Hi John,

Hoping that the Mahalo crew closer to the home office (which is in Santa Monica) will also be able to field this question with more specific venue suggestions.

I have some general suggestions for where to start, though. If you are a member of a church, other religious organization or social organization, a lot of times they have facilities you can rent out.

Asking friends to host at their house may be another way. Esp someone who has a bigger house. One of the best wedding receptions I went to was 30 people at a friend's house. It was a few hours of eating, drinking and mingling. Much depends on your friends ability to do so.

Hope you get some more specifics for your area but hopefully these general tips can get you started! Congrats and best wishes to you in your marriage!
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We had our wedding reception in the "multipurpose room" at Burton Chace Park in Marina del Rey, as our wedding was held out on the hill near the water. The location is scenic, the cost was very reasonable, and the room easily accommodated the 150+ people that were attending. I don't remember how much notice we had to give (probably more than a month, given that we were coordinating an outdoor event there as well), but it may require some planning to handle the parking, as there's limited spaces available.

The Del Rey Yacht club is right next door, and might make for a very nice reception venue, though I bet it's a bit pricier than the park.

Another favorite in the Santa Monica area is Marix on PCH. Great food, decent parking, excellent location for after-drink walks on the beach.
Source(s):
http://beaches.co.la.ca.us/BandH/Marina/chacepark.htm
http://www.dryc.org/
http://www.marixtexmex.com/index.php

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Here are some locations I was able to come up with:

I know this is not in Santa Monica or Venice but the Culver City Events center has an informal place where you could have your reception.
Here are the prices:
Special Rates Are Available For Events Under 6 Hours.
Tuesday or Wednesday Evening $2500
All day Friday $3500
All day Saturday $4500
All day Sunday $3500
http://www.culverevents.com/events.html

Writers Boot Camp Headquarters
2525 Michigan Ave
Santa Monica, CA 90404
Writers Boot Camp rents out there facility's, for receptions. It is BYO... You can bring your own grill and grill food or have a potluck.
http://www.writersbootcamp.com/backspace.asp

The city of Santa Monica has beach and park locations for rent.
http://www01.smgov.net/ccs/events/flash.html

Santa Monica also has city facility's for rent this link includes prices:
http://www01.smgov.net/comm_progs/parks/park_rentals.htm

Lastly, if you are interested in beach wedding package (not including reception) this company does beach weddings in Santa Monica.
They will also do weddings with less than 30 days notice with a 15% additional fee.
All of the wedding packages include:

Day of Wedding Coordination

Hand-tied Bridal Bouquet

Boutonnière for the Groom

Silk Floral Arrangements and Decor

Fresh Rose Petals for the Aisle (one color)

Recorded Traditional Wedding Music

Legal Filing of Marriage License by Wedding Officiant

Wedding Photographer - Digital Photos on CD (wedding only).

Round Table covered with Damask Table Cloths and decorated with a Silk

Floral Arrangement (Use for guest book, sand ceremony and signing marriage certificate.)

Referrals for accommodations, transportation, caterers and reception facilities (up to four (4) referrals per category).

The wedding packages range from $1,724.00 ($1,209.00 without photographer) to $1,895.00 ($1,380.00 without photographer).
Visit the website below and click on wedding packages, or to go directly to the page click the link under source below.
http://www.mycaliforniabeachwedding.com/

I hope you find the location you are looking for !!!
Mahalo!
Source(s):
http://www.mycaliforniabeachwedding.com/wedding_packages.html

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