Menlo Park Wedding Venue Holbrook Palmer Park

Up the 101 there is a pretty park that can hold weddings and private functions. Included is a ceremony area that includes trees and stairs great for pictures. One can hold a small intimate wedding at the venue. Then they can walk about a 150 steps to get to the dinner slash cocktail area which is an outside area. It would be an ideal for a summer gathering. There is shade for the outside the dinner slash cocktail area. 

I was part of a beautiful wedding celebration this past Saturday. I set up in the corner of the ceremony in the shade which I was so grateful. Classical music from Bach and Beethoven was the pre-ceremony music but the rest of the music was so unique. It was by far a very custom event and not your cookie cutter ceremony.  In the procession, a dancer gave her interpretation of a catchy muppet song. The officiant was a friend of the bride and groom and he said great insights about the couple. The couple had touching vows that they shared with their guests. 

There were many highlights of the night but one that stuck out was the bride wanted to dedicate a song to her new husband. She was able to arrange an instrumental and sing a beautiful song in front of everyone right after the thank you speech. It was a big surprise for everyone. Everyone knew the bride can sing but no one knew she was going to give them this treat.

Close to the SF Airport is a wedding venue for anyone who needs to have a reception in the San Francisco Area or the Peninsula. One can be married at a San Francisco church and do the reception in San Mateo since it is so close. They did have a nice courtyard area where people can have a small ceremony or if they wanted to have cocktail area. It was a beautiful day so it was nice to be serving drinks outside in the August summer. 

The wedding reception itself was small and very personable. Around the facility, they had up lighting that added a special aura to the room.  16 up lights were used to surround the whole venue. 

As the dj, I wanted to be close to the dancefloor and the Marriot made it happen. We were able to produce a pretty gobo to project. We did have enough space to include a 7-foot screen and a projector. 

What I liked about this place was we went a few minutes over and the staff was not rushing us out nor tell me to stop on the dot. They let me play the last slow song of the night. Also one of my favorite vibes of the night was the positive energy on the dance floor. The wedding had a mariachi for dinner but I provided the tunes for dancing and it consisted of Spanish music (cumbia and salsa). So the majority was Spanish music and the rest of the music was old school funk. The Couple knew how to have a good time and provided the positive energy in the room.

Trivia: Everyone loves trivia. A Trivia host would need a PA system and a projector to display their questions. Different departments will face off with other departments to show their intelligence. Or better yet mix up the teams so different staff members can work with other members they would not typically work with. (www.Brainstormer.com)

DJ: The Dj can bring the party to the corporate event. They can include the lights for the dancing portion and also provide the music for the soundtrack of the night. Also they can provide the PA system for the host of the corporate event. (www.bwadj.com)

Karaoke Set Up: Some Djs have a Karaoke add on and can host the Karaoke event. Send the dj your list of retro hits so they are prepared. Team members can sing duets or in bigger groups. Make sure your dj brings multiple microphones for the karaoke singing.

Karaoke on Roids! Rockaroke: A basic Karaoke set up may not be enough. In the South bay, die hard Karaoke singers will get on stage and sing with a band behind them. (www.eventyoda.com/bay-area/events/rockaroke)

Escape Room: Groups of Coworkers are locked up in the room and they have to put their minds together to solve puzzles that help them escape the room. No man is an island and this activity gets everyone engaged since there is a time limit and puzzles to figure out.

Winchester Mystery House Scavenger Hunt and tour: Located in the heart of San Jose is the Winchester Mystery House. Garden Scavenger Hunt. The team look for clues on the grounds. It also includes a tour of the mansion. (www.winchestermysteryhouse.com/group-tours-team-building/)

Best load in in the business! It is so easy for outside vendors to park in 20 feet way you can unload everything. Staff is on it and make sure they get the door open and they are always readily available in case I needed anything. Recently we had a birthday celebration. The Birthday girl wanted the night club theme with karaoke. Dave and Busters catered the event buffet style. The main venue area had a nice bar area also The karaoke was available the whole night and folks were able to partake on it. Behind the Dj area there is a huge screen with a projector up high so in case the dj wanted to mix videos or show the karaoke above that could be an option. There is a good size stage and a good sized dance floor. They had these tall round tables on the side of the dance floor so guests can leave their drinks there and they did have some party games they can get involved in. What was cool was the tables were not there then someone told staff in within in 3 minutes all the tables were out. That is what I call service.

This is a great place to throw a party. You have you own private area then guests can go outside to the main arcade area and shoot free-throws, take out zombies, or race your fellow party goer in a race car. It is the best of both worlds.

Great staff and many options for fun at Dave and Busters in Milpitas.

One of the most important aspects of a Quince is finding the right dj to provide the soundtrack for your big event.  There are many items to make the party a success but the music sets the vibe for the whole event. In the Bay Area there are so many djs to choose from and we make it easy to help you decide.

Key Factors to Look For:

Dj will have social proof that they are good at what they do. Clients can look up google reviews and yelp reviews to get the gist of what kind of work the dj does. Ideally you want to select someone who has 5 stars. You would also want to see if the dj has experience with Spanish music if you are going to have Spanish music played at your party.

Dj will promptly respond to their clients via phone or email. Fast responses show professionalism.

Dj will be a professional and not a friend who has a laptop with rented speakers. A Quinceanera party is so similar to a wedding that it needs a time keeper to keep everything on track. Also you want someone how has experience with doing multiple events.

Dj will understand the playlist given and generate more songs that go with it

Dj will have Microphones, speakers, and lights.

Black and White Affair Dj Services (www.bwadj.com) has been in the business since 2004. We keep up with the latest music by doing numerous school events per year.  We make your event as smooth as possible with all our event experience. Let us provide the soundtrack for your big event.

Your dj search is over! Contact bwadj for your Quinceañera! Get your Spanish and music on! 408. 768 .4904

August 2019 playlist

Lil Nas X ft Billy Ray Cyrus   Old Town Road

Billie Ellish  Bad Guy

Lizzo  Truth Hurts

Lil Tecca Ran$om 

Da Baby  Suge

Ed Sheeren and Justin Bieber  I Don’t Care

Saweetie  My Type

Taylor Swift  You Need to Calm Down

A Boogie Wit da Hoodie  Look Back At It

Chris Brown and Drake  No Guidance

Khalid  Talk

Migos  Pure Water

Ed Sheeran and Travis Scott  Anti Social

Ed Sheeran and Camila Cabello  South of the Boarder

Quinceaneras are pretty similar to a wedding in how much preparation needs to be done for both events. There is a lot of planning and it would be ideal to book your event at least a year ahead in advance. 

Find your date.

The day you select for the quince most likely will not be the day of the actual birthday. Make sure it a good date for your family and friends since they will be attending your function. For example, do not select a 3-day weekend during the summer since most folks will travel during that time unless you give your family and friends a good heads up so they don’t make other plans. 

Venue

Once you have your date in mind then find your venue. Most venues are booked on Saturday so its good to book it a year in advance. By some reason if the venue is already booked then the party can be planned for a Sunday at a lower cost since peak days such as Saturday would be more expensive. 

Food (the Grub)

This is one of the most important aspects of a good party. A good caterer is hard to find on a Saturday unless you book way in advance. One has to sample the food to make sure it appeals to the taste buds when looking for a caterer. A good place to find caterers would be at a quinceneara expo or wedding expo. At that moment, you can sample the yummy food. Make sure you do not go hungry to these expos since when you are hungry everything tastes good! 

Find your dress

This party is all about the birthday girl so its time to be fancy! There are a lot of girls having their quinceanera so dresses are limited. It is good to check dresses online and find out where they are located. 

Get your Mariachi On

Mariachis are not as common as you think. To find a good one is one thing but once you find one will they be available? Mariachis are good for the dinner part of the celebration. It is not a must but its mostly for the older family members who enjoy them. If Mariachi is out of the budget then the dj can be playing the dinner music. 

Get Your Dance on! Time to book the dj

Find a dj that has the Spanish music. You know your Aunt Cuca will be asking for the Chona. It would be good to find a dj that has the Spanish music and the latest English jams. Check if the dj has done high school dances to ensure he is properly equipped to do a party for the youngsters. There is a lot of family at the party so make sure they have the classic Spanish music to get everyone on the dance floor. Make sure the dj is familiar with the customs of the quinceanera such as the changing of the shoes, the waltz and the surprise dance. 

Photographer

This is a special moment for the birthday girl so it all should be documented with lots of pictures especially for the “gram”! Pictures and videos would be awesome to have. The special dance and waltz would be awesome to capture on video.

Powered By Scotland Clothing LLC >>

August is a busy month in the dj world. Pretty much all my Saturdays in that month I have an event scheduled. I had someone ask about the first weekend in August for a Gilroy Wedding but I already have an event booked. I made it my duty to make sure they found their vendor. I sent them suggestions of people I know who know their craft. A day later I get a phone call for a wedding in Berkeley on the same day. Maybe love is in the air? So I did make an extensive list of other quality djs they should inquire after I reached out to them to see if they were available. The question is why do I put the effort in it after I know that I will not do the event? I know how frustrating it is to find quality folks to do parties and I want to show the guests what good djs can do. Of course I would love to do the event, but I can not do two events at the same time. I do make it my duty to follow up with the guests after I send them my selections to make sure they have a good dj for their event. 

So the lesson is always book your djs right away especially in the San Jose, Morgan Hill and Gilroy area. The summer months are full of birthday parties and private events and other weddings so it’s best to preplan to get the highly sought out djs. True there are many djs out there but it is best to get one with a good history of good performances and service.