Rehearsal Dinner - Champp's Americana, Lansing, MI

Grade - A

We used the private room at Champp's and we had a great experience.  The grand total was $770 for 30 guests, including dinner salads, entrees, and alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages.  Kelly, one of the managers, met with us about a month before the wedding to work out the event details (linen colors, centerpieces, etc.) and gave us an extremely generous tasting of various appetizers and entrees.  We wound up choosing 6 menu items for our event, which were offered to guests on menus specially prepared by Kelly.  The food was delicious and the waitstaff was attentive, though slow at times.  We were supposed to do drink tickets (giving guests two alcoholic drinks each), but the waiter kept track of everyone's consumption so we didn't end up using the tickets.  We were very pleased with the service we received and had a wonderful time working with the Champp's staff.

Rehearsal Dinner Cake - Cake Art, Lansing, MI

Grade - A+

Beth Henderson, the owner, runs a bakery out of her home.  I ordered a half-sheet, which cost me $45.  The decoration on the cake was ADORABLE (a little stick figure bride and groom with some writing) and the cake was moist and delicious.  We were given 10 flavors of cake samples to try, and we wound up picking two for our cake.  Several people asked me who made the cake because they wanted to order from her for upcoming graduations and birthdays.  She was a great find.