Cocktail receptions are the latest trend for weddings and its popularity is growing with couples that are looking to find an alternative to the traditional wedding reception. With all of the options available to you with this style of wedding, you are free to make it as simple or extravagant as you would like, without ever lacking elegance. There are no rules pertaining to what should or should not be included in this type of reception, there fore your celebration can be as formal or casual as you would like it to be. In other words, the Cocktail Style is really all about choices and options. It is about creating a reception unique to the couple’s style and preferences.

The Ceremony:
Tralee wedding facility is a stunning country estate set on 140 acres in the Caledon hills. The property offers many breathtaking sites for the ceremony, including weeping willow trees, rustic gazebos, and a picturesque pond (complete with white swans!). At Tralee’s entrance, our staff stand waiting to greet your guests and offer direct them to the ceremony site. To top it off, the bride is brought to the ceremony site by horse and carriage. During the ceremony there is the option of a water station, great for those warm summer days, and after the ceremony you have the option of having a champagne toasting. With a cocktail style reception, the ceremony is typically held in the late afternoon, early evening, but since the property is yours for the day you can feel free to hold the ceremony whenever you like!

The Reception:
The Cocktail Style wedding typically runs for 5 to 6 hours, starting in the evening around 6 or 7pm. The benefit of a cocktail style wedding is found in the atmosphere it creates: there are no seating arrangements, leaving the guests free to mingle and enjoy the social setting. The cocktail style wedding also allows for a larger guest count since we usually set up seating for about 30% of the guests. With this considered, we are able to host 235 guests in our main hall.

Food Service:
The greatest thing about choosing a cocktail style reception is that the options are endless, and there are no specific rules to adhere to when it comes to this type of reception. This makes it easy to create a reception to match all of your unique needs and desires:

• Canapé service starts after the ceremony and continues for two hours. At this time the wedding party will be taking photos while their guests enjoy canapé and beverage service. You have your choice of 6 canapés.
• In addition to canapé service, you can select 4 hor d’oeuvres platters to be set out for the first two hours
• Following the canapés and platters would be the Food Stations. Here, you have your option of 2 meats for the Carving Station, 2 pastas for the Pasta Station, and 2 seafood or fish selections for the Seafood Station. Depending on the number of guests you will have at your reception, you may choose to offer only one, two, or all three food stations. There is also always the option of a Sushi Bar station.
• The dessert station will follow the food stations and we recommend a selection of 4 desserts. This station will be served for a 1 to2 hour time frame.

Beverage Service:
Bar service runs for the full 5 to 6 hours of the reception.

• There are two options in terms of beverage service: You may choose to go with a Host Bar or a Cash Bar.
• A lot of couples who have chosen to have a Cocktail Style reception also chose to have a Martini Bar! If you are looking for something a little more elaborate and exciting, we would love to provide an ice sculpture for your reception which actually chills the martini as it runs through it. Always a favorite, the Martini Bar and ice sculpture is an option that will make your wedding all the more unique.