I have mentioned that Mr. Cupcake and I are both old souls, and we adore old places with an antique vibe and lots of character. His mom decided to focus on finding a place that was an old Inn or had an Inn type of atmosphere for the RD. In historical Chester County, Pennsylvania, this isn't too difficult of a task! It was just a matter of finding the right one. Mr. Cupcake is also a major history buff, so he really liked the idea of having our rehearsal dinner at a place with some history.
After lots and lots of Googling, emailing restaurants for menus and specifics, and asking around, we narrowed our search down to a great place called The Ship Inn in Exton, PA.
According to the website:
In 1794 when the Lancaster turnpike was built, it was one of the marvels of the century. Almost the sole avenue of transport between Philadelphia and the west, it was soon peopled with stage coaches, wagons and drivers. To meet the needs of these travelers, public houses sprang up every few miles and among the earliest of these was the Ship Inn. The modern "Ship", which serves today's wayfarer with food and a "cup of cheer" is in the original building built by John Bowen in 1796. For this building he petitioned to the Chester County Court in that year "for license to keep a public house of entertainment." The 1963 rear addition houses the "Lighthouse Grill." The ship Inn was totally remodeled in 2000 as seafood and steaks.Yes, I think a 212 year old Inn meets our requirements!
There are several different formal dining rooms in The Ship Inn, each with an open fireplace and unique decor true to its history. The Lighthouse Grill is the addition mentioned above where our dinner would be, as it will fit 50 people comfortably and that's what our guest list is looking like right now. Here are photos of the room from the website:
Not the greatest shot, but you can see that it is an open floorplan with lots of windows!
Behind the sign you can see the outside of the Lighthouse Grill, with a cute patio right outside.We tested out the food last weekend with Mr. Cupcake's parents, and everything was delicious (not to mention the sublime desserts.... I suggested that we skip dinner altogether and just have a Rehearsal Dessert, but this idea was overruled :-) ) The service was professional and friendly with all of the servers dressed in a shirt and tie, and it was clear to us that they hold a very high standard of service so this is not something we would have to worry about. Basically, we were all sold and decided to look no further!
Our guests will be able to choose from a soup or salad, one of three entrees, and one of two desserts (*sigh...* we really have to narrow it down to two???). I'm really excited about another thing checked off the list, and I think The Ship Inn is exactly what we were looking for. I like that it's different from the rest of our wedding, and I'm already envisioning some cute nautical-themed invitations ;-)
Here are a few more photos I took while we were there (all exterior):
Did you have an easy time finding your rehearsal dinner location, or was your decision made quickly after testing out only one place, like us?
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