1000 percent happy with the Betty Reckas Cultural Center. It is definitely a well priced hidden gem in Long Beach. You can bring in your own booze (liquor too!) Jeremy Smith was our catering manager and he was great. We also had Loren as our banquet server, make sure to ask for him specifically as he was so incredibly attentive and kind. The Betty is so beautiful on the inside, you'd never know it was over in the area it is located in. Every time we told someone, no one had heard of it. Our guests were so impressed with it's beauty. They also just redid the bathrooms and they look amazing as well.

The food was incredible. We didn't give the guests a choice of dish, we went with the balsamic roasted chicken/mashed potatoes/baby carrots. I cannot even tell you how many compliments we had on the entire dish, how moist the chicken was, how the baby carrots were amazing. We also opted to serve buttercake and mini donuts as a dessert. Obviously as the bride I didn't get to try it haha, but my guests raved about it the entire weekend.

The only thing I would mention (and I'm not even mad about it) is that you should have a conversation with the bar about making sure the drinks are not overpoured. We ran out at the end- still had enough beer and wine to cover but we had to send a cousin to the store! Everyone was cool so not really a problem but we thought (and our coordinators agreed) we really had over purchased liquor.

It really was an amazing experience and if I had to do it all over again, I would pick the Betty every time!

Beautiful setting and quite location.

My husband and I could not be any happier that we chose this venue. Here is what we loved:

- Price: there is a fee of $1,550 for Saturday events (which includes the security guards, setup, cleanup, cake, basic linens, etc.). After looking at so many venues & the outrageous fees they charged just for using their space, it was nice to come across a venue like Betty Reckas, where the site fee included so much more than other venues. Their meal packages ranged from $50-80/person and we had the option to bring in our own alcohol, which helped in saving us a bit of money.

- Venue size / ambiance – this place is huge! We ended up with about 150 guests and there was more than enough space for everyone. During cocktail hour, our guests mingled in the foyer area where the bar is and a little outdoor/patio area on the side of the building, where the mariachi we hired was stationed. The main ballroom have high ceilings, four chandeliers and a large fireplace. You really don’t need a lot of décor to make this place look amazing. We used the tables, chairs and place settings that the venue provided, which worked fine with our décor. We got the uplighting as part of the package with our DJ and it added nicely to the ambience of the place

- Food - you have to use TGIS to cater your events at this place. For appetizers, we had pork belly tacos, lobster sake shooters and bruschetta. For dinner, we chose the standard buffet with tri-tip, Mediterrenean chicken, wild rice and veggies. Everyone especially loved the appetizers! My husband and I thought that the tri tip was a little dry, but overall our guests enjoyed the food.

- Service - the day of my wedding, our other vendors commented on how easy it was to work with the staff at Betty Reckas. Our banquet manager was very attentive and Jeremy was great to work with during the planning process as well.

I encourage anyone to check this place out! The venue was gorgeous. Everyone is still raving about our wedding. TGIS is the exclusive caterer and will be reviewed separately. The venue site is in a lot with a Greek church and the adjoining gym. It had a whole parking lot dedicated to those using the venue (we didn't see anyone using the church or gym the day of). The place had a gorgeous bar and foyer, high ceilings, great wainscoting and a gorgeous fireplace and piano. Also a little bridal room for us to keep our personal items.

I had initially wanted an outdoor wedding and was never a ballroom-type gal, but boy am I glad we found this gem.

AMAZING venue. Awesome alcohol policy. Fantastic service... just incredible.

We fell in love with our venue as soon as we saw it. We wanted to stay near the LB area, but wanted a classy, indoor (since we had a January wedding) ceremony and reception location. Jeremy and the TGIS Staff were wonderful and extremely helpful throughout the wedding planning process. During the entire wedding day, the staff was present, made the set-up a breeze, and attentive to the guest and the bridal party needs (we didn\'t even have to ask!). I was thrilled to see they packed my husband and I \"to-go\" meals since we didn\'t eat much at the actual reception. I discovered throughout the planning process that having one vendor for location, food, linens, cake, chairs, etc. was much easier than needing to contact a long list full of vendors. I highly recommend TGIS and the Betty Reckas Cultural Center.

The Betty reckas cultural center is such a beautiful place! We didn't want to use a hotel facility so we opted for a more elegant and personal reception hall which was the Betty reckas!

The venue is absolutely gorgeous. You can have an outdoor ceremony, like I did, but I've seen beautiful pictures of indoor ceremonies as well. The reception building, which includes the bar, foyer, and ballroom are beautiful and elegant. I feel in love.

The price definitely is a great value, but just note that when you book this venue you must use TGIS at the caterer. We enjoyed working with our event manager, Jeremy. We let him know what we wanted and he did his best for us. He was also very available via email to respond to questions. The catering was delicious! We highly recommend the wedge salad. My husband doesn't particularly care for salads and usually let me take the lead in decision making, but he was pretty adamant about making sure we had that salad. The filet mignon and provencial chicken options were good as well. My husband's grandmother said it was the best steak she'd ever had. They're also open to your thoughts on food and different styles, flavors, etc. The TGIS staff the day of the event was amazing as well. Not only were they great with our guests, but they were great with my husband and me as well, making sure we got to taste our h'or deouvres, had drinks, ate as much as we wanted, etc. I wasn't expecting that level of service, but I was glad we got it!

The Betty Reckas is located at the Assumption Greek Orthodox Church in Long Beach. If you're interested, TGIS is the company to reach out to, not the church. As a bride, when I was searching, I though, "what is this place?" But I highly recommend checking it out because I think it's a hidden gem.

The reasons why we chose this venue:
-Affordable pricing for site fee and catering
-Bring your own alcohol
-Seating for up to 300 guests
-Nice modern décor/ambiance outside in the courtyard and inside the ballroom
-Free secured parking

I was really hoping for an outdoor ceremony but it rained on my wedding day. The ceremony was moved into the ballroom and it actually turned out beautifully. It felt warm, inviting and intimate which was perfect for a winter wedding.

We worked with Jeremy from TGIS who was great. The venue has a lot of character and is clean and neat, adding lounge furniture makes it cozy. Love how the bar is outside the reception room. We had 135 guests and there was plenty of extra space to move around. Our only complaint about the venue itself was the bathrooms really need a facelift.