We loved having our wedding here! All of our relatives loved it, people have been sending us pictures of the art inside since the wedding. It was a really comfortable place to host an interracial wedding if that's something you're looking for, while at the same time my religiously conservative grandmother still thought it was cute. I'd highly recommend hosting an event at the ranch to others.

This venue almost speaks for itself! As soon as you walk into this space, you can't help but to smile. Everything is so sunny, happy and quirky. There is a definite retro feel to the space. Needless to say, this venue is for the offbeat couple! The more formal Bridezilla need not apply here. All of our guests could not stop talking about how awesome they thought Catalyst was. They commented on how it almost felt like we were having the reception at our home as opposed to a rented facility! That is how intimate it felt. Paulette was such a pleasure to work with. She was extremely responsive before, during and after our contract with Catalyst. She was very helpful in helping us with vendor recommendations and giving us tips early on in our wedding planning process. She was acting almost as our unofficial wedding planner for a while. She was patient with us as we asked endless questions and was extremely flexible with our requests. We are threatening to have a large one-year anniversary party just so we can go party at Catalyst again. Book them now!

Catalyst Ranch was my dream reception hall.
I am not a traditional person so this place was perfect!
My husband and I didn't want to spend tons of money on decorations that no one would remember, so when we met with Paulette at the venue we loved it immediately. The walls are all brightly colored, there are games and toys, costumes, big couches, and tables from the 40s, 50s and 60s. It was perfect for us.

If you want a wedding that is more about having fun and celebrating your marriage than centerpieces and candelabras this is the place for you.

It was honestly the perfect wedding.

We were looking for something unique for our wedding and catalyst was exactly that. Directly off the expressway and with convenient parking it was very accessible for our guests too. Krissy was a breeze to work with and all their staff was friendly. Thank you for helping to make our day memorable for us and our guests for years to come!

Catalyst Ranch is by far the most unique and fun place to hold a wedding reception in Chicago. My husband found their site online and once we took a look at the space our minds were made up. It's hard to describe in words just how special this place is. You really have to go there and see the space for yourself.

We worked with Paulette who is a true professional and so great to work with, but everyone we met there has the same great attitude so I think whoever you work with will be just as great.

If you're looking for an elegant reception hall, this is probably not for you. But if you want your guests to have an amazing time they'll remember forever and more importantly that you'll remember forever, book this space.

We held both our ceremony and reception here on the 4th floor - The Jitterbug and the Mambo rooms - and it was a perfect size for our 90 guests. The Ranch has a preferred caterer list and can help recommend all vendors as they work with many.

The place is a little on the pricey side, we were lucky to book the space before they raised their rates, but in comparison to any other loft spaces, hotel ballroom, or other event hall in Chicago, it is actually a great value. No decoration is needed at all. They have all the furniture, which is amazing mismatched vintage, and they'll take care of just about anything you need or point you in the direction of who can help you. They have so much experience with what they do, you'll have nothing to worry about the day of the event.

I can't emphasize enough just how much fun your guests will have. The rooms have all kinds of old vintage knick knacks and wigs and costumes for your guests to get into, which by the end of the night, or at the very beginning of the night for us, you'll find your friends and family knee deep in, which made for some amazing photos!

I enjoyed every minute of our time working with the staff of Catalyst Ranch and hope that we get to attend another event there although I don't know if it will match the amazing time we had on the day of our wedding.

Thanks everyone at CR for all your help to make our day so special!

Alissa

This was an incredibly awesome place to have a reception! It is a large loft-type space that is loaded with in multi-cultural decor. There are several different rooms with different styles, that I believe fit up to 150 people. Check our their website to see their photos, and if this is your style, I would highly recommend them. They are very easy to work with, the woman who helped me to plan my reception was very helpful... her name was Paulette. They are very flexible and their staff is very friendly. The cost is very good and cheaper than the other places I checked out to have the reception in the city. The only problem I encountered was that the woman who was helping me to plan the reception left to go back to school before my wedding, so my planner was changed... I was stuck in limbo for a little while, but it did not affect the reception at all... overall, highly recommended!