Children's Museum of Pittsburgh Reviews

The MuseumLab was an absolutely incredible backdrop for our wedding! We booked this venue during covid and they went out of their way to give us a tour of the space over zoom before we decided. That’s just one of the ways Allyson and her team went out of their way to make this process as seamless as possible. I must have sent dozens of emails with questions and Allyson responded to them all within a day. She also coordinated the arrival and set up of all our other vendors and make sure our rehearsal ran smoothly. Throughout the night, Allyson worked with us to accommodate any last minute adjustments and timing changes. I received so many comments from our guests about how beautiful and unique the space was, and the separate spaces for the ceremony and reception helped make each part of the event really special!

My husband and I did the Perfectly Paired Pop-Up wedding at Museum Labs. This venue was absolutely gorgeous! Our event took place in the Assembly Hall and the Gathering Space. The entire location is amazing for pictures, there is so much character here! I loved the exposed brick. The room where our ceremony took place was brick with beautiful windows giving so much natural light and made for amazing pictures. The room was beautiful enough, all we needed was the arch with florals. We worked with Jenna from MuseumLabs and she was wonderful! She was so helpful and responsive! I would 100% recommend this beautiful venue to everyone, especially if there is another Pop-Up wedding here!

We were scheduled to have our wedding in the beautiful MuseumLab space in May of 2020. We unfortunately ended up postponing and eventually cancelling due to COVID-19. However, I still wanted to give a shout out to Jenna at the MuseumLab for her flexibility and understanding throughout the process. My fiancé and I were both super impressed by her preparedness and organization at our first meeting to tour the space, and we leave the experience feeling even more impressed by her compassion and graciousness when we were forced to postpone and cancel. The building is stunning, spacious, and filled with character, but the real reason to book the MuseumLab for your wedding is the fabulous customer service.

We scheduled to use Museumlab (of Children's Museum) for both our ceremony and our reception. However, covid happened and everything had to be cancelled. I felt compelled to still leave a review for the experience we had with the employees of Museumlab (Specifically Jenna). Throughout the emotional roller coaster that is cancelling your wedding, Jenna always responded quickly and with kindness that was so appreciated. Although her company was suffering, it felt as though she was on our side and was not judgmental for the decisions we made. She was always patient and empathetic for our situation. Although this is not a typical review for a wedding venue (when the wedding actually happens hahah!), I hope it provides alternative insight. I would 100% want Jenna and Museumlab in my corner for the times it goes right, and the times it doesn't.

We were the first wedding reception at the MuseumLab and we were confident that it was going to be wonderful. Jenna, the event coordinator, was a pleasure to work with throughout the whole planning experience. She was always available to have a meeting, go over the agenda for the reception, and layout of the space. We chose to use all three levels of the space: first floor for the cocktail hour and first dance, second floor for the dancing, cookie table, and La Prima coffee table, and the third floor for the dinner. We loved that we had the option to use the whole MuseumLab for our wedding reception. The space is so unique and we loved the look of the walls, and how it was left in, "ruins." It has a lot of character and gives you a sense of what the space was. The Grable Gallery was were we chose to have our first dance and it was so amazing! The floor is original and the ceiling features a laser cut fabric inspired by the original stained glass. Guests loved having the cocktail hour on the first floor, there were games, a photo booth, lots of exhibits to explore. Having dinner on the third floor was also really special, we had about 110 guests and it was a perfect size space for that amount of people. We did a kings table for the bridal party and significant others, plus round tables. The windows and brick walls were a perfect backdrop. The second floor was such a great space for a dance floor, it features a high ceilings and an option for the guests on the third floor to watch the dancing from the balcony. We had such a blast dancing the night away. Guests that didn't like to dance were able to go back to the first floor and continue interacting with the exhibits.
Overall the MuseumLab exceeded our expectations for our reception. Even though it was the first reception, it didn't feel like that. The staff were wonderful and kept the night moving smoothly. I would recommend this space to anyone that is looking for a fun, unique space with lots of character that allows guests to do more than the typical cocktail hour. Every floor of the MuseumLab is amazing. I am so glad we chose MuseumLab for our wedding reception!

Eric and Jenna couldn't have been more helpful! The wedding was perfect. I would recommend them to one and all.

Went to a wedding here absolutely beautiful

WOW. They were incredible. Jenna is a dream to work with. Every single person we interacted with at the museum was wonderful, even the security guards! We were so taken care of and really loved the beautiful big red room. It was perfect for our wedding, and tons of dancing. Jenna really made our day stress-free and seamless, they took care of everything and the room was perfect. We also loved the ability to bring our own alcohol, it was us a lot of $ and gave us the flexibility we wanted to make our own bar for our friends.

We had booked several venues to look at, but were so pleased with our tour at the Children's Museum that we booked it instantly. Their on-site coordinator, Jenna, was incredible to work with and we felt like we had lots of options to choose from, space-wise, as well as with their multiple caterer choices. We had a smaller wedding, so we used the theatre in the basement for our ceremony and then held the reception in the Big Red Room. Because they do so many weddings, they were ready at our walk through with lots of options and ideas about how to best set up the space, but were completely open to any changes that we wanted to make. We got full run of the museum for photos before and after, which made for some great photo opps in the exhibits. (Do remember that they are a working museum and exhibits change often- we had some early photo ideas that didn't pan out because the exhibits were rotated, but the new ones were great!) We rented the photo booth, which was well worth it- they customized the photo strips with our wedding logo and sent us a thumb drive of all of the photos from the night soon after the wedding. Being able to buy our own alcohol was a major cost advantage over several other venues we had on our list, because we got some bulk discounts and then just delivered it at the rehearsal and the vendor's bartenders handled the rest. If you want to book here, I would recommend contacting them as early as possible- we had 14 months to plan and they were almost booked for traditional wedding season when we toured.

I can not say enough positive things about the Children's Museum staff!! Our wedding was such a success!! Everyone loved the venue-it was so much fun! The staff (especially Jenna) was extremely nice, attentive, and accommodating. They did everything they could to ensure that we had a wonderful wedding and that everything went smoothly. I honestly couldn't have imagined a better day! Thank you so much to the museum and staff for giving us everything we ever dreamed of!

The Children's Museum is a fantastic venue. We had our wedding ceremony in the Old Post Office/Studio, cocktail hour in the entry space, and dinner and dancing in the Buhl/ Big Red Room. Jenna and the CMP staff were helpful and attentive from minute one. They were very flexible and allowed us to make a few deliveries of equipment, food, and beverages at different times- a huge help- and all details were attended to quickly and with thoughtfulness. We elected to bring in our own beer and wine- this was very important to us, since we're beer snobs/enthusiasts! Before the ceremony, we had a nice, private space downstairs to hang out with family. Again, Jenna and the staff were wonderful- they took great care of us, the ceremony and reception went very smoothly, and most importantly, we had a wonderful wedding! The CMP is such a neat venue- historic and modern, elegant and fun, and it's wonderful asset for Pittsburgh.

Jenna and Julia are absolutely amazing! They helped us in executing every detail of our wedding reception. They are extremely easy to get in touch with, very friendly, and extremely professional. We met in-person as well as communicated via e-mail to work out the details of the wedding (e.g., table arrangements, photo booth placement, etc.). Having ample parking for all guests was also a plus. We used the Big Red Room for our reception and it looked fabulous. We highly recommend working with the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh for your wedding!

The Children's Museum is fantastic place to get married if you are looking for a unique, spirited venue in Pittsburgh. It really is a special place as the building has so much character and flair. My now husband and I fell in love with it immediately upon our first visit, and we were thrilled we selected the museum for our wedding/reception since it reflected us as a couple. We received numerous complements from our guests of how fun and unique the museum space was. Jenna, the event coordinator, was fantastic and super helpful with every question and detail I had. I was planning from out of town, so I appreciated how she was very organized and so easy to work with. The Children's Museum staff was also very friendly, and they were quick with both the set up and break down of the wedding. We had a great time at our wedding and would definitely recommend the museum.

If you are looking for a fun and funky place to have your event, the Children's Museum is definitely the place. For our wedding, we rented out the bottom floor of the museum and were able to take pictures throughout the entire museum. Our guests absolutely LOVED the space and so did we!

Everything flowed so smoothly thanks to the the help of Jenna Shucknecht and her staff. Jenna and I emailed countless times to set up exact floor plans, go through timing, and through all the the little details. I was planning the wedding from out of town so she was always accommodating to squeeze in time to see me on my visits to Pittsburgh. She is incredibly easy going and professional.

On the day of the wedding, her staff helped set up the museum absolutely perfectly. Our friends and family loved the art stations that you can set up (for no extra charge!) and photo booth that the Children's Museum provides.

I highly recommend checking out the Children's Museum for a special event!

This was definitely THE fun venue for a special occasion. What a unique space! Everything was fantastic and the staff was accommodating, organized and professional. I cannot say enough about the event! THANKS for providing a memorable wedding!

The Children's Museum of Pittsburgh exceeded our expectations as the venue for our wedding. Jenna, the special events coordinator, is a joy to work with. She is responsive, without bothering you about every little detail. I didn't worry about anything concerning the venue on the day our our reception because I knew Jenna and the staff of the Children's Museum had it all taken care of.

The venue is so classy and different than any hotel ballroom you will find. Our guests loved the photobooth and silly faces video board too.

Such a fun place to play on our special day! Thank you so much Jenna and your staff! You guys catered to every whim and made everyone of our guest feel at home

My groom and I really liked the look of the Children's Museum online and from some of the photos of other weddings that had taken place there, but wow, when we saw it in person and met with Jenna, we were sold. I feel like you get SO much for your money having your wedding here (note: we only had our reception here, in the Big Red Room). They include all the tables and chairs! What?! You can (actually have to) buy your own booze—this may be a negative for some people, but it was a HUGE positive for us, as we saved A LOT of money and were able to get exactly what we wanted (like an assortment of beers from Church Brew Works). And, it's so artsy and colorful that it doesn't take much to make the space really spectacular. We kind of catered our colors to the colors of the space and it was really perfect. Also, we had 100 guests, and the size of the space was just right (although you could totally get away with more, I'm sure all the way up to 200). I loved this space and Jenna was so great to work with. A+++ ——— a hidden wedding reception gem!

Jenna was a pleasure to work with. She is very professional, friendly and has so much knowledge, which made it so easy to plan the event. I would recommend the Children's Museum and consider holding another event there. Thank you for everything Jenna!

I threw a surprise 30th birthday party in the Warehouse/Garage Exhibit at The Childrens Museum of Pittsburgh for my boyfriend and it couldn't have been more wonderful! Jenna, the event coordinator, was extremely helpful and a delight to work with! She really catered to my needs and the rest of the staff was just as great! Everyone helped play along with the surprise and it will be a night that everyone will talk about for a long time! I didn't have to worry about setting or cleaning up the event and I could enjoy my time with all of the guests. I would highly recommend using the Childrens Museum of Pittsburgh to anyone who is looking for a unique venue for their next event! You won't be disappointed!

I had the distinct pleasure of attending an adult birthday party at the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh. It had to be one of the best nights of my life. What an awesome venue to have an event and the staff is out of this world. If you are planning an event soon - children or adult - please consider the Children's Museum. You will be blown away!

Our September 2018 wedding at the Children's Museum felt like we were in a movie. Our guests still can't stop talking about what a unique and beautiful reception venue it was. I wanted to find a venue that was gorgeous on its own without needing too many decorations, and that would look great in photos. The Big Red Room definitely checked off all of those boxes. (There are so many cool spots both inside and outside of the museum for bridal party pictures too!) I haven't seen all of our professional photos yet but even the ones guests snapped on smartphones are stunning. A good chunk of friends have changed their social media profile pics to shots of them from that night so I know it's real :)
Working with Jenna and Eric was a dream. They were always quick to respond and answered every one of my questions with kindness and understanding. You can tell they are pros! On the day of they were extremely helpful with putting out those little fires that tend to pop up at every wedding (like moving the card box last minute so more people can find it, exchanging an escort card because I spelled someone's name wrong, ha). Any little fire that came up was entirely on me btw, Jenna and Eric and their staff were flawless.
The only thing I would ask the museum to reconsider is maybe some of the preferred vendors they work with. We ended up having to fire our first caterer for being inflexible and frankly insulting at times. Save yourself the headache and just go with Big Burrito :) Big Burrito literally saved our big day and almost a month later I am still getting compliments on the food. You only have one option for linen rental here too and I really wasn't too impressed with what the company had so I ended up using the Museum's plain black table clothes and adjusting my centerpieces to fill up more of the space rather than renting a runner or overlay I hated.
But at the end of the day, the Children's Museum was worth every penny. Wouldn't change a thing!

Our wedding at the Children’s Museum was amazing! The museum is one of kind and everything about the venue and working with the event coordinator, Jenna, exceeded my expectations. The modern yet classy Big Red Room is absolutely stunning and the museum has tons of fabulous photo opportunities both inside and out. We had our ceremony in the art studio, cocktail hour in the lobby and reception in the Big Red Room. The rooms accommodated 120 guests easily. Jenna was FANTASTIC to work with. She is super sweet, very responsive and has great ideas! She helped us think outside the box to make our vision come to life and made the planning process stress free, took care of the details and communicated directly with our caterer. Jenna was there to make sure everything went smoothly and that my husband and I were taken care of on our special day. The ceremony had to be moved inside due to rain and the staff transformed the art studio without missing a beat. Our guests loved the fun and colorful ambiance and had a great time using silly faces, which is one of many cool, unique features of the museum. If you can afford the cost for the extra hour I highly recommend it as you will be pressed for time with 4 hours.

We absolutely loved having our ceremony and reception at the Children's Museum. Jenna and the rest of the staff were extremely helpful and we were able to relax and enjoy our wedding day. The venue is very bright and cheerful without being too "kiddish" (for lack of a better word). You have to use All Occasions for rentals but we had a good experience with them. And we were able to use a different vendor, Mosaic, for our linens which had a better selection. As far as caterers, you have an option of 4. We went with Big Catering which is a bit pricey but was absolutely phenomenal! Our guests were raving about the food. And we were able to provide our own alcohol for the wedding which saved us A LOT of money. If I could go back and do it all over again, I wouldn't change a thing!

Jenna, the event planner at the museum, is fantastic. She was very helpful, very professional, and I really felt like she had a handle on everything that was going on. I'm a high strung nut job, so I had things pretty well laid out, but she filled in every missing detail without missing a beat. The big red room is awesome for a reception, and the lobby was perfect for happy hour. We got married in the park, and it was perfect. People have no idea what they're in for when you tell them to attend a wedding at the children's museum; I think some guests were surprised at the casual elegance of the room. The room, the available caterers (all great choices) and the ability to bring in our own booze were the deal makers. I'm obsessed with food, so the food and drink had to be top notch - truly good, not just 'good for a wedding'. We really didn't want your standard hotel ballroom type reception. Not that there is anything wrong with that, but if you want something a bit more...unpretentious but classic, i.e. just a beautiful party for adults, then this is the place. We were considering all of the museums, but I also wanted to get married outside, and this place had it all. Ok, so it isn't perfect though. My biggest complaint is the lack of flexibility, just because it results in extra $$$. Jenna does the best she can, but they are open all weekend, so it limits when you can bring stuff in and when vendors have to get stuff out (results in some large delivery fees). So, discuss schedule in that first meeting. Jenna is very good about letting you bring stuff the day before, and I was able to pick up a few things the day after. Also, you have to firmly decide your end time, and extending it is very expensive (mostly museum expense); we didn't end up needing our extra half hour. Also, the rental bill is huge, negating the savings from bringing your own alcohol. However, in the end, I got everything I wanted with a price tag I could stomach. It was perfect!