The Hendry House

There are a lot of rules for the house. Overall the venue is awesome but the management has poor customer service.

, ahem, the visible signs saying that there was a private event in progress), but otherwise, it was just us. We had about 50 people, and I think that was exactly enough to fit comfortably inside. One thing to note is that the buffet room and kitchen are on same circuit -- Sharon told us during our walk-through that a fuse had blown during another wedding due to a large coffeemaker, so we had to nix our planned omelet station. On the upside, there is a built-in arch in back of the house and plenty of bathrooms (2 on main level, 2 on upper level, and 2 outside on bottom level). The venue also offers several 6-foot tables and a couple of 4-foot tables, which we used, as well as dark blue hotel-y chairs that we didn't. I also love the bridal suite, which is pretty and comes with a mini-fridge and its own bathroom -- although it ended up being not *quite* enough space for us plus the hair and makeup folks and all their equipment (11 of us, total -- me, 3 BMs, 2 moms, female ring bearer, and 4 hair/makeup folks). Sharon, the venue coordinator, is extremely responsive. That said, she's not always the easiest to work with (she can be a bit brusque and inflexible). The biggest issue arose when Sharon told the caterer to come 2 hours later than we had discussed at the walk-through -- WITHOUT telling me or my wedding coordinator. So you can imagine the panic on the day of the wedding, wondering where the heck the caterer was. Overall, it's a gorgeous venue and a convenient location at a great price, but beware unexpected (and sometimes seemingly arbitrary) restrictions/limitations.

While it was hot and humid, fans in the tent helped and the house was air conditioned so folks could take breaks. The ceremony area with the wisteria arch was lovely, and most of it was shaded after 4 when ours started. The bridal suite was very spacious and handy for us to get ready. Easy rear load-in access to the catering kitchen made it a breeze for the caterers to set up. We saved a ton of money in that they allowed us to bring in our own alcohol as long as a licensed caterer served it. Plenty of parking, lovely grounds...ample space for the ceremony, tent, and a lawn for games. We had a buffet and the cake set up in the dining room, escort cards & gift table in the front room, cocktail tables, slideshow, and photo booth in the large room. There is some airplane noise but not bad at all. Many lovely spots for photos on the landscaped grounds. And so affordable for a Saturday night in the summer in the DC area! They don't seem to advertise at all--I'm lucky a friend told me about it. We couldn't believe there was no wedding there the previous beautiful Saturday when we stopped by. Couldn't be happier!

l neighborhood with an old, historical feel to it. The house has been renovated to include newly painted rooms, and a speaker system and A/C throughout. The house manager, Sharon, did a couple of walk-throughs with us (as we live out of state), and discussed all possible options for the location. Based on our estimated guest list, we went with a tent out on the lawn for the reception, and the cocktail hour featured the first floor of the Hendry House, and also wrapped around the porch and the patio. We could bring our own alcohol (which was a bonus!), and also had to provide the caterers, tent/accessories, and audio equipment. One down side to the location is because it's in a residential area, the music must be shut off by 9:30pm. The day-of, the caterers shut off our music right at 9:30pm, and although I would have liked to party for another few songs, I knew already about the time limit. As soon as the music stopped, we just shrugged and headed on over to our after-party! Also, the location is right in the middle of a flight path, and while we could hear/see the planes during our walk-throughs, we couldn't hear ANYTHING during the actual day. Additionally, the house is surrounded by a beautiful, green, wooded area, which made our pictures/first look at the house look incredible! I liked how reserving the Hendry House was just the reception/cocktail hour; it allowed for a personalized feel, instead of using the same company for everything. Absolutely recommend the Hendry House for any parties or weddings!