Jolie Banquet Catering Venue

6 W University Ave, Gainesville, FL 32601, USA

Address:	6 W University Ave, Gainesville, FL 32601, USA
Phone:	+1 352-377-9337
Site:	joliecatering.com
Rating:	3.3

Location

Photos 42

Reviews 4

Andre Frattino

Theres not a lot of great options in Gainesville for wedding planners, but looking back, I should have forked out the bigger bucks than going with these "fly by night" services. From our first meeting, I should have seen the signs that these ladies didnt know what they were doing and cared more about appearance than about professionalism. I thought it kind of funny that our first meeting had them sitting across from us in their dimly lit event space with sun glasses and fedoras on like they were spring vacationing on Miami Beach. They were all positive, nodding their heads in agreement and compliance. "You guys are super easy!" they cheerfully exclaimed as we concluded our first meeting, writing down every detail and assuring us that all would be provided and our wedding would go off without a hitch. Let me state at this point that my wife and I are not unreasonable and we werent expecting a fairytale wedding nor were we groom and bridezilla about our wants. However, the event was being held at a venue that Jolie Catering had never visited, and we had urged them to visit the space and get back to us. Then silence...utter silence...for over eight months. My wife, finally tired of waiting and our wedding drawing near, reached out to them. She had not received any word on the venue plans or even a request for menu options or set-up prep (which they claimed theyd get back to us closer to the date). There was no real return, and in fact it took myself and the maid of honor to finally elicit a response. When they did respond, it was excuses (they had hired some subcontractor to work our wedding) and complaints (according to my wifes maid of honor they told her we had become difficult, constantly changing things). We finally managed to get one of the original ladies, Shu Lin, to call us late one evening to essentially re-walk over everything she and her cohort had originally written down eight months before. I suppose the room was too dimly lit that first meeting for her to remember what she wrote. She apologized and finally got the ball rolling again. All seemed to start coming together, until we got to the weekend before the wedding and we tried to request adding a couple of trash cans (to be filled with ice to cool the kegs we ordered for the wedding venue). Evidently this was undoable, and all they could provide was ice (I suppose they couldnt go to Lowes to pick up a couple of $10 trash cans that they could charge to our account). Fortunately, my best man is a local bartender and was able to come through, as best men do. Finally, day of wedding. From the moment I stepped onto the venue, I had to deal with the complaining and glaring looks of Jolies "professional" catering staff. Turns out, they were not on the same schedule as we had discussed with Shu Lin (who, surprise, surprise, was not there to assure everything was going successfully.Something else she apologized for after the fact). The horderves were already out and getting cold an hour before the wedding guests arrive. The lead server (Jolies owner it turned out) was outwardly annoyed that "no one" was giving them any instructions. I remained sympathetic, but between his eye rolling and one of the other caterers downright glaring me down every chance he got (swore the guy wanted to punch me) I tried to keep my cool. For the next two hours, I had to appoint a liaison between myself and the caterers as i went back and forth between directing and answering their questions and trying to marry the woman I love. The few times my wife and I did try to take charge and explain questions it was met with the lead caterer (Jolie owner) repeating in a groan "I know, I know. We know this already!" Why the hell ask us for direction if you do? Its like youre damned if you do or damned if you dont? We still managed a great time, and the wedding was beautiful, but it was no thanks to these people. I know this all sounds like a rather scathing review, but I just want you to be prepared because we werent asking for the moon. Good luck!

A Private User

Steves Cafe was recently sold, and its truly a disappointment. The old Staves Cafe and all its charm is gone, and the new owners are TERRIBLE. I have had some recent dealings with them, and they are shady and unprofessional. They called me endlessly when we decided to take our business elsewhere (because they decided not to honor our initial CONTRACT) and kept trying to haggle with me. Once they stopped calling and e-mailing (after I repeatedly said I was NOT interested), it took a very long time to get our deposit back. They are not the kind of people that you want taking care of any important event you have. They lack experience, and its painfully obvious. I would say to look somewhere else for someone professional who knows what theyre doing and wont string you along, trying to get as much money out of you as possible.

A Private User

DONT USE THIS VENUE. Zuzu/Jolie is a horrible place to host any event you have any bit of hope for. They will hands down ruin your event. The staff is rude beyond belief, over charges, and does not know how to handle hosting an event (even though you pay so much). Although it is a beautiful venue, that does not make up for how rude and unprofessional they are. I was warned before I scheduled my event, I wish I had listened!

Hannah Eades

I didnt deal with the staff, which seems to be the reason for everyone elses bad reviews, but just going to an event there, it was beautiful. The host didnt need to spend really any money on decorations since the place is already beautiful with romantic lighting and adorable lanterns. Would definitely host my own event here in the future.