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Top of the Bay Reviews

Top of the Bay

Top of the Bay

Aberdeen Proving Ground, MD
4.5 out of 5 rating, 34 Reviews
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Reviews

4.5 out of 5 rating
4.5 out of 5 rating
34 Reviews
90% recommend it
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    4.5 out of 5 rating
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Awards

34
  • Lauren
    Lauren Sent on 09/04/2019
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    Wedding of our Dreams

    Not only was the venue GORGEOUS but Dean made our experience unforgettable. I can honestly say our day was right on time and Dean kept things flowing accordingly. He was quick to answer questions and introduced us to everyone who would be working our big day! Our guests are STILL talking about how beautiful the venue is and how AMAZING the food is. We cannot thank Top of the Bay enough for helping make our wedding day incredible!
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    Lisa Sent on 09/04/2018
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    Dean was amazing to work with!!! We had kosher guests and Dean worked with our kosher caterer professionally and effortlessly. Even with a broken foot, he put everything together and even at the last minute went out to buy the type of beer my daughter wanted. He ran the ceremony so well and he was there every step of the way. He made the day so terrific and amazing. Thank you so, so much for helping us to have my daughter's dreams come true!!!
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    Lisa Sent on 10/29/2017
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    Great Food, great help and attentive to every need
    • illustration stars

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  • User2915847 Sent on 12/18/2016
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    We had an awesome experience at the top of the Bay. Held my wedding here and everything was beautiful. Dean, made sure my experience was fabulous and everything I could ever imagine. We had one hiccup, the fire alarm went off right before the ceremony was to begin. Dean handled it professionally, quickly and compensated my husband and I for the disturbance. I highly recommend this venue, the food was great, staff very attentive and professional. I am still receiving calls on how wonderful everything was. We had a really good time. Memories to last us forever. Thank you so much Dean!!! You're the best!
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    Megan Sent on 10/07/2014
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    I was extremely happy with this venue! Amazing views, the staff was awesome. Richard was so helpful and made the planning much easier. The food was delicious. Beautiful venue and amazing price. I know where I will be renewing my vows!!!!
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    Becky Sent on 07/23/2013
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    We had our wedding at Top of the Bay on July 5th and we couldn't have been happier how everything turned out! Teri and Richard were awesome and made sure our day ran smoothly from start to finish and they were willing to meet with us whenever we wanted before the wedding. The staff was very professional and the food was beyond fabulous!!! We had the Crabcake and Prime rib dinner and have received nothing but compliments from our family and friends. We had our wedding outside on the patio and then the reception was in the ballroom, it was absolutely beautiful!! We would recommend the venue a thousand times over for sure!
  • User1035744 Sent on 12/04/2012
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    Top of the Bay was the perfect place to get married! I couldn't imagine a better place! It is affordable and gorgeous! We got married outside, looking over the bay. It was extremely hot because it was the summer, but well worth it.

    Terry and Stephen were amazing to work with! They were very helpful in helping me plan the ceremony/reception. They shot out ideas from experience and gave me advice. They were very patient with me. My husband was away, due to being in the military, and we had to change the date several times due to military duties. They were ok with that and worked in the date we were able to get married, as long as another wedding was not on that day. Anytime I saw Terry, she gave me a huge smile and hug, asking how I was. She is very sweet and cared about my big day.

    Stephen was so helpful the day of my wedding. He was making sure everything was in order and also helped set up. As my girls were walking down the aisle, he stood right there to make sure everything went as smooth as possible. Even when it came time for me to walk down the aisle, he helped me by letting me know when to go. That was a huge help because I was so nervous about the timing of the music with me walking down the aisle. But Stephen helped with all of that! Stephen made our plates of food, with everything on it, as well as brought it to us.

    The food at the reception was AMAZING! We never taste tested food, I just picked what sounded good and what I thought the majority of my guests would like. I was quite nervous, but once I took a bite of everything, my fears were squashed. Everyone at my wedding raved about the food. I would have eaten more, if I wasn't so nervous! :)

    All in all, it was the perfect night! Beautiful venue, affordable, amazing food, and just all in all the perfect place to get married. I highly recommend having your wedding/reception at Top of the Bay. It was the best choice I made and I am so glad I did!
  • User884894 Sent on 08/01/2012
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    We chose Top of the Bay at Aberdeen Proving Ground for our wedding ceremony and reception. Top of the Bay was our top choice for several reasons. It is absolutely beautiful inside and out and the costs were very reasonable. The event planners at Top of the Bay that we worked with were Terry and Stephen. Both were extremely helpful, professional, and knowledgeable. They gave helpful advice and guided us through the whole planning process. We were a little nervous with the ceremony/reception being located on the military base and didn't know if it would be difficult for our guests gaining entry but Terry and Stephen assured us as long as our invited guests were on the guest list and had their ID's with them there would be no problems (and there weren't any problems). Top of the Bay also provided the catering. The food was delicious. We were impressed with the entire meal as was our guests. The whole day was absolutely perfect. I couldn't have asked for anything more. We HIGHLY recommend Top of the Bay.
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    Courtney Sent on 07/03/2013
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    Beautiful location and perfect wedding day!
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    Lindsey Sent on 09/11/2008
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    Everything was wonderful, especially the food! Just be careful with the pay as you go bar method. If you have a lot of drinkers, the bill adds up fast!
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    Cassandra Sent on 07/11/2008
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    This was the best place i have ever seen i had the wedding outside the cocktail hr was in the first part upstairs and my reception was downstairs with the beautiful window... i loved it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
  • K
    Katie Sent on 07/02/2008
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    Awesome! Awesome! Brides, if you are looking for a place that is going to make your wedding day fun and affordable, Top of the Bay is it! The cost includes the food, linens, & the beautiful establishment, and will give you names of vendors and suppliers if you are looking. The area is beautiful. I would recommend using a photographer and other vendors that have been there before since it is on the ARMY Base, and there are certain things you have to do. The only pitfall I can think of is that you have to enter and leave through the base gates which got confusing for the guests at night. Address the departure at the beginning of the reception when the entrance was fresh in their mind. Teri, the catering director, did everything humanly possible to make sure that the night went perfect. If something happened to go not as planned, she would take the bull by the horn, and fix whatever it was, and make sure that you are not even aware that something was off. However, she did let my mom know because that is professional and did not want any surprises.
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    Kelley Sent on 09/02/2008
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    Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful....definitely recommend!
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    Dan Sent on 08/11/2016
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    Fantastic! Perfect Planning with Dean Piccoli. Top of the Bay provided a winning atmosphere, and a caring staff, who made the Bride and Groom special. We started looking at the APG military base due to family military ties, and found a professional staff who helped us along the way. We got a great Price, a great Place, and the Professional Planning of Mr Piccoli!

    Dean is truly a people person, and made things work so well for us. The spring-time food/catering tasting and wedding planning event was a great opportunity to get some ideas, and show both families and key members of the bridal/groomsmen party the venue.

    Pre Planning with Dean Piccolli ensures Perfect Performances. He follows up with details a few days ahead of time for the big day also.

    only tip is this: Dean is a gentleman and an old fashioned people person. He works best with personal telephone calls vs impersonal texts or emails.


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    Stephanie Sent on 12/20/2014
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    Stunning place to have our wedding! The food was amazing, all of our guests enjoyed very much!
  • Kesslertobe1018
    Stephanie Sent on 10/20/2014
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    All we can say is amazing! Terri was awesome to work with and she made our day so much better. She took great care of us and made sure everything went smooth. The venue is stunning and the view of the bay is excellent. Our wedding was held at night time and we had up-lighting for both the ceremony and reception... OMG it was beautiful. The staff set up everything so nice and did a great job. The food was great as well and everything came out in a timely manner. I also love how the bar has its own separate room so we didn't have guests standing in line out in the reception hall.

    All I can say is that it was the best choice we made in picking a venue and wouldn't have changed it for the world.

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    Hannah Sent on 01/09/2015
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    I had my wedding at Top of the Bay in May, 2014. The location and interior are so beautiful, it really set a great mood for the day wedding! When my dad first recommended looking at Top of the Bay, my first thought was that it would look like a VFW hall. I could not have been more wrong! The website does not do justice! The place is totally renovated, very chic and classic and the scenery is unbeatable.

    For someone who wants an outdoor ceremony, there are a lot of risks and concerns with weather. With Top of the Bay, I did not have to worry at all. I knew that if the weather didn't permit an outdoor ceremony on the gorgeous deck overlooking the Chesapeake Bay, there was a beautiful interior hall just next to the deck that was perfectly suitable for a ceremony as well. Thankfully, the weather was fantastic and the huge deck and dining hall accommodated our 200+ guests without hassle.

    Richard was such a professional and helpful point of contact. He made sure all the items we brought were set up how we wanted it. He made sure all our vendors were well set up and never got overwhelmed in the hoopla of the day.

    I priced plenty of catering halls, and Top of the Bay was half the price of venues of equal calibur. I have worked in the wedding business for most of my life, and the food is very good quality, served hot and served quickly. To me that is the most important. We went for the buffet option. I was not interested in a culinary masterpiece. I just wanted good food options that would satisfy our guests, taste good and be served promptly. At Top of the Bay, that is exactly what we got!

    I did not worry on my wedding day, as all my questions were answered before the big day.

    I highly recommend Top of the Bay. You will have great memories (and great photos)!
  • K
    Kimberly Sent on 07/22/2012
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    Top of the Bay is an absolutely gorgeous venue, overlooking the Chesapeake Bay. It caters to Military families, so the price is unbeatable for the amazing value. And no matter what day you have your wedding (Thurs-Sunday) - the venue costs the same. No "premium" rates for Saturday weddings. You get 5 hours for the wedding and can add additional hours for a reasonable price!

    The Top of the Bay is perfect for pictures too- the Officer's Club is gorgeous and you can't beat the views. We found a little bridge to take pictures on, as well as some TANKS (if you enjoy a fun pic or two).

    Terry, who books the place is hilarious, down to earth and very up front. She is rough around the edges, but a pro. Top of the Bay only recently started doing weddings (in January 2012), so I think there are a lot of kinks that they are working out still - sometimes it's hard to get a hold of them (it is also provides a full service lunch for the base). It's also difficult for any guests that arrive late to the wedding, as they have to go through the military gate.

    The food was delicious (even though I didn't get to eat much). All of our guests thought they had a full meal, even though we only served hor d'hoeuvres. They even gave us the leftovers (which was great because there was a blackout in Maryland that weekend!)

    The bar was the best part because you pay for only what people drink. It was so refreshing because we have a lot of teetotalers in our family (and a fair share of party people).

    This wedding was so beautiful. It felt and looked 4 times more expensive than it was. If you're lucky enough to have some sponsor you here.
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    Julie Sent on 10/07/2009
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    I loved my Wedding Reception at Top of the Bay. It was Beautiful and Terri the catering manager worked with me and all of my last minute changes. I literally changed stuff up until the 2 week mark.
    I booked this reception site because my Husband and I met at a wedding that took place there so it had a lot of sentimental value. That wedding was 2.5 years ago and the prices went up dramatically.
    The staff was kind and the food was great. We booked the downstairs room and there was plenty of space and the views were great.
  • prov3130grl
    Andrea Sent on 07/19/2010
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    Teri and her team worked so hard to make my wedding turn out just the way I wanted it. Top of the Bay is so beautiful AND affordable! It was definitely the best value of anywhere around (and, trust me, I looked for months). My wedding was everything I hoped it would because of all their hard work. I couldn't have been more pleased.
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    Kristen Sent on 09/30/2008
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    This place was great to work with. They were able to solve any problem I would run across. They have strict time slots for weddings so I wasn't able to have the time that I wanted, but other than that, I had no problems with them. In fact, I realized I forgot to buy a bottle of wine to give away for the anniversary dance and mentioned it to the coordinator. She immediately went to the bar, grabbed a bottle of wine, found a gift bag and had it all ready by the time the anniversary dance ended. That is what I call exceptional service!
  • User1728423 Sent on 07/23/2014
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    The view at Top of the Bay is absolutely breathtaking. We had our ceremony and reception there. The staff was extremely helpful and made sure that everything ran on schedule. The food was excellent and it was definitely a good price.
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    Jessica Sent on 01/16/2015
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    This is a beautiful venue. There is a plan B for rain. There is a very specific plan for how things will run (i.e. where the bridal party goes after the ceremony and where the card table is, etc. ) but the coordinator is willing to work with different ideas. The interior design is updated and very beautiful, it will work well with many wedding designs and color schemes.
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    Erin Sent on 08/19/2016
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    When my fiancé and I walked into this venue we knew it was the place for us! It's very beautiful inside and prices are extremely reasonable. Occasionally, it was hard to get a hold of the venue and there were issues with the directions they gave us to pass to the guests (make sure you have their word on what gate guests are allowed to go through!), but in the end that all worked out and the wedding was fantastic. The food was also very good! You don't usually hear too many compliments about food at a wedding but the food we had was excellent and most of the guests told us the same! Overall, I would certainly recommend this venue to anyone.
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    Naomi Sent on 03/24/2008
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    Everyone here was so wonderful to work with! They made planning easy! And the site is absolutley beautiful!
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