Venues: Zenaida Cellars

Hey friends! I'm back with more wedding venue coverage. We went to SLO for Nena's bday a couple weekends ago and checked out 2 more spots while we were there, including Zenaida Cellars in Paso Robles. Here are our thoughts:

• Cost: Towards the top of our limit. (All front runners seem to be falling in the same range at this point, once you consider the site and equipment rental fees.) Zenaida has a site fee, you have to rent tables & chairs, and they also require you to rent both guest units upstairs. If you join their wine club though, you get one night free and I think 10% off the other room--so, it's another expense, but at least you get wine out of it! Of course, you also have to serve their wine at the event--the good news is they charge by bottles opened, rather than a per person fee.
• The Look & Feeling: Very cute. You have the combo of the big tree under which the ceremony would take place, the vineyards, the lawn area, and the balcony where the rooms are upstairs. It's a nice little spot. The only issue is I have to emphasize "little". All your space is this one area, unless you're having a small enough event (70 guests) to use their barrel room for dinner.
• Competitive Edge: It's just cute. Comfortable. Quiet. And the rooms upstairs are definitely a plus. Not only does it provide a place to get ready, but you're also able to move a small after-party upstairs, once the music is turned off at 10pm.

Our overall impression: it's too small for us. They can do an event for up to 150, but that means it's ALL on the lawn area--and that's just all a little too cramped for me (while the change-over from ceremony to reception happens, your guests still hang out in the same space). However, if we were having a small enough event that we'd be able to do dinner in the barrel room, I think this place would probably be topping the list.

Check out photos of a few Zenaida Cellars weddings by Katie DiSimone here.