H&J Hospitality was formed in 2005 and began with the purchase of the Ithaca landmark, Joe's Restaurant, a popular eatery and gathering place since 1932. The new owner, Jamie Ciaschi, set out to build a food and beverage corporation using Joe's Restaurant as the base from which H&J Hospitality would eventually grow. In 2008, H&J Hospitality began its catering business by hosting a Cornell University fraternity formal at the Museum of the Earth. Since that time they have grown into one of the largest caterers in the Finger Lakes region. In 2009, H&J Hospitality entered into a catering contract with the Johnson School at Cornell University, which has become a cornerstone of their catering business.
Once H&J Hospitality stabilized the catering business, they quickly tapped into the wedding market, which has proven to be the biggest customer base that they serve. Continuing to grow, H&J Hospitality entered into an agreement with Cayuga County to be the exclusive operator of the Emerson Park Pavilion on the tip of Owasco Lake in Auburn, NY in 2011. In June of 2012, Emerson Park Pavilion completed its $4 million renovation. In the same month, H&J Hospitality began operation of the Emerson Park Pavilion and hosts approximately 90 events each year at this facility.
In 2017 H&J Hospitality added a new property to their collection of event locations, The Lansing Events Center. This property will house the H&J Hospitality corporate offices and will be one of Ithaca's premier outdoor event facilities. After extensive renovations, this property will begin hosting events in the spring of 2018.
Over the years, H&J Hospitality has established relationships with many local venues that host events and have catered at almost every facility in the Ithaca area that allows outside events and catering.
Our Company Philosophy:
• Full service caterer that has the flexibility to meet the needs of virtually every customer
• We make every customer feel special and unique regardless of the occasion or event
• We are a one stop shop caterer that can coordinate every aspect of your event
• Experience and capability to handle multiple large-scale events simultaneously
• Our systems and standards allow us to provide impeccable execution of every event
Recommended by 96% of couples
5 User photos
Kaitlin · Married on 09/19/2015
Dustin was amazing to work with from start to finish for our wedding. He was very responsive and helpful and accommodating. He organized all of the table and linen rentals and is very knowledgable. He and his staff did a great job the evening of our wedding despite a huge rainstorm. All of our guests raved about the food. We are very glad we went with H&J!
Jacqueline · Married on 07/14/2018
H&J Catering is a wonderful wedding catering business!
Sent on 09/14/2018
After my husband and I had chosen The Farmers Market in Ithaca, NY as our wedding venue, we were looking for caterers who could provide food and drinks for our wedding reception. After searching for several months with a particular budget in mind, we chose H&J catering because they offered the full package of buffet, open bar, and table decorations within our personal price range.
Highlights of H&J Catering:
The Coordinator: Rene Peckham was organized, attentive, and enthusiastic about our wedding plans and went above and beyond my expectations for a caterer. Rene made sure my husband I ate: she and other waiter served both of personally at our wedding. In addition to her and and her staff always being coordinated and on the ball, she worked very well with the photographer and DJ to keep everything flowing smoothly. She was supportive and enthusiastic about each aspect of the planning and made our day easy, fun, and magical.
Decor: The decorations made the market look very elegant. Rene added a hanging sheet to a booth, so that I had somewhere to hide before walking down the aisle.
Buffet: The food was excellent: there were three main entrees and various sides. H&J Catering did a wonderful job of accommodating unique food allergies (and all of their food is nut free). After dinner there was coffee and tea (we brought a tier cake from Wegmans).
Transitions: The transitions from ceremony to cocktail hour, and on to dinner, were so smooth many guests later commented they didn’t realize the changes were happening. The whole event went very smoothly thanks to Rene and the catering staff!
Flexibility: We never felt pressured to spend more money on extra menu items, and Rene was very accommodating when we decided to bring our own cake.
We are so pleased with our choice to have Rene and the H&J Catering staff at our wedding. 100% recommend H&J! Thank you Rene for making our wedding day magical!
H & J Hospitality's reply:
Laura · Married on 07/06/2018
I can't say enough good things about H&J--and especially Rene who was our "day of" coordinator. I put that in quotes because we were planning from afar and she really made the entire experience and planning process so easy. She also made sure that the decor and vision I had all came together. The food was all great--cocktail hour, apps, salads, and entrees. Thank you to the whole team--I would highly recommend H&J!!!
Sent on 07/22/2018
H & J Hospitality's reply:
H & J Hospitality Price Rates
1 Endorsement
I've had the pleasure of working with H&J Hospitality at both the Ithaca Yacht Club and Emerson Park Pavilion. My experience with them has been exceptional each time. Adrienne has been easy to contact and always very accommodating and easy to work with. The service they provide is second to none and the facilities they service are among the finest in the Fingerlakes region. You can be confident you will be well cared for in their hands!
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