Banquet Hall Wedding Venues in California

We chose the Seaside room for our ceremony (on the patio) and reception; catered by Ranch Events. The service and food is awesome, we are very pleased we choose that venue. We had Ramon as our day of coordinator and everything turned out perfect with no issues. Highly recommend!

Jeni

5.0 out of 5 rating

5.0

We had our wedding reception here in March 2026 and everything was incredible! It was a quick walk from the Santa Barbara Courthouse, where we had our ceremony. We loved that the venue is naturally stunning with the lighting, tables, chairs, and wood paneling on the walls. It made it easy to not have to worry about those extra rentals. They were so easy to work and communicate with. After I hired my coordinator, she took over communication with La Amada which made it even easier! They worked together well and if there were any hiccups, it was unbeknownst to me. For dinner, we chose the Salmon, Chicken, Caesar Salad, and Asparagus from Little Bird. And for dessert, we chose to do the ice cream sandwiches from Rory’s instead of a cake and that was the star of the show! We are still hearing from our guests about how great the food was. The staff was incredible, they checked on us multiple times throughout the evening (without interrupting or overdoing it) to make sure we had everything we needed… food, drink, water, etc.

tvhadams96

5.0 out of 5 rating

5.0

Great Service! They work with your needs. So happy I chose this venue!

The Pasadena Convention Center is a great venue to consider for your wedding or special event. With so many rooms and different spaces to choose from, there is a space available for you for both small and large receptions. The decor and building is sleek, minimal, clean, and modern, which serves as a good clean palette for you to bring in a lot of different florals, lighting, and rentals, so you can go either way with design whether its saturated with color, or just kept clean and simple. The staff is also great, their responsiveness is quick and professional and the staff is very on top of things. From booking, to planning your wedding, to the execution on the day-of your event, they are responsive and quick to action. As a planner, and also a guest who has attended events at this venue, it is a great value and the food is also really great too! I highly recommend it for any wedding reception, corporate party, or special event!

Stephanie

4.8 out of 5 rating

4.8

The coordinators were amazing to work with! They're responsive, kind, and easy to communicate with. The venue itself was absolutely beautiful and I had many people comment on the view. Food was good (not as good as dining at the restaurant) but everything was cooked well for a large amount of people. Everything at the wedding went as expected, and I cannot thank Tom Ham's more for an amazing wedding.

BOOK THEM NOW! We can't express how thankful we are to University Club of Pasadena for hosting our dream wedding. My husband and I toured countless venues and the services University Club provides exceeded them all. 1. You get the venue for the entire day! Other venues we toured had strict times we could enter, some even requiring the bride to arrive completely ready because there wasn't a space for HMU. Cinthia was so flexible and even allowed us to arrive at 6AM to begin getting ready! We had a brunch spread with our family/bridal party there, where Cinthia had the staff assist with setting up and tearing down our brunch tables. 2. The bar package is VERY flexible compared to other venues. We noticed that most of the venues we considered have a per-head cost, expensive since some of our elderly don't drink. UC instead allowed us to set a general bar limit, which afterwards they would convert into a cash bar (we didn't end up reaching our limit, but this was a very cost-effective set-up for us). 3. Joy and Tony were incredible at customizing our drinks! Joy had so many creative suggestions for Asian inspired drinks - they allowed us to have multiple taste testings and we landed on a lychee mojito and strawberry soju in a martini glass. We had SO many guests rave about our signature drinks, asking us for the recipes! 4. They went above and beyond for desserts!!!! We were so disappointed when other venues either don't allow outside vendors or have a fee - we're not cake people so we wanted to bring in Fosselman's ice cream instead. Cinthia and Chef Tony not only allowed us to bring in outside ice cream, but even told us that UC regularly serves Fosselman's for the club members so they could provide the ice cream for us instead of us bringing it! We originally wanted an ice cream bar, but they informed us they could only scoop the ice cream from the kitchen and have the waiters pass them around on trays because of their freezer location. However, the week of our wedding, Cinthia called us and said they've figured out a way to create our ice cream bar! It meant so much to us that UC was still trying to figure out a way to have our dream dessert station even though my husband and I were fine with tray-passed ice cream - and SO many guests complimented us for the ice cream station! 5. Cinthia and Chef Tony are very willing to work with you to make sure the entrees are exactly the way you want it! We initially weren't incredibly happy with the salmon during out taste testing, so they had us come in again to try the chicken with another free taste test (this is a huge deal - other venues often charge for taste tests)! They even allowed us to sub mashed potatoes for scalloped potatoes etc. I'll be honest - we thought the food at our taste testing was okay, pretty decent wedding food. BUT the food the night of our wedding was ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!! We had so many guests (some of our guests are even wedding coordinators) compliment us for the food! Multiple parents also said this wedding had the best kid meals they've ever seen with delicious chicken tenders and fries - I had a dad even ask if he could also have a kids meal! Other details that makes UC stand out... - Parking ON SITE with a private lot! - You have the entire building to yourself! - Indoors in case of rain! - I noticed some wedding websites giving UC three dollar signs, but this venue is actually VERY accommodating to your budget with fair prices - 10/10 STAFF. Cinthia, Tony (bar), Tony (chef), and Joy are absolutely amazing to work with!

Bruce

5.0 out of 5 rating

5.0

As the CFO of four companies (including one in food service)…I tend to over-analyze expenditures in a way that makes the bean-counters nervous. I have a slight touch of OCD and examine procurements, labor costs, efficiency, and everything else financial in search of loss and avoidable waste. I tell you this because I consider the selection of a wedding venue to be little more than a business transaction and I do not get emotional in business. I am unlike the standard father-of-the-bride types in this mindset, which will become evident as you read on. Most dads refuse to read the menu from right to left when planning their little girl’s big day. You’ll find my analytical perspective helpful too…stay with me. When I first walked the property at Padua, I was stunned by the incredible romance and beauty of the location. It stood head and shoulders above the crowd in esthetics alone. None of the other venues we checked out could hold a candle to Padua. It is simply perfect. A warm yet impressive hideaway in the hills with magnificent scenic views, a flawless layout of buildings and open space, splendid lighting and décor inside & out, ample parking and is easily navigated to…close to the freeway but far enough you cannot see or hear it. This place is private! The outside world falls away, Padua resides in a setting of solitude and elegance. It is so unique in design and landscaping I cannot imagine a way they could improve it and I was able to do that with every other wedding venue we inspected. No traffic, no noise, no flyovers by planes, no competing with anything the usual wedding venues are compromised by…Padua is an oasis of tranquility. The multiple locations for the wedding ceremony make it ideal, should your special day experience unexpected weather. Padua has back-ups…no risk of wet guests! The main hall is breathtaking once the tables are decorated and the dancefloor is spacious. Lighting options provide an added bonus and Padua offers so many cool options (that are unavailable at other venues) it will take you a while to hear and see them all. Visit on a day you aren’t rushed, you are going to enjoy this. Padua’s staff directed us to vendors for an officiant, cigar bar, florist, cakemaker, photographers, DJ and everything else we needed. These people knew the venue inside-out and in working with the highly diligent Padua staff, had everything running like clockwork. Lemme tell ya, weddings can be stressful but when the operation is this closely monitored and run, there is little anxiety. The special effects worked great, the bartenders were fast, personal and well…gorgeous. The management staff at Padua oversaw everything and everyone, and they did it with a caring, softly spoken confidence that made us feel calm and catered to. And our wedding had a lot of add-ons. There seemed to be plenty of things that could go wrong. Nope. This venue is a tightly run ship that even my “observe the system” mentality could not improve. Padua sets the customer care bar so high, other wedding venue staffs need to charter a plane just to see it. Here’s the one thing I didn’t anticipate. The cost. This venue was so much more than every other location we visited, I expected it to cost double or triple. But they were actually less expensive than some of the hotels, clubhouses and restaurants we shopped. Padua should raise their rates. We got so much more for the money than we would have otherwise…the bean-counter’s, bean-counter (me) felt we underpaid and that just never happens. But the one thing I discovered during our event and the one overwhelming takeaway you should glean from this review is every single person working for Padua and those on their referral list CARES ABOUT YOU! They take great pride in what they do, they are on a mission to not merely meet your needs and expectations but to exceed them to such an extent you too will draft a review like this. I don’t know how many times I was asked if there was anything I needed, if I had any concerns, was there something they could do for me…these people went well above and beyond all expectations and I am extremely grateful to Padua for making the wedding perfect. And I do not believe perfection is achievable. Padua did it somehow. Looking for a magical location with a five-star staff and so many options you’ll be able to create the wedding atmosphere you want (literally any theme) and all at a price you will smile about…Padua Theater is it. But bring cash on the day of the wedding because you’ll be so thankful to so many people who are busting their ass to make your Big Day flawless…you will wanna tip! They won’t be expecting it but you will know they earned it. They care. That makes all the difference. If a guy like me thinks so…well, imagine how you’ll feel when you see Padua has zero room for improvement and makes your event wonderful beyond imagination. I cannot remember the last time I felt I received more than I paid for…and by a large measure. Don’t waste your valuable time visiting other venues first like I did…go see Padua first. You’ll instantly recognize the other places cannot compete. Not in aesthetics, not in personnel, not in food, not in any way.

Maria

4.8 out of 5 rating

4.8

The Diamond Bar Center was amazing both outside and inside. Once our dream vision became a reality, it was breathtaking and unbelievable. If you want gorgeous sunset or night pictures, this is the location you want. With it being on top of a hill, you get a great overview of the city and a wonderful sunset to match.

Erin

5.0 out of 5 rating

5.0

I cannot express how grateful my husband and I are to have booked our wedding reception at The Grand. We worked primarily with Marissa and Lauren on this event for close to 18 months due to postponements as a result of COVID. What stands out about this venue is their professionalism. We opted to go with this venue primarily for this reason and the value for what you are getting. Throughout all the changes, they were nothing but responsive and helpful in any way they could be. My emails were always answered promptly. Despite all the stress from having to change my wedding plans, I never had to worry about being taken care of at The Grand. When my husband and I finally had our event this past October, everything on our agreement was delivered as promised. Zero issues whatsoever. We had great waitstaff and a super fun bartender. The venue itself was set up beautifully. Thank you so much to everyone at The Grand for creating such a beautiful day for us.

I had my Wedding Ceremony and Reception at Villa Ragusa in September 2023 and it was so beautiful and funny. My guest really loved the venue, food and bar. we have 360 guests and had plenty of space for ceremony, reception, dancing and dinner buffet. Villa Ragusa's staff took great care of us! Laura and Robert