Carmen's Banquet Centre by Carmen's Group

Hamilton, Ontario View map

Rating 4.8 out of 5

39 reviews

125 to 1000 Guests

Carmen's Banquet Centre by Carmen's Group

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About

125 to 1000 Guests

Carmen's Banquet Centre is one of the most popular venues in Hamilton for hosting lavish, elegant events and weddings. Offering spacious interiors, sumptuous cuisines and boasting an inviting ambience, Carmen's Banquet Centre located 45 minutes from both Toronto and Niagara, is easily accessible from the highway. The venue, which opened its doors in 1987, till date has hosted thousands of events. Carmen's Banquet Centre features multiple function areas suitable for big and small events and also personalized services, for planning a unique celebration.

Facilities and capacity

Carmen's Banquet Centre has four exquisite, multi-purpose ball rooms that can easily accommodate an event for up to 1000 people. The halls feature towering 28-foot ceilings, two storey foyer space, mezzanine for cocktail receptions, hardwood flooring, and sparkling chandeliers.

Services offered

The venue boasts three decades of impressive hospitality. Popular for excellent catering service, with inspired menus, Carmen's Banquet Centre offers dedicated services with a great team, for perfectly planning your event.

Highlights

Type

Ballroom, banquet hall

Style

Classic, glamorous, vintage

Event Services

Accommodations, bridal suite, cake, catering / bar, event planning, lighting / sound, outside vendors, set up

Reception Site Fee - Peak Season

$8,500

Plated Service (per head)

$74

More information

How many event spaces or rooms does your venue offer?

What kind of settings are available?

Covered outdoor

Indoor

Uncovered outdoor

Which of the following wedding events does your venue service?

Ceremony

Reception

Bridal shower

Engagement party

Rehearsal dinner

What catering services do you offer?

Buffet

Cocktail reception

Dessert

Family style

French service

Hors d'oeuvres

Plated

Server(s)

Stations

Tastings

What bar services do you provide?

Bartender(s)

Cash bar

House beer

House wine

House liquor

Liquor license

Open bar

Premium liquor

Signature drink

Specialty wine

What event items are available?

Audio equipment

Centerpieces

Dance floor

Decor

Drapery

Lighting

Chairs

Tables

What food and beverage items are available?

Barware

China

Flatware

Glassware

Linens

What transportation and access is available?

Parking

Wheelchair access

Do you have a site fee for wedding receptions at your venue?

Yes

What is the starting site fee for wedding receptions during off-peak season?

$8,500

Do you have a site fee for wedding ceremonies at your venue?

Yes

What is the starting site fee for wedding ceremonies during peak season?

$1,250

What is the starting site fee for wedding ceremonies during off-peak season?

$1,250

Which of the following are included in starting site fee?

Set up

Clean up

Event planning

Chairs

Tables

Linens

Flatware

Glassware

Lighting/sound

Parking

Bridal suite

What is the average catering price per person for buffet service?

$74

What is the average catering price per person for stations?

$74

What is the average catering price per person for hors d'oeurves?

$74

Which of the following are included in the cost of wedding catering?

Server(s)

Dessert

Wedding cake

What is the starting price per person for bar service?

$20

Which of the following are included in the starting price for bar service?

Open bar

House beer

House wine

House liquor

Signature drink

Bartenders

Rated

4.8

out of 5.0

Quality of service

Rating 4.9 out of 5
Response time

Rating 4.6 out of 5
Professionalism

Rating 4.8 out of 5
Value

Rating 4.9 out of 5
Flexibility

Rating 4.9 out of 5

28 User photos

+ 24Photos

Order by:

Mariya Getting married on 18/06/2022

Rating 4.8 out of 5
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Wedding Bliss!!

I organized my sister’s wedding at Carmen’s and was incredibly impressed by the staff and the leadership there. Even though there was a turn in management happening at the time, Chantal, Andi and Karen were exceedingly helpful to make my sisters wedding day come true. Our Maître D for the evening, Derek, was instrumental to the evening going as well as it did. He didn’t hesitate to help and would jump into action the second I had any kind of request. He was also asking if he could be of further help in anyway and gave suggestions if it looked like I was stumped. In addition, I greatly appreciated his checking on me periodically to ask if I needed anything at all. The food was wonderful and the waitstaff was polite and kind, and the Hall itself (Milano) was gorgeous. If you would like a wedding that is minimally stressful and one where you have the support of the vendor itself, this is the place to go!
Sent on 06/09/2021
Jessica N. Married on 19/09/2021

Rating 5 out of 5
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Wonderful wedding at the Lakeview by Carmens!

My husband and I were so lucky to have the pleasure of getting married at the lakeview this weekend. We had to postpone our initial wedding date due to the pandemic, and the entire carmen's team were so easy to work with. They allowed us to swap our date without issue, kept open and clear communication with us during the entire process, and answered any of our (many) questions quickly and without hesitation. Charlie and Natasha were so helpful throughout the entire process, and the wedding information package and to-do list kept us on track during the entire planning process (we had NO idea how to plan a wedding beforehand). The venue itself was so beautiful, the décor was wonderful and the view of the sunset over the water during dinner was beautiful. All of our family and friends raved about how delicious the food was, how friendly the staff were, and how absolutely gorgeous the venue was. The DJ was so great, and was so easy going! Our Maître'd Gonia (I am so sorry if I misspelled your name!) Was a dream and made our entire day run smoothly. She kept the groomsmen in line, which was no small task! I have to say that even during the pandemic, we had such a beautiful wedding. For any future brides who may be hesitant about getting married during the pandemic, Carmen's will truly make sure that you have an amazing day. We danced (with masks), had drinks, amazing food, and I could not imagine a better evening. Thank you so much Carmens for giving us such a beautiful night to remember. ♡
Sent on 23/09/2021
Lindsay Married on 15/08/2020

Rating 4.6 out of 5
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Light at the end

Working to adapt a wedding during Covid was extremely stressful and emotional. Carmens and their staff were there every step of the way to ensure that our day was as close to our vision as possible in a SAFE way. They truly made our wedding the special day we had dreamed of.
- + 2Photos
Sent on 19/11/2020
Amanda S. Married on 19/10/2019

Rating 4.6 out of 5
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Overall good experience, some issues to note

Overall, our wedding with Carmen’s was a great experience. I just don’t think I can give the full 5 points due to some issues which I will outline below.

1. Decor. The decor supplied by Carmen’s was modern, had lots of variety and really saved you a lot of money over hiring a decor company. We brought some of our own and used some of theirs. One issue we had was we were going to use their table numbers. The day of our wedding the maître D showed us the room and they had black table numbers lazily put on the tables, which didn’t match our decor at all. When I asked where the agreed upon (in the contract) white table numbers were, she told me they were (direct quote) “shoved in a box and would take a while to get”. Again, this was the DAY OF my wedding at 4:45pm, 15mins before cocktail hour was to start. Not sure why these were not taken out weeks ahead of time considering that’s when the decor and contract was final.

2. Food & bar. The food was excellent, everyone had good things to say. I liked that they offered us signature drinks during the tasting and many of our guests drinks those all night long. They ran out of amaretto on the bar around 9pm. Again, minor but also annoying. As Italians this is a wedding staple... seems like a banquet hall should have more inventory considering our package specifically included amaretto.

2. Communication/planning prior. The sales meeting about 14 months ahead of time went great. We were impressed and all of our wedding hopes and dreams seemed to be something Carmen’s was happy to provide. Then that rep left and a few things that were promised as “no problem” at the meeting turned out to be “not happening”. I also found it very difficult to get quick responses from Carmen’s, often waiting over 2 weeks for a returned email. This was manageable when we were 14-6 months out, but when you’re down to the last 5-0 months planning, it’s highly stressful not to hear a response for weeks at a time. I found I was always the one asking about tasting dates, finalized contracts, final decor drop off etc and Carmen’s never initiated these conversations which was frustrating. Quite honestly this lack of timely communication was my biggest wedding stressor.

4. Decor/clean-up. Nobody told us that we would need to take our decor at the end of the night. We assumed we could pick it up the next morning when we checked out of the Carmen’s hotel. We were exhausted and headed out around 12:45am. At 1am, our guests left were told they had to take home all of these items THAT night for us. Luckily there were family members there that could put it in their car. However, how embarrassing at 1am that our last guests had to load up their cars with our items! This comes back to the communication point, this should have been discussed and we should have been told.

In conclusion, a majority of my guests noticed none of these things so it was still a fabulous wedding in their eyes, and it truly was. However, I just can’t give a 5 star review because it didn’t live up to that level.
Sent on 03/11/2019
Julia Married on 21/09/2019

Rating 5 out of 5
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Best Day Ever!!

Carmen's was amazing!! They did everything I asked for and set the hall up amazing!! Love everything
Sent on 18/12/2019
Jenna W. Married on 31/08/2019

Rating 2.4 out of 5
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Lack of preparedness and communication

Let me start by saying my wedding was beautiful and the food was yummy. All my guests loved the late night buffet and wedding guests from the other weddings were jealous. Unfortunately, there were issues leading up to and including the day of the wedding that I thought should have been avoidable. When the wedding was less then 3 months away, it would take weeks of me following up with emails and calling in person to get answers to questions I had regarding details for the day. I would leave messages and I would not get anyone to call me back. This became very frustrating as we got closer to the day. In the weeks and days leading up to the wedding I would follow up to confirm the final details and frequently find a missing detail. It created a sense that we were not as important as other couples. This feeling was cemented for us on the day of the wedding. There were may decoration details that were blatantly missed. When we went to ensure things were fixed we were met with push back from staff. Ultimately we were able to correct most things, but it was disheartening to have to initially argue with staff to have things corrected. Additionally, we felt like we were being rushed to start everything at exact times but when it came time for something, staff were no where to be found.
I do want to emphasise that the wait and bar staff were wonderful and very responsive. The challenges of our wedding ultimately boiled down to the managing staff and a lack of responsiveness on their end.
The venue was beautiful and food was lovely. But the headache of the challenges we had to deal with, has resulted in me not recommending this venue.
Sent on 21/02/2020
Cass N. Married on 10/08/2019

Rating 5 out of 5
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Best night ever

The organization and food was amazing, it let us relax without having to worry about things going wrong. Only minor downside, is the DJ should check in to make sure the first dance song is the correct version, which ours was not.
Sent on 12/08/2019
Jesstine C. Married on 31/05/2019

Rating 5 out of 5
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Stress free

Everything went smoothly, and stress-free!
I loved working with Karen the wedding coordinator, she was absolutely amazing!
So happy with the results, she took my vision and knocked it out of the park! I showed up on the day and had no worries at all. Highly recommend if you want all things done in one spot and yo just show up and have no worries, also to stay within your budget!
Sent on 03/06/2019

Carmen's Banquet Centre by Carmen's Group's reply:

Hello Jesstine, thank you so much for taking the time to write us a review on WeddingWire. We pride ourselves on being able to offer an all-inclusive wedding experience that turns into an unforgettable moment. It makes us so happy to hear that your big day was stree-free as well as within budget and that you were happy with the set-up. Your compliments will be passed on to Karen and our entire team. We do hope we'll have the honour of hosting a future event of yours and thank you once again for allowing us to be a part of your special day.

Congratulations and best wishes,
The Carmen's Team
Giovanna G. Married on 03/11/2018

Rating 5 out of 5
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Best Wedding Venue

I don't even know where to begin! Carmen's made my wedding perfect. They were so helpful throughout the entire process and especially the day of. Also the food was fantastic !!!! There were two other weddings going on that night and you honestly could not tell. It was perfect. I would highly recommend Carmen's Banquet Centre to anyone who is looking for a venue!! Thank you thank you thank you Carmens.
Sent on 22/11/2018
Katherine Married on 13/10/2018

Rating 5 out of 5
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Insanely delicious food

I received compliments from just about everyone at my wedding about how amazing the food was. We did a buffet style and of course added some extra numbers so that we wouldn’t run out but there was SO MUCH food left over! We took home tons and so did my family. I would recommend Carmen’s to anyone especially if you’re doing a smaller wedding. More than reasonably priced for the amount of food you’re getting

Sent on 20/11/2018

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