Crooked Creek Ranch on Lake Leelanau Reviews

Reviews

• Lori J. Sent on 09/07/2016
  3.8 out of 5 rating

  3.8
  • Quality of service
    4.5 out of 5 rating
    4.5
  • Average response time
    2.5 out of 5 rating
    2.5
  • Professionalism
    3.5 out of 5 rating
    3.5
  • Value
    4.5 out of 5 rating
    4.5
  • Flexibility
    4.0 out of 5 rating
    4.0

  The venue was gorgeous and perfect. We had several wedding guests approach us asking how we found the location because they enjoyed it so much. It truly was beautiful, and the photos were amazing. So many people had a delightful time because the property was so open and serene.
  
  They were able to enjoy walking near the water and sitting outside the barn with their friends. There was so much to see on the property! We rented golf carts, and they were definitely useful!
  
  Our wedding was also during a time of year in which it wasn’t too hot in the barn. There is no A/C, so that is one thing to consider if you are inviting a lot of guests. I could see how a hot day would be very uncomfortable in the barn.
  
  I will agree with the previous posters that it was difficult to receive information from the venue owner in a timely manner. I knew that detail going into my agreement with her because I had read the previous posts, so I think I was prepared for it.
  
  Basically, the owner is just not good with email or administrative details.
  
  I think she could really use an assistant to handle all of her correspondence, calendars, and price lists. It’s hard to get an answer to more than one question at a time via email, which can be frustrating.
  
  It is best to have communication via telephone if you’d like to have prompt answers. It’s nice to have agreements in writing, however.
  
  The food was delicious. We received compliments about how great it was from various guests.
  
  We did, however, run out of of one of the main entrees (we had two) before all of the tables were invited to eat. We were assured this wouldn’t happen and even had slightly fewer guests at the wedding than we planned. Not sure why this occurred, but that would be my only complaint about the food. We had plenty of the other entree.
  
  Overall, we had a wonderful time. The photos were stunning, and our guests loved it!

  The venue was gorgeous and perfect. We had several wedding guests approach us asking how we found the location because they enjoyed it so much. It truly was beautiful, and the photos were amazing. So many people had a delightful time because the property was so open and serene.
  
  They were able to enjoy walking near the water and sitting outside the barn with their friends. There was so much to see on the property! We rented golf carts, and they were definitely useful!
  
  Our wedding was also during a time of year in which it wasn’t too hot in the barn. There is no A/C, so that is one thing to consider if you are inviting a lot of guests. I could see how a hot day would be very uncomfortable in the barn.
  
  I will agree with the previous posters that it was difficult to receive information from the venue owner in a timely manner. I knew that detail going into my agreement with her because I had read the previous posts, so I think I was prepared for it.
  
  Basically, the owner is just not good with email or administrative details.
  
  I think she could really use an assistant to handle all of her correspondence, calendars, and price lists. It’s hard to get an answer to more than one question at a time via email, which can be frustrating.
  
  It is best to have communication via telephone if you’d like to have prompt answers. It’s nice to have agreements in writing, however.
  
  The food was delicious. We received compliments about how great it was from various guests.
  
  We did, however, run out of of one of the main entrees (we had two) before all of the tables were invited to eat. We were assured this wouldn’t happen and even had slightly fewer guests at the wedding than we planned. Not sure why this occurred, but that would be my only complaint about the food. We had plenty of the other entree.
  
  Overall, we had a wonderful time. The photos were stunning, and our guests loved it!
• 
  User2080639 Sent on 03/29/2015
  1.8 out of 5 rating

  1.8
  • Quality of service
    2.0 out of 5 rating
    2.0
  • Average response time
    1.0 out of 5 rating
    1.0
  • Professionalism
    1.5 out of 5 rating
    1.5
  • Value
    3.0 out of 5 rating
    3.0
  • Flexibility
    1.5 out of 5 rating
    1.5

  As the poster above writes, terrible responsiveness, empty promises and truly chaos until roughly the day of the wedding..
  
  Many missed spots and awkward exchanges from prior to even contract signing (should've known) until day of wedding. Venue is perfect and everyone enjoyed the wedding, but Pam Leonard truly makes you question if even putting a complete wedding together is worth it.
  
  She offers no assistance beyond what her barn provides and even that is bleak and sporadic. For as much work as is put into creation of this day by the bride and groom, you'd be much better off renting a large house in northern Michigan and doing it all without the controlling dictator of someone like Pam. In the end, things turned out, but we had to be much more flexible than 2 people getting married needed to be. Would I do it again with Crooked Creek, or "wine country weddings" haha, NO!
  
  If you have patience, $$ and minimal expectations, you'll possibly get what you want.
  
  Best of luck with wedding planning!

  As the poster above writes, terrible responsiveness, empty promises and truly chaos until roughly the day of the wedding..
  
  Many missed spots and awkward exchanges from prior to even contract signing (should've known) until day of wedding. Venue is perfect and everyone enjoyed the wedding, but Pam Leonard truly makes you question if even putting a complete wedding together is worth it.
  
  She offers no assistance beyond what her barn provides and even that is bleak and sporadic. For as much work as is put into creation of this day by the bride and groom, you'd be much better off renting a large house in northern Michigan and doing it all without the controlling dictator of someone like Pam. In the end, things turned out, but we had to be much more flexible than 2 people getting married needed to be. Would I do it again with Crooked Creek, or "wine country weddings" haha, NO!
  
  If you have patience, $$ and minimal expectations, you'll possibly get what you want.
  
  Best of luck with wedding planning!
• Brandon K. Sent on 08/16/2014
  1.7 out of 5 rating

  1.7
  • Quality of service
    1.5 out of 5 rating
    1.5
  • Average response time
    0.5 out of 5 rating
    0.5
  • Professionalism
    0.5 out of 5 rating
    0.5
  • Value
    4.0 out of 5 rating
    4.0
  • Flexibility
    2.0 out of 5 rating
    2.0

  I'll start off by saying that the VENUE itself was worth all the money we paid...BUT our main and SOLE issue was Pam Leonard, who was our point of contact for the wedding. Let me list our experiences with her:
  
  1. We were promised on three separate occasions that their horse would be added in for free if we wanted to use it for pictures. She told this to me, my bride, and my bride's parents. When we finally got our invoice, it would be a $200 charge.
  2. We are required to use their caterers which isn't a problem because the food ended up being great the day of, however, at our first taste testing, the chef was sick so she offered us another tasting free of charge because she was "embarrassed at how the food came out and wasn't good" (her exact words). We contacted her to book it later, and she had no idea why we were going to get another. We had to reminded her why and finally got another one booked via email. We drove from Washington DC where we lived months later to her restaurant and when we were 30 minutes away we got a call from her asking why we were coming. She completely forgot we were coming, forgot why she offered it to us, and said "sorry, but we don't have room for you to come today" and didn't even apologize. We wasted 10 hours on the road. I saved the emails and VM as proof.
  3. She took FOREVER to respond to us and our wedding planner regarding everything until the 4 days or so before the wedding. Literally took weeks to get back to us even though we were on a timeline. Perfect example is she sent us our 90 DAY REMINDER LESS THAN 30 DAYS BEFORE THE WEDDING. I have the emails as proof.
  4. She gave us our venue & catering INVOICE THREE DAYS BEFORE THE WEDDING and only gave us two options to pay (certified check or money order), and it was DUE SAME DAY. We were out of state from DC in MI w/no access to our bank, so we had to wire her the entire amount within 12 hours. I have the emails still as proof.
  
  If you're ok with the madness, book the venue!

  I'll start off by saying that the VENUE itself was worth all the money we paid...BUT our main and SOLE issue was Pam Leonard, who was our point of contact for the wedding. Let me list our experiences with her:
  
  1. We were promised on three separate occasions that their horse would be added in for free if we wanted to use it for pictures. She told this to me, my bride, and my bride's parents. When we finally got our invoice, it would be a $200 charge.
  2. We are required to use their caterers which isn't a problem because the food ended up being great the day of, however, at our first taste testing, the chef was sick so she offered us another tasting free of charge because she was "embarrassed at how the food came out and wasn't good" (her exact words). We contacted her to book it later, and she had no idea why we were going to get another. We had to reminded her why and finally got another one booked via email. We drove from Washington DC where we lived months later to her restaurant and when we were 30 minutes away we got a call from her asking why we were coming. She completely forgot we were coming, forgot why she offered it to us, and said "sorry, but we don't have room for you to come today" and didn't even apologize. We wasted 10 hours on the road. I saved the emails and VM as proof.
  3. She took FOREVER to respond to us and our wedding planner regarding everything until the 4 days or so before the wedding. Literally took weeks to get back to us even though we were on a timeline. Perfect example is she sent us our 90 DAY REMINDER LESS THAN 30 DAYS BEFORE THE WEDDING. I have the emails as proof.
  4. She gave us our venue & catering INVOICE THREE DAYS BEFORE THE WEDDING and only gave us two options to pay (certified check or money order), and it was DUE SAME DAY. We were out of state from DC in MI w/no access to our bank, so we had to wire her the entire amount within 12 hours. I have the emails still as proof.
  
  If you're ok with the madness, book the venue!
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• Bob Sent on 11/24/2016
  1.4 out of 5 rating

  1.4
  • Quality of service
    1.0 out of 5 rating
    1.0
  • Average response time
    1.0 out of 5 rating
    1.0
  • Professionalism
    1.0 out of 5 rating
    1.0
  • Value
    2.0 out of 5 rating
    2.0
  • Flexibility
    2.0 out of 5 rating
    2.0

  I will echo much of what was said in the review below. Pam was a nightmare to work with. We were warned by two different couples that got married at Crooked Creek previously that Pam would make things very difficult so I went into the agreement with low expectations and somehow I still underestimated how bad it would be. I was told to get everything signed and in writing. This turned out to be good advice because she never ‘remembers’ anything offered or discussed.
  
  I wish this form offered me the room to share all the issues I had with Pam from early planning to day-of but the character limit is constraining me, here are the highlights;
  - Very unresponsive, then blamed us for miscommunications (this happened many times over)
  - Hours late for property visits and menu tastings
  - Constantly spoke down to us like children, treated us like we were stuck in her contract (we were)
  - Sent final catering agreement a week before event, then demanded we sign, return and attach payment asap
  - Not helpful day-of, and interrupted/criticized bride when vendors were not meeting expectations
  - Many vendors share negative views of Pam and used us as a sounding board.
  
  Ultimately we have fond memories of our our wedding and the venue was beautiful, but getting there was way more effort and stress than it needed to be. I don’t take any pleasure in publicly disparaging a business but I can’t recommend one that is operated with such flagrant disregard of basic professionalism, integrity and courtesy. There are many beautiful venues in Northern Michigan, I encourage you to look around.

  I will echo much of what was said in the review below. Pam was a nightmare to work with. We were warned by two different couples that got married at Crooked Creek previously that Pam would make things very difficult so I went into the agreement with low expectations and somehow I still underestimated how bad it would be. I was told to get everything signed and in writing. This turned out to be good advice because she never ‘remembers’ anything offered or discussed.
  
  I wish this form offered me the room to share all the issues I had with Pam from early planning to day-of but the character limit is constraining me, here are the highlights;
  - Very unresponsive, then blamed us for miscommunications (this happened many times over)
  - Hours late for property visits and menu tastings
  - Constantly spoke down to us like children, treated us like we were stuck in her contract (we were)
  - Sent final catering agreement a week before event, then demanded we sign, return and attach payment asap
  - Not helpful day-of, and interrupted/criticized bride when vendors were not meeting expectations
  - Many vendors share negative views of Pam and used us as a sounding board.
  
  Ultimately we have fond memories of our our wedding and the venue was beautiful, but getting there was way more effort and stress than it needed to be. I don’t take any pleasure in publicly disparaging a business but I can’t recommend one that is operated with such flagrant disregard of basic professionalism, integrity and courtesy. There are many beautiful venues in Northern Michigan, I encourage you to look around.