Porter Kitchen & Deck

Our experience having our afternoon wedding at the Porter Kitchen and Deck was amazing!

Here were some of the high points:
- Food: They have a varied and delicious menu. They are also very accommodating of food sensitivities and requirements, and were happy to make substitutions at our request.
- Organization: We planned our entire wedding from a different country, and the Porter team (particularly Laura, who organized events) made it quite easy. They were always responsive, and provided exactly the information and feedback that we needed. The day of staff was amazing and helpful throughout the day.
- Location: The Porter is right on the Chicago river. There were boats going by all day, and our guests loved waing to them from the outdoor patio.
- Decor: We did not spend any money on flowers or decorations, because the Porter already looks great. The restaurant is fairly new, so their sleek design feels modern and cool.
- Price: The food and beverage minimum for Porter was significantly lower than similar venues in Chicago. This let us stay in our budget much better than any other place we looked at.

There were only a couple minor issues that weren't really a big problem:
- Parking: There is a parking lot at the building, but guests have to pay ahead online, which was a little tough for the older folks. We eventually had people do this through SpotHero because the parking manager was unresponsive. This is a different company from Porter, so they can't really control it. However the location is very public transit and rideshare friendly, and those people who DID book parking online had a very easy time arriving.
- Schedule: The food did come out slightly off of our designated schedule. The food was out around 10 minutes late and the desserts were put out earlier than we had agreed. This wasn't a huge deal as the desserts were delicious and it worked fine witht he overall schedule. But if you have a very specific minute-by-minute schedule that you want to keep, I would just be very clear with the Porter about that and I am sure they can follow it.

Overall, the Porter is a great wedding choice! They made everything as easy for us as possible, and we ended up with exactly the wedding day we wanted!

We held our rehearsal dinner at Porter Kitchen & Deck and had a great experience. The team there was very helpful with answering all of our questions and helping us fill out a menu for the evening. The restaurant has a nice atmosphere and the food exceeded our expectations. We had a great evening here!