Love Letters

Gianna,

People are always so quick to complain when things go wrong and sometimes forget to say words about what was so right.

YOU and every single person who we dealt with from every aspect of that day were amazing!!!!!  We had people telling us yesterday how great the staff was and how courteous and friendly.  We of course noticed it but to have people tell you also is such a plus!  We dealt with so many that day and I have to say from the bridal suite staff all the way down to the overnight person and a cleaning woman we saw, everyone the same.  They would bend over backwards for you and genuinely personable.  You have a tight run ship there and it shows by what an amazing event we had.

You helped us out so much from the beginning of our journey at Mallard, which wasn’t to long ago, to the very end.  Not only are you a true professional, but a personable person and you can so tell that you love what your doing and want the best for people.  Sometimes it probably can be a pain in the a—- but you handle it like a true pro.  It truly is amazing what goes on before the actual wedding those last 2 days especially.  The day of was the best experience because as parents you are so nervous and we have to say YOU and everyone were amazing.  So nice to relax and enjoy the big day without worrying about anything.  A memory of a lifetime (in more ways then one lol I will forward the video over to you of Mitch’s announcement at the very end of his speech).
Shayna had the wedding of her dreams.  As you know she was there as a little girl with her Pop Pop who worked for Chris and fell in love with Mallard.

Again, we can’t thank you enough.  You are a hard, dedicated worker and also a nice person.  Best of Luck to you in the future.

All the best,
Mitch and Sherry F.

Hi Patty,

First of all, thank YOU for making our wedding beyond our wildest dreams (pandemic or no pandemic). It was the most perfect day, and you were a HUGE part of that. Thank you for everything.

We will be sure to keep in touch! Thank you again!

All our best,
Cassie and Ian

Dear Laura,

GI & I would like to send our gratitude to you & the rest of the Merri-Makers & Ashford Estate staff for bringing our vision to life on our wedding day.

We thank everyone who was involved from the beginning up to the very end of our special day, no matter how minor the role was. You all knew how to make it as stress-free as possible ensuring that we remember to eat, dance and to enjoy our day. I just binge-watched The Crown & I would like to send a shout-out to Taylor & Bethany for making me feel like the Queen of England that day.

We’d also like to share that our family & guests were truly impressed by the event, some of them even saying that at least they get to experience this in their lifetime. They kept on raving about how beautiful the estate was and that the quality of food and service were impeccable. Everyone had fun with the cocktail hour selections and couldn’t say no. Even my brother, who’s a chef & picky-eater, rushed to me during dinner just to say that his steak was wonderfully seasoned & melt-in-your-mouth, cooked to perfection.

It was a wonderful event and we’re glad that it was our wedding day. Happy, we think, isn’t even enough to say how delighted we were to choose & put our trust in Ashford & Merrimakers to celebrate this life event.

Once again, thank you and we will cherish this event always.

Much love,

Jeliz & GI

Hi Rick…

Now that the dust has settled, I want to reach out to you and thank you so very much for your patience, professionalism and soft guidance on how to proceed with Catie‘s wedding when the weather started to turn bad. It was a rough go but the day turned out perfect because of you and your team. Our guests thoroughly enjoyed the food and the atmosphere. When our journey started with Catie‘s engagement to Jeff, we never would have thought that it would have turned out to be so incredibly stressful ….. I would not wish a Covid wedding on anyone.  But your guidance was my lifeline to sanity… Ha ha ha ha!

Thank you so much and I pray that the next wedding season is much less stressful for you! God bless.

Dear Gianna, Justin, Rick & Team,

We cannot thank you enough for all your help and work you put in to make our wedding so perfect!  We could not have pulled off a safe and beautiful wedding without you.

The food and service was even better than we could have asked for.

Thank you again from the bottom of our hearts.  Have a happy & healthy holiday!

Love,

Nicole & Brian P.

Hi Laura!

I just wanted to let you know that we were all thrilled with how everything turned out on Saturday. Your entire staff at the Ashford is amazing!  Geri (I apologize if spelling is incorrect) was there whenever I may have needed her. She actually anticipated things before I did and was ready. And she always had my next drink ready!  My daughter Lauren had only good things to say about Taylor and Lauren- they were so attentive and such lovely girls. Also many thanks to Justin too as we knew he was there to handle anything that may have come up. We soon realized after being there only a few hours that morning that we were in very capable hands which helped us relax and enjoy the day.

A big thank you to you for always being available to all of us whenever we had questions or concerns – which we did ever since the original wedding date had to be postponed.  You were a pleasure to work with!

The food must not go unmentioned as it was amazing.  We were so pleased with our selections for the cocktail hour.  And I am so thankful that the staff put together a generous sampling for Lauren and Joseph to enjoy privately. They then did the same for Paul and me and I’m so glad they did. I spent so much time socializing and greeting people during the cocktail hour and didn’t really try the food until we had our private sampling. As for the main course- the steak was cooked to perfection and the halibut was absolutely delicious.

We received so many compliments on the wedding reception. We knew that the venue and it’s beautiful grounds would be gorgeous. We knew that that food would be delicious and it was. But what truly made the day run so beautifully was you and your team.

Many thanks!

Caroline

My review will likely be a little long, but my experience with Merri-Makers Catering was nothing short of exceptional, and in a time when there are a lot of brides feeling unsure, I hope that this provides some comfort and confidence in your decision-making because if you book with Merri-Makers, you will not be sorry. When I booked my wedding at The Mallard Island Yacht Club for June 19, 2020, at that time Merri-Makers was not the caterer for the property yet but were going to be as of 2021. In the early days of COVID-19, my original wedding date was cancelled, and we picked a back-up date of July 24, 2020. Just about 8 weeks before the new date, the original caterer ended up having to close their operations and Merri-Makers took over earlier than their scheduled date. As stressful as it was to have to start over with a new caterer on top of everything else, I cannot even begin to express how much it turned out to be the greatest blessing in disguise. We were introduced to Gianna, who over the course of the next 8 weeks became our lifeline, our greatest cheerleader, our strategist, and most importantly, our friend. I can’t imagine anyone else putting in the time and effort that she did and being so dedicated to making our wedding how we were envisioning it and keeping it within the ever-changing constraints set by the state. At one point we had 3 different plans, layouts, and menus. She had a back-up plan for her back-up plan and she and the team at Merri-Makers were not going to give up on giving us our dream wedding. We ended up bringing the entire wedding completely outside, utilizing the beautiful veranda for our seating instead of the ballroom and it was gorgeous. We were able to have all of our family and bridal party there to celebrate with us, and it was the perfect evening. I haven’t even gotten to the food yet, which was absolutely fabulous. We have two big (and opinionated) Italian families, and all we heard from everyone was how incredible the food was. I’ve had multiple people tell me that the filet was not just a good “wedding filet,” but one of the best filets they have ever had, period. There is a reason Merri-Makers has been around 40 years, they are the best at what they do. The best part of all of this was not only did everyone walk away saying that it really felt just like a completely “normal” wedding, but because Merri-Makers took every precaution possible (temp checks, masks, gloves, sanitizing stations, etc. ) every single guest at my wedding also walked away completely safe and healthy. There just aren’t enough words to express how grateful we are to Gianna and her staff at Mallard Island, as well as all of Merri-Makers for making our dream wedding happen. If you are considering Mallard Island, or any of the Merri-Makers properties, do not hesitate at all and know going in that you have the best of the best catering your special day.

Dear Rick-

On April 23, we sent Patty, our Event Coordinator, an email with an invitation for Merri-Makers to collaborate with us to turn our annual fundraiser into an at-home virtual event, The Online Broadway Bash.

Six weeks later, on June 4, your refrigerated truck pulled into its familiar spot in the theatre’s parking lot to deliver 119 pre-packaged, four-course meals for our volunteers to pick up and deliver to our VIPs from the shores of the Raritan Bay to the banks of the Toms River.

You and your team took on this unique task with the same hands-on, service oriented approach and culinary expertise we were introduced to at last year’s Broadway Bash, and executed the project helpfully and flawlessly.

Speaking with participants in the days following the event, time and time again we’re getting the same feedback regarding the meal: “It was delicious!”

The success of this dinner-at-home endeavor provided a unique way for us to connect with our supporters during a time when we otherwise wouldn’t have much opportunity to do so.  By the time the internet stream of The Online Broadway Bash had ended shortly after 9pm, we had met or exceeded every financial goal we had for this event including our live appeal for donations.

Thank you for playing a major role in making this event a success.  We look forward to working with you again.

Best regards,

David A.