For eight years the Admiral Nelson Ball has been held here at the Fullerton Ballroom, an historical site built back in the 1920s. We use the ballroom which easily accommodates about one hundred period dancers and has areas on both sides of the room which give those seated there unfettered access to the view. The Amerige Room, just a few steps away, is perfect for serving finger food. We especially appreciate the small room off the lobby for ladies to change into their period attire. The staff at the ballroom is easy to work with and very friendly.

We booked the hall for my son’s wedding shower in May 2019. The event hosted about 50 guests. The facility was partitioned into three main, connected spaces: the main hall, the lobby, and the kitchen.

Main hall. The main hall is a large room with a sturdy wood floor (perfect for dancing), very high ceiling (maybe 20 feet), abundant chandeliers for lighting, a small stage, and cushioned seating along the sides. The room was equipped with an amplified audio system that boomed music from our mobile devices – attached using a mini-jack. We also used a wireless hand-held microphone that was great for communicating to our noisy guests across such a large space. We set up eight tables for our guests and two tables for food, and still had lots of free open space for moving around.

Lobby. The lobby is attached to the main hall through two large doors at the back of the hall. It is carpeted, spacious and proved to be a welcoming space for our arriving guests. The lobby is equipped with a bar made out of substantial hardwood and was an attractive spot for guests lean against and fill up on beer, wine and soft drinks. The hired bartender had plenty of room to store his supplies of drinks, cups, tapper, and ice. Yea, the lobby had a nice feel. And because of this, I would recommend that your pre-meal hors d'oeuvres and snacks be placed in the lobby, and not in the main hall.

Restrooms. Very clean and spacious Men’s and Women’s restrooms are attached to the lobby.

Kitchen. The kitchen is across a corridor at the corner of the front of the hall. This short corridor basically is the landing for the back entrance to the facility. Stairs and elevator dump onto the corridor and, voila, there is the kitchen too. The kitchen isn’t large. It’s about the size the kitchen in your house. Maybe a bit smaller. It is equipped with lots of counter space for conducting food operations. There is a standard refrigerator, and sink. The small size of the kitchen was the only “not great” feature of the facility. Still, all food-related operations proceeded without a hitch.

Loading and unloading. There is a “loading Zone” (yellow curb) directly adjacent to the back entrance of the building. Up to two vehicles can park there. This was very convenient for loading/unloading gear, food, and drinks. The path to the hall from the loading zone is very direct – from the loading zone, enter the building, then the stairs and the elevator are right there. Go to the second floor and land just outside the kitchen.

Parking. It is free to park in lots near the facility. This hall is located in a spot in Fullerton that is very popular for nightlife activities. There is a bunch of clubs, restaurants, and pubs in the immediate vicinity. As a result, we found that getting a parking spot close to the hall… well it didn’t happen. So we found parking easily enough in the nearby city parking structure (free), and in the lot near the train station (free). Since the parking lots and parking structure are very well lit at night, and since there was bubbly activity of people out for the evening, we always felt safe as we walked to our car late at night.

Train station. One additional item to consider. The hall is located across the parking lot from the Fullerton train station. Depending on the timing of your event, your guests might want to consider riding the Amtrak or the Metrolink to your event. But remember to confirm train schedules because weekend schedules are different from weekday schedules.

Finally, we found this hall to be a classy, attractive and feature-filled venue that supported all our activities, including socializing, dining, program presentation, music, and dancing. Logistics were easily supported by the adjacent loading zone, stairs, elevator and kitchen. We would definitely book this facility again if we had the need. In the meantime, I highly recommend it to anyone in need of a spacious facility to host your important social gatherings.

The Fullerton Ballroom was the perfect wedding venue for our reception! We rented the entire second floor and had our cocktail hour in the main lobby while our bridal party was taking pictures. We had 170 guests attend our wedding. The side tables, on each side of the main ballroom, were a unique feature that our guests loved. It seated about 50 guests and made our reception much more intimate, as our guests were facing in toward the center of the room. With this set up, we were still able to have a good size dance floor. This was important to us because our guests LOVE to dance and party! The Amerige Room, next to the main ballroom, was perfect for our buffet style dinner. The lobby felt very cozy. Our guests were able conversate and mingle when they were not in the main events room. The main ballroom was a favorite feature of the venue. Additional decorations, such as flowers, lights, and drapery, were not needed. The venue has so much character all on its own. Like I said before, my people love to party. At the end our reception, we invited all our guests to come to Downtown Fullerton to continue the party. I would say about 25% of our guests came out with us to continue the celebration and it was so easy to head straight downstairs to the bar on the first floor. If you have always dreamed of having your reception in a historical venue, don’t pass up this place. Many thanks to the Fullerton Ballroom for hosting our wedding reception, it was a magical day that we will never forget!