Maryland Jockey Club at Laurel Park Reviews

I was introduced to Kelsey at the Maryland Jockey Club for my daughter's sweet 15 party, and it was the best thing that could've happened to our event. Kelsey was an absolute dream to work with, incredible attention to detail, always open to our ideas, and provided her own ideas to us which was incredibly helpful. On the day of the event, Kelsey and her team went above and BEYOND to make sure we had everything we needed, made minor adjustments as requested, and took care of us as the hosts of 125 people. I will continue to refer this venue to anyone and everyone, and I hope to have a future large event to be able to come back! This is definitely a gem.

We hosted my daughter's ceremony and reception at the Maryland Jockey Club in July 2023 and the entire experience, beginning with the contract through the day-after follow up, was picture perfect. Our guests are still raving about the food and hospitality, and especially the beautiful spaces and unique setting at the races. So many people commented about how special it felt to be there. The superpower at the Jockey Club is Kelsey Spriggs. Little did we know when contracting with the Jockey Club that we would be getting such an incredibly supportive, flexible, responsive and professional coordinator for the day. While we did our own planning, Kelsey was always available to bounce things off of, to answer questions, to make suggestions, and to help us find our way through our myriad ideas. She accommodated all of our vendors with class and was supremely flexible in scheduling floral delivery and cleanup with us.

One of the other things you are getting at the Jockey Club is an EXCELLENT kitchen. We chose a four course plated dinner with three entree choices and every single one was delicious. Guests were full with the generous portions and thoroughly impressed with the taste of all of the dishes. Everything was served promptly, prepared perfectly, and presented artfully. The tables were set elegantly and thoroughly without any detail of flatware or glassware overlooked. Staff handled our decor with care and enthusiasm for the event.

Kelsey and the entire staff worked seamlessly with the photographer and DJ during the event to keep the timeline on track and cooperated professionally with our ceremony coordinator. Special needs from infants to the elderly, dietary and mobility concerns, seating intricacies and family dynamics were all handled expertly and with discretion.

There were many little touches that Kelsey added to the night --the staff kept the bride and groom fed and watered throughout the reception; quiet spaces were allocated for staging and photography, and not a single detail was overlooked.

Finally, the VALUE of this venue can not be overstated. With so much capacity in-house for food and beverage, decor and service, the entire event save stationery, florals, music and photography is practically turn key. There were ZERO suprises on the final bill and not a single mistake in terms of seating, meal service, or any other detail of the contract.

Planning and hosting this wedding at the Jockey Club was a delight.

We had my daughters Sixteenera here. It was so great! The staff, the food, the accessories the venue provided was all just perfect! Kelsey was great at communicating and helping me plan the event. I highly recommend having your next party here!

Our coordinator, Kelsey Spriggs, was amazing. We held our reception in the Upper Terrace. Kelsey was very responsive to every email and text. The room was beautiful. Kelsey helped us choose the menu and tailor it to our needs. They were very conscientious of dietary needs, and allergies. Although we had a buffet, entrees were plated for the few vegan/vegetarians. Every guest we spoke to said the food was fantastic! The cost of the room, meals, and extras was VERY competitive! I would not hesitate to use this venue again!

Everything about my wedding experience at Laurel Park was so beyond perfect, I don't even know where to start!

This was such a fun venue to have our wedding ceremony & reception! We held the ceremony in the beautiful Ruffian room, it was perfect and elegant. For the reception we moved upstairs to the Terrace level where our guests had views of the racing in the background for some added entertainment. Throughout the wedding and in the weeks that followed, I had so many guests comment on how much they loved the venue and how it was so different from other weddings that they had attended.

Kelsey, the venue coordinator, is simply amazing, as is the rest of the team there. From the very beginning, Kelsey kept in constant communication with me, and as we got closer to the day, was always accessible via phone or email. She was so flexible and helpful even as I made last minute changes to the guest count and catering options. And her expertise came in handy when planning out the little details that would best benefit myself and, even more importantly, my guests!

She, along with the other staff, were so helpful in getting all of our decor & things set up the night before. Not only did they help bring all of my boxes upstairs, they helped with setting up the centerpieces and other arrangements. They also already had some beautiful Christmas decorations set up for the season, and kept my personal wedding colors in mind when setting up the area that our reception was held in. The reception area already looked so beautiful even before I put out my own decorations.

I also have to mention the food because it far exceeded my expectations! I was so pleased with the quality of the food, from the appetizers to the dinner & desserts. Before booking Laurel Park for our wedding, I had looked at previous venues for which the price of food was outrageous. For a third of those prices we were able to give our guests a restaurant-quality meal, for which I received many compliments.
(Another note about the staff: Kelsey was kind enough to set aside some appetizers just for our bridal party, and brought down drinks for me & the groom while we took photos during the cocktail hour. And during the meal we had great servers who provided the best, most attentive service to the two of us!)

All this is to say, get married at Laurel Park! This venue and the staff provided me a wedding day that was far better than anything I had ever imagined.


*Will upload photos of the venue once I get them back from the photographer!

Laurel Park was the first venue we visited. We had a few other venues in mind for our wedding, but we finally decided to book Laurel park. I'm usually coordinating other events and weddings, so I had a vision for our wedding. I wanted something simple but elegant. From the beginning to the end, Kelsey was very helpful. Not only is the place beautiful, everything was topnotch. We had both our wedding and ceremony in the Ruffian room and cocktail in the sports bar area.

Food/Drinks: Both my husband and I are Jamaican. We wanted to substitute a few items on the menu to Jamaican food, and Kelsey made that happen. We met the chef for our tasting and fell in love with what the chef made. We were sold after that. We had a specialty Jamaican drink on our menu, and they made it happen as well. We received so many compliments from our guests about the food, drinks, and our entire wedding.

Communication/Services: Kelsey made us feel like we were the only wedding/events they had going on during the months of planning. I was very detailed as I planned my entire wedding. She was very responsive to all my questions, concerns and many changes along the way. On the day of our wedding, Kelsey and her staff were very attentive and made our bridal party, and the guest feels welcome.

Detailed: Kelsey helped me go through every detail on how I want the space to set up. Between the ceremony and reception, from where we will put our photo booth, DJ, etc. Even from selecting the tablecloth colors. I much say she followed along with our vision. Our vision came alive, and I was a happy bride/coordinator. We were able to drop off our centerpieces, and other items I believe 2 days ahead of our wedding. We had extremely large centerpieces that we made ourselves. Kelsey and her staff were impressed. Her staff was very careful in moving our centerpieces and items that we bring in for our decor and take very good care of everything.

I think overall our wedding was a success. The venue is beautiful, Kelsey and her staff are amazing, and we had a wonderful experience. I'm glad we did our wedding there, no regards. I'll host another event there again for sure.

Kelsey Spriggs is the catering coordinator I had the pleasure of working with for my bridal shower! I booked the Ruffian room at Laurel park. Such a beautiful hall to hold any event. It's very elegant and spacious! I had about 100 guests and plenty of room to dance and party. Kelsey was not only supportive in helping me plan my event but also be present and involved but very responsive and a problem solver! On the day of my event she jumped right in to redirect the kids who were overly active and I was overwhelmed but she stepped in to calm them by gathering the kids and playing a game to keep them occupied and well behaved. She is a lifesaver and just overall a great person to work with. The entire team jumped in to help with anything I needed from setting up to helping with pack at the end of my event. I cant thank Kelsey and her team enough for making my event so special!! Everyone was so kind and helpful and just wonderful! The bartender, I don't remember her name but she was extremely sweet and went above her duties to make everyone happy! I couldn't have asked for a better turnout! I was happy and my guests had nothing but great things to say about the venue, food, drinks, and staff. This is something I'll never forget and I'm so happy to have shared it with you all. Thank you!

Beautiful room, excellent service, attentative and promt response from the team. I was not happy that i paid for valet for my guest and did not recieve it, i also paid extra for sodas which i did not receive all i got was juice , tea & lemonade . When i tried to call the staff after my event they did not return my email or call. Communication leading up to the event was fantastic unfortunately after the event it was nil. Neverthe less the venue was beautiful, staff was amazing and i would have another event here. My suggestion is to have someone to overlook everything because as a host your not able to oversee everything you trust you would get what you pay for.

My 50th Masquerade Birthday Ball was everything I wanted and more! The venue , the staff, the food were all outstanding. Almost two weeks later, I still getting compliments on my event. The Ruffian room is a beautiful space offering a lavish atmosphere. Big thanks to Johanny and Tony! You guys are awesome. Professionalism personified.