Vendor Review: La Scala Italian Bistro, Dublin, Ohio

As you may remember from previous posts, choosing a venue for our reception was tough. I do a little event planning for my day job and consider myself more than capable of throwing a catered dinner for ~150. I also had a good idea of what one should cost. I was floored by how much the word WEDDING increased the prices of every venue and menu. Oh well. We struggled with it, but made some tough choices and in the end made a great decision.

We chose La Scala Italian Bistro in Dublin, Ohio. We came to our decision based on the following factors:


Price: La Scala's pricing was all-inclusive. There were no additional charges for the room, set-up or the event coordinator. Additionally, their food prices were very reasonable and we received a large discount for our off-season wedding. Their open bar prices were relatively high, but everything balanced out and still saved us money. 
Atmosphere: The restaurant has two large reception rooms, both recently renovated and lovely enough that decor was unnecessary (if we didn't want any :).
Ease: Did I mention an event coordinator was included in the price? How awesome is that?
Reputation: La Scala is a well-known, family owned restaurant. We felt that having a restaurant relying on consistent business gives them a greater incentive to throw a great party. Wedding guests who have a great time and love the food are more likely to return to the restaurant for dinner, right?

So, how did it work out in the end? Perfectly. Seriously.

Kathy, the event coordinator, was amazing. She met with us a handful of times before the wedding, answered emailed questions promptly and made it clear that her job was to execute our vision. We dropped our decor off the Thursday before our wedding and the dessert off the morning of. She had everything set up perfectly and kept the party running smoothly.

The food was FANTASTIC! I hate the informality of buffets. I also hate tracking everyone's plated meal selection via reply card. Pain! La Scala has a family style buffet that was the perfect combination. Each table received generous portions of every dish we chose so everyone was able to have a little of everything... or a lot! They kept the bowls and plates of food coming! Everything was served hot straight from the restaurant kitchen, not luke warm from chaffing dishes (another pet peeve of buffets....). And it was all delicious as I expected from La Scala. We chose vegetable lasagna, chicken parmesan and prime rib for our main courses and garlic mashed potatoes and zucchini romano for sides. A salad, bread, spumoni ice cream and iced tea were also included in the price. All of it was delicious. The biggest crowd-pleasers were the lasagna and zucchini romano.

Photo credit: Jessica Miller Photography

The space was beautiful.

Photo credit: Jessica Miller Photography

Photo credit: Jessica Miller Photography

Photo credit: Jessica Miller Photography

I don't think any of these pictures do it justice.

And the price was right. We came in right at our budget, no surprises in the bill. Our large, Italian family got a kick out of the restaurant's atmosphere and the fantastic Italian menu.

I think the very best part of it all is that we can go back whenever we want. I see many celebratory dinners enjoyed at La Scala in our future. I see bringing our kids for dinner and telling them, "this is where your mom and dad had their wedding reception." How cool is that?

Good job, La Scala. You've got us for life!

All photos in this post are credited to our fabulous wedding photographer, Jessica Miller Photography.