hand Rolled Potato Gnocchi


I don’t like vegetables, but the leek puree and potato gnocchi were great.

All photos were provided by Belle Mer.  It was nice for them to do that so we only needed to focus on the food at our tasting.  Our event coordinator also brought 8 (more than we requested) sample linens and chargers for us to look at!  She was very helpful and very responsive.

Montilio’s Bakery
638 Adams St, Quincy MA

Tasting Experience
Frank of Montilio’s was waiting for us when we arrived.  We were the only ones there for cake tasting.  Frank took all our info including the cake design we wanted, then he proceeded to cut us some slices of their cakes.  He was sweet.

Cake
We were served 7 different flavors.  They were all delicious.  The buttercream was on the sweeter side, but the cakes themselves were moist and the fillings were delicious.  We decided to do two flavors for our cake – Strawberry Grand Marnier (my new favorite cake flavor) and Chocolate cake with chocolate mousse filling for John.

Customer Service
I had to call Montilio’s to set up an appointment since I couldn’t find an email from their website.  I left a message and I got a call back the next day.  While on the call, I asked a list of their flavors sent to me and I received the email right away.

Price Quote
Strawberry Grand Marnier and Chocolate cake with Chocolate Mousse filling, round, 3 tiers, buttercream frosting, anniversary tier:
$4/slice
$75 flowers
$100 delivery to Belle Mer
Total = $535

Other Bakers
Cake Tasting #1: Sin Desserts, Providence RI
Cake Tasting #2: Corby Cakes and Cookies, Cranston RI
Cake Tasting #3: Diane’s Delectables, Warwick RI
Cake Tasting #4: Konditor Meister, Braintree MA

Konditor Meister
32 Wood Rd, Braintree MA

Tasting Experience
The place was packed when we arrived.  We were told Saturdays are usually that busy so don’t expect special or undivided attention.  We were given a big portfolio of their cake designs.  The portfolio was divided into categories, buttercream being the cheapest and custom fondant being the more expensive ones.  We were then served 8 different cakes.  The slices were pretty huge.  We were left alone to taste the cakes then Julia came to us to discuss details.  She priced our cake right there, wrote all the information on a form and gave us our copies along with a checklist, policies, and instructions.

Cake
John and I are both chocolate people, but all the 8 cakes that were served to us were delicious!  I liked them all.  They were so moist.  If we could have all the flavors in our cake, we will.  But of course that is not possible.  My favorite was the Strawberry Grand Marnier.  I wanted more strawberries in it though, but it was still very good without strawberries.  John chose the Chocolate cake with chocolate mousse filling.  I loved the Black Forest as well, but without the cherries and cherry liquor which was at the bottom layer of the cake.  In the end, we decided to do two flavors for our cake.

Customer Service
Konditor Meister never responded to my online inquiry through their website.  We usually get our cakes from there, so I really wanted to have a cake tasting with them.  I called them to set up an appointment instead.

Price Quote
Strawberry Grand Marnier and Chocolate cake with Chocolate Mousse filling, round, 3 tiers, buttercream frosting, anniversary tier:
$3/slice
$40 flowers
$100 delivery to Belle Mer
Total = $410

Other Bakers
Cake Tasting #1: Sin Desserts, Providence RI
Cake Tasting #2: Corby Cakes and Cookies, Cranston RI
Cake Tasting #3: Diane’s Delectables, Warwick RI
Cake Tasting #5: Montilio’s Bakery, Quincy MA

Diane’s Delectables
830 Strawberry Field Rd West, Warwick RI

Tasting Experience
Diane of Diane’s Delectables prepared 7 flavors for us to taste at our tasting appointment.  What is so surprising is that she didn’t have the flavor (chocolate cake with chocolate mousse filling) that I chose when we initially communicated.

Diane had tons of cake photos and they were beautiful.  I showed her the cake that we wanted and we were able to pick from her samples the flowers that we wanted to use.

According to Diane, it is cheaper to go with a dummy cake and sheet cake on the side for guests.  Her dummy cakes looked very real and there’s a portion of the bottom tier you can cut for cake cutting.

Cake
I wasn’t able to take note of all the flavors of the cakes we tasted.  The cake texture was good.  The cakes were moist, but could be better.  None of the cake samples have the flavors we usually go for in cakes, so we didn’t choose any of the flavors.  We told Diane to give us a quote for the chocolate cake with chocolate mousse filling.

Customer Service
Diane was quick in responding to my emails.  She didn’t have any appointments available on the day of our appointment, but that was the only day I could come to RI so she tried to accommodate us.  We could either just pick up the cake samples and talk on the phone another day if we have any questions or sit with her for just a few minutes.  But she was able take the time to sit with us and discuss all the details we needed to discuss.

Price Quote
Chocolate cake with chocolate mousse filling, round 3-tier dummy cake, buttercream frosting, sheet cake serving 90 people:
$2.45/slice
$40 flowers
$55 delivery to Belle Mer
Total = $315.50

Other Bakers
Cake Tasting #1: Sin Desserts, Providence RI
Cake Tasting #2: Corby Cakes and Cookies, Cranston RI
Cake Tasting #4: Konditor Meister, Braintree MA
Cake Tasting #5: Montilio’s Bakery, Quincy MA

Corby Cakes and Cookies
100 East St, Cranston RI

Tasting Experience
We were asked to choose four flavors ahead of time to taste at our appointment. We met Shemry at the tasting and she was so sweet. She had all our info including cake photos that I sent her printed out. She had cake pans stacked on top of each other to give us an idea of the size of our cake. She made samples of the little flowers that were similar to the ones on the design I sent her. Out of all the five bakers we went to, our meeting with Shemry was the most enjoyable and informative.  Before we left, Shemry packaged our leftovers for us to take home.

Cake
We tasted Red Velvet with cream cheese filling, Marble Cake with mocha filling, Triple Chocolate, and Strawberry Grand Marnier. The Red Velvet wasn’t moist enough for me, but definitely more moist than the Red Velvet from Sin Desserts. We tasted a small hint of liquorish flavor in the Triple Chocolate. I loved the flavor of the Strawberry Grand Marnier the best, but it wasn’t as moist as I wanted it to be as well. It also didn’t have enough strawberries in my opinion.  I like the buttercream, light and not too sweet.  Click here for a list of flavors.

Customer Service
Shemry was the quickest to reply to my first inquiry among all the other bakers I contacted.  She also emailed us the day after our tasting to see how we are and that she enjoyed meeting us.

Additional Info
Corby Cakes shares a space with the Pizza Place on 100 East St so just go in the Pizza Place. The Pizza Place is beside the Karate shop.

Price Quote
Strawberry Grand Marnier, round, 3 tiers serving 90 people, buttercream frosting:
$4/slice
$30 flowers
$33 delivery to Belle Mer
Total = $423

Other Bakers
Cake Tasting #1: Sin Desserts, Providence RI
Cake Tasting #3: Diane’s Delectables, Warwick RI
Cake Tasting #4: Konditor Meister, Braintree MA
Cake Tasting #5: Montilio’s Bakery, Quincy MA

Sin Desserts
200 Allens Ave, Providence RI

Tasting Experience
We were asked to choose four flavors ahead of time to taste at our the appointment.  We met Jen at the tasting.  She was a little on the serious side.  She kept talking to John even though Iwas the one who had opinions on our cake.  When the tasting was done, she wrapped our leftovers for us to take home.  On our way out, Jen shook John’s hand and said “Nice meeting you.”  Then I leaned towards her to shook her hand and said “Nice meeting you,” but she didn’t say anything back.

Cake
We tasted Devil’s Food with raspberry filling, Malted Chocolate, Red Velvet with cream cheese filling, and Princess Cake.  The Red Velvet and Princess Cake were a little dry.  The Malted Chocolate was too rich for me.  I loved the Devil’s Food the most.  The buttercream frosting was light and delicious.  To get a quote, we decided on Devil’s Food with strawberry (fresh strawberries mixed with jam) filling.  Click here for a list of their flavors plus descriptions.

Customer Service
I haven’t really dealt much with their customer service.  But it took them 3 days to reply to my initial inquiry.

Additional Info
It’s hard to find Sin Desserts coz there’s no big sign on the store.  It is located in a building at the corner of Allens Ave and Public St.  Park in the parking lot with the wrought iron fence at the corner of the intersection.  The entrance to Sin Desserts is on the first floor by the mailboxes of the building across the parking lot.

Price Quote
Jen was supposed to email us the price quote a few days after our tasting.  But we already found our baker the day after so I wasn’t able to get the quote.  It was my fault, I should have waited for the price quote first.  But their prices started at $4/slice.

Other Bakers
Cake Tasting #2: Corby Cakes and Cookies, Cranston RI
Cake Tasting #3: Diane’s Delectables, Warwick RI
Cake Tasting #4: Konditor Meister, Braintree MA
Cake Tasting #5: Montilio’s Bakery, Quincy MA