Ninth Street Abbey Is the Perfect Wedding Venue In St. Louis

Ninth Street Abbey From the Outside

As we mentioned before, it is quite arduous to find a wedding site in Saint Louis, Missouri, that isn’t a church.  Easiest answer would be to go to the beautiful outdoors, but our date is in March, so this risk of chilly weather and/or rain is too great.  What we have left is informal meeting places that require substantial decorating, art galleries that only moderately match our style and an inspiring community center housed in century old church with an unfortunately limited and exceedingly raw space. The concept of a having our wedding in a building that was once a church, but now renewed into a meeting place is tremendously appealing.  Thankfully, there is one last place that is just that.

9th Street Abbey in Soulard is an old church built in the 1850s that has been bought by Patty Long Catering and converted into a special events venue.  When I found 9th Street Abbey online I was eager to tour the facility and had a small feeling that it would satisfy all our needs.  I was more anxious to visit this site than any of the others.  I had scheduled a meeting for Thursday in January, and on the Wednesday prior I received a phone call from the coordinator stating we would have to reschedule.  When the coordinator arrived at work that day she found herself in the aftermath of frozen busted pipe.  She was extremely apologetic and particularly real.  She has warm attitude that is so welcoming you feel like you are talking to an old friend.  I empathized with her and rescheduled for Saturday.

On Saturday we walked in 9th Street Abbey’s office, which is an old city home located next door to the church.  Before even walking over to the space, we sat down and spoke about prices.  This format was directly opposite from all the other places we have visited.  Typically we are shown the space first, and then secondly we sit down to discuss prices.  Maybe others would see this system as unfavorable, but at that moment in time I was relieved.

We met with a coordinator that has worked her way up from the bottom in the company. She started out as the labor and is now the coordinator. She could explain every in and out of the process that existed.  One of the most unique offerings that Patty Long Catering has in comparison to other venues and caterers is that there is no included gratuity. Depending on what area of the city you are looking, gratuity can be anywhere from 12 to 20 percent.  That is without difficulty, an extra two thousand dollars after the costs of food, drinks, set-up, and rental fees.  The trade off is that Patty Long Catering charges for labor, per person, by the fraction of the hour.  You are provided with a detailed list of which people are needed, how long each person is required, and how much each individual person will cost.  It is nice to see exactly where the labor costs go instead of it being built into all the other fees.

She answered all our questions with ease. She was honest about ways to cut costs, and she didn’t try to sell us anything we didn’t need.  It was refreshing for someone to finally agree that chair covers for $12 a pop isn’t completely necessary. At this point, I am so sold on her placid cool attitude that I would sign a contract to have my wedding in a bathroom.

The Inside of 9th Street Abbey

As we enter the renewed church, once honored by the congregation of St. Paul’s German Evangelical Church, I am pleased to see that the authenticity of the church remains.  The pews have been removed, the choir loft hangs high and empty, and the altar is noticeably absent, but a kaleidoscope of colors from the stained glass windows lights the neutral space with purity.  The most interesting addition, especially to a former catholic, is the large bar in the back filling the vestibule.  A light projector is attached on the ledge of the choir loft that has multiple slide inserts used to reflect an image on the back of the altar. Drapery is available to divide the ceremony space and the vestibule to accommodate a room flip from ceremony to reception.  Lastly there is an adorable room with the most unique wall angles and divine tall windows are where the bridal party dresses.

No discussion required.  Justin and I have found the place the immaculately represents our relationship and interests. 9th Street Abbey will allow us the freedom of a customized ceremony, the luxury of accommodating both our ceremony and reception, and the location that most sincerely displays the former glory and recent rejuvenation of Saint Louis City that we proudly promote.