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A New Venue for London Jewish Weddings: Introducing the Natural History Museum’s New Garden Kitchen

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If you’re looking for a breathtaking venue for your Jewish wedding in London, we’ve got exciting news for you. The Natural History Museum, one of the most majestic wedding venues in the capital, has just launched a stunning new indoor-outdoor event space – the Garden Kitchen.

The Natural History Museum has long been a favourite for couples seeking a wedding with a touch of grandeur, thanks to its famous Romanesque arches, jaw-dropping exhibits, and of course the iconic Hope the blue whale. And now, with the introduction of the Garden Kitchen as a new space perfect for an indoor-outdoor Jewish wedding, you have even more ways to make your wedding day truly extraordinary.

All About the Garden Kitchen

Nestled in the museum’s beautifully transformed Evolution Garden, the Garden Kitchen offers an open-plan space with wooden beams and expansive windows that allow natural light to flood in. Available for exclusive hire after museum hours, the Garden Kitchen is the perfect venue for any summer evening celebration, from a chic reception to a full-scale wedding.

Just imagine standing under the chuppah under the gaze of Fern the Diplodocus, surrounded by flowers, plants, and the sounds of nature (yes, even in bustling South Kensington you really will feel like you’re nestled in a calm oasis away from it all). The Garden Kitchen can accommodate up to 300 guests for standing, or 100 for a seated dinner.

A Natural History Museum Wedding

The Garden Kitchen is just the beginning when it comes to the museum’s wedding offerings. With the adjoining Darwin Centre and Wildlife Gardens, the grand Hintze Hall (accommodating 450 for dinner and dancing), and the more intimate Earth Hall (accommodating 200 for dinner and dancing), the museum has spaces perfect for all kinds of Jewish weddings. If you’re planning a really big bash, you could even hire the whole museum: for the first time, the Natural History Museum is offering exclusive full-day hire of its entire venue!

Jewish Wedding Experts

In addition to the breathtaking spaces, another perk of getting married at the Natural History Museum is that the dedicated events team are seasoned Jewish wedding pros. They know all the ins and outs that make Jewish weddings so special, and they’ll be on hand to assist you from the planning stage right through to delivery on the day. And with kosher catering partner Dvash available to provide contemporary gourmet cuisine for couples who require kosher certification, you’ve got everything you need for the Jewish wedding of your dreams.

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An Iconic London Wedding Venue Gets Even Better: Introducing the Natural History Museum’s Darwin Centre and Wildlife Gardens

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Image by Matt Chung Photo 

It’s no secret that the Natural History Museum is one of London’s most breathtaking Jewish wedding venues.

The Natural History Museum has long been admired for its range of majestic indoor spaces – you might have seen stunning photos of unforgettable receptions in the Grade I listed Romanesque building’s Hintze Hall, with Hope the blue whale suspended from the ceiling – and they’ve just added a gorgeous new outdoor option to their repertoire.

Image by Matt Chung Photo 

The Perfect Outdoor Venue in Central London

With this summer’s opening of the new Darwin Centre and Wildlife Gardens, the Natural History Museum has acquired a new indoor/outdoor venue space perfect for a drinks reception on a summer evening – or even an outdoor chuppah, right in the middle of central London.

Team STG was lucky enough to attend the opening event inaugurating the new space, and we were so impressed with how quiet and peaceful the gardens feel, despite being nestled in the heart of bustling South Kensington. Set back from the surrounding streets, with lots of greenery and trees to block out the sounds and sights of the big city, it’s truly a serene oasis – something that’s not easy to find in a central London wedding venue.

Image by Matt Chung Photo 

Gardens Galore

And of course we also love that there’s so much for your guests to see and learn as they take in the spaces: the Evolution Garden is a path through 2.7 billion years of our planet’s history, told through an immersive timeline of plants, rocks of different geological periods from across the UK, and the Nature Discovery Garden features different habitats represent the rich biodiversity that can be found in the UK’s urban spaces. And to mark the opening of the gardens, a  new bronze cast of the museum’s much-loved Diplodocus Fern has been unveiled, ready for your photo ops.

Image by Matt Chung Photo 

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116 Pall Mall: an unforgettable London wedding venue in the heart of the West End + 50% Discount Offer

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If you’re dreaming of a classic London wedding, can there be anything smarter than celebrating  your big day in  a majestic  mansion  in the  heart of St James’? It’s not often that you get the opportunity of being the Lord and Lady of one  of central London’s  grandest Palladian properties (just metres away from The Mall and Buckingham Palace), but  as  Bride and Groom at  116 Pall Mall  you’ll be entitled to exclusive  use of this magnificent property for the day or entire weekend of your  wedding.

Within spitting distance of all the classic central London wedding venues, the majestic 116 Pall Mall gives you the glamour and opulence of the 5 star hotels without the stuffiness that can sometimes be associated with a hotel wedding.

The  triple-award winning venue is  home to the entrepreneurial Institute of Directors, and was built by the famous Georgian architect, John Nash, who also designed parts of Buckingham Palace, Clarence House, St James’ Park and Marble Arch. The interiors are adorned with  an abundance of fine art  and beaux art treasures and all manner  of  breathtaking details that really sets 116 Pall Mall in a class of its own. When I was lucky enough to visit I was particularly taken with the  breathtaking exterior, truly spectacular staircase, and the  elegant garden — quite a rarity for a quintessential  London wedding venue.

Over the past two years the building has undergone major refurbishment  masterminded by  one of the most renowned  interior designers in the business, Russell Sage, whose previous designs include The Hospital Club, Savoy Grill, The Balcon and The Goring Hotel.  With the ability  to seat  up to 250 guests, or up to 200  with a dance floor, the 10  magnificent individually designed event spaces that Russell has redesigned will  suit  whatever style of  wedding you’re after.

The place is steeped in history too —  Bond writer, Ian Fleming was a regular at the bar when the building housed the United Service Club and over the years the venue has been used as the backdrop to many famous films and television series including Gandhi, Foyle’s War, The Dark Knight and Downton Abbey.

116-Pall-Mall-wedding-venue-1116 Pall Mall wedding venue
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10 of the coolest London wedding venues

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Image: Vowed & Amazed

UPDATED: September 2016

Today’s post is written by Deirdre from Chic & Boutique Wedding Venues. Deirdre curates only the coolest, hippest and most fabulous wedding venues,  and I’m thrilled that she’s picked out 10 extraordinary London spots covering every kind of style, for capacities of 25 all the way up to 700!

Take your pick from these 10 London gems…

London is filled to the brim with beautiful, elegant and unusual wedding venues, but it can be difficult to make that final decision without a good filter. We’ve vetted and selected these 10 unique, chic and boutique venues, all located in London, and all as eclectic as the brides and grooms to whom we aspire to appeal. Tuck in to our list and find that perfect spot for your wedding!

Kensington Roof Gardens, London W8 (max. capacity 500)
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Flamingos and Mandarin ducks thrive in an abundance of nature on the roof of number 99 Kensington High Street, – super cool, right?! In the heart of London there’s an oasis of ‘wow’ for when you want to create a wedding with charm, originality and elegance. Have a look at this real wedding at Kensington Roof Gardens as an example!

The Gardens include The Spanish Garden, based on the Alhambra in Granada which has a distinct Moorish flavour; The Tudor Garden which uses red brick walls and four Tudor style arches to take you back to another age, and The English Woodland Garden which blooms with colour when thousands of narcissus, crocus, muscari, snowdrops, and bluebells burst into life every Spring.  The English Woodland is also where the birds live including Mandarin and Carolina Wood Ducks which are native to the Southern hemisphere as well as the star resident Flamingos.

You can tie the civil knot in its stunning indoor wedding venue and then have your religious ceremony in one of the beautiful gardens with a traditional chuppah. The Roof Gardens is also great for small or large weddings as it can host standing receptions for up to 500, sit down dinners for 200 or a more intimate wedding  for only 50.

London’s Kensington Roof Gardens is a venue that gives you the best of both worlds: a garden setting with a convenient central London location.

Kensington Roof Gardens | 99 Kensington High Street | Kensington | London W8 5SA | +44 (0)20 7368 3974


Kew Gardens, Richmond, Surrey (max. capacity 400)
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Kew’s Palm House is a vast, light, lofty space that accommodates enormous tropical large palms, boasts 16,000 panes of glass and is considered the most important surviving Victorian iron and glass structure in the world. The Palm House is a truly original backdrop for your wedding that could take place in one of the four following venues on offer at this multi-venue location.

First is Cambridge Cottage, which is the former royal residence of the Duke of Cambridge. Within the cottage grounds is the Duke’s Garden which is perfect for outdoor drinks, photographs, summer barbeques and garden parties. A chuppah would look perfect here too.

The Garden comes with the Drawing Room, licensed for civil ceremonies for up to 80 guests and the adjoining Gallery housing beautiful botanical artwork which can also accommodate 80 guests for a sit down dinner. Alternatively both rooms and the garden can be hired for a standing reception of 150.

There’s also the Nash Conservatory which is licensed for civil ceremonies for up to 200 guests. If desired, the Nash Conservatory and lawn may be used to erect a chuppah for a religious ceremony, followed by pre-dinner drinks before moving on to the Orangery for an evening wedding dinner and dance.

Other venues available for hire at Kew Gardens include The Princess of Wales Conservatory and The Orangery.

Kew Gardens | Royal Botanic Gardens | Kew, Richmond | Surrey, TW9 3AB | +44 (0)20 8332 5641


Courthouse Hotel Shoreditch, London EC1 (max. capacity 900)
Courthouse-Hotel-Shoreditch
I’m literally obsessed with this spanking new venue in the the heart of the old East End of London, Shoreditch.

Once the Old Street Magistrates’ Court and Police Station—where notorious East End gangland brothers Ronnie and Reggie Kray were once held, this Grade II listed Baroque styled building has been transformed into a £40million luxury hotel, the Courthouse Hotel Shoreditch.

Steeped in history, the 128-room Courthouse Hotel Shoreditch offers guests a rather more comfortable stay than the cells which held the notorious Kray twins, as well as a heated indoor swimming pool, a 196-seat cinema, a luxury spa, a bowling alley and a sky terrace overlooking London.

Five of the notorious former magistrates’ court’s cramped 5ft x 15ft cells have been transformed into a bar area, and guests can have a tipple in the spot where the Krays appeared at their first criminal hearing in 1965.

The holding areas, three of which are named after local criminals, still have their metal reinforced doors in tact and one even features a hard bench and commode used by prisoners.

With a maximum capacity of 900 and with so many luxury and unique facilities this stunning hotel is the perfect venue for a large wedding, honeymoon or hen/stag weekend; it’s in a great central location to boot.

Courthouse Hotel Shoreditch | 335 – 337 Old St | Shoreditch | London EC1V 9LL | +44 (0)20 3310 5555


Bush Hall, Shepherds Bush, London W12 (max. capacity 375)
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When you think of a Dancehall you think of London and one of its most popular music scenes. And when you check out Bush Hall you know this was, and still is, the most decadent Dance Hall of its day.

Nestled in the heart of Shepherds Bush, the Hall is a jewel in the crown of West London proper. Built in 1904, it was a grand dance hall through the Roaring Twenties, subsequently suiting various purposes thereafter including soup kitchen duty during WWII and a Mod rehearsal space for the likes of The Who. Since then it has been lovingly restored to its former glory as an Edwardian dance hall.

Even more cool is that Bush Hall is still an independent live concert venue boasting Adele, Amy Winehouse and Florence & The Machine as previous performers.

This amazing ‘hall’ doubles up as a unique and elegant wedding reception space offering a wide range of options, allowing you the versatility to tailor the event to your own requirements. This could include wedding receptions of up to 180 seated guests or a fun and funky drinks reception until the early hours…

A wedding licence isn’t held, however blessings, chuppahs, and private ceremonies are welcomed.

Bush Hall | 310 Uxbridge Road | Shepards Bush | London W12 7LJ | +44 (0)20 8222 6955
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