One of our favorite historic venues in town is Best Place at the Historic Pabst Brewery and this wedding shows what an amazingly romantic space it can be!
For just over $76,000 this couple held a beautiful and fun wedding at Best Place at the Historic Pabst Brewery. Read on to learn more about their wedding vendors and what the this Best Place Pabst wedding cost, but first start with this amazing video from Brian Slawson Photography:
Married In Milwaukee Family Used:
We were excited to see that this couple used several Married In Milwaukee Family Members. Here are the MIM Family Members involved in this wedding at Best Place at Pabst:
- Venue: Best Place at the Historic Pabst Brewery
- Photos: Brian Slawson Photography
- Caterer: Saz’s Catering
- DJ: Sound by Design
- Video: Brian Slawson Photography
- Dress: Strike Bridal Bar
- Photo Booth: Sound by Design
Quick Facts – Best Place at Pabst Wedding:
- Guests: 252
- Ceremony/Reception: Best Place at the Historic Pabst Brewery
- Wedding Date: June 2025
- Total Costs: $76,334
Wedding Essentials ($21,332):
- Invitations/Stationery: $4,040
- Photographer: $3,900 (Brian Slawson Photography)
- Videographer: $3,050 (Brian Slawson Photography)
- Flowers: $6,897 (bouquets, boutonnieres, corsages, ceremony arch, aisle florals, 24 centerpieces, cake flowers, table décor)
- Cake: $1,450
- Wedding Planner: $1,995
Reception and Ceremony Costs ($31,732):
- Reception/Ceremony: $7,000 (Best Place)
- Catering $17,437 (Saz’s Catering)
- Drinks: $0 (not disclosed)
- DJ: $3,495 (Sound By Design)
- Photo Booth: $1,500 (Sound By Design)
- Lighting: $1,500 (Sound By Design)
- Officiant: $0 (friend)
- String Quartet: $800
Attire, Jewelry and Beauty ($9,769):
- Bride’s Dress: $2,815 (Strike Bridal Bar)
- Bride’s Shoes: $119
- Groom’s Shoes: $300
- Groom’s Attire: $1,400
- Tailoring: $410
- Beauty: $2,725 (bride, 5 bridespeople, 3 moms, 2 friends)
- Rings: $2,000
Other Costs ($13,501):
- Rentals: $5,501 (linens, china, dishware)
- Rehearsal Dinner: $0 (gifted by family)
- Wedding Party Gifts: $2,000
- Wedding Favors: $500
- Day-Of Paper Goods: $4,500 (welcome sign, seating charts, menus, ceremony programs, place cards, table numbers, cocktail napkins, signature drink signs, candy bar sign, guestbook sign, In Loving Memory table sign)
- Hotel Suite: $1,000
A Note From The Couple
We asked the couple to tell us about their planning and budgeting process, and this is what they had to say:
The Vision:
We were looking for a romantic, bright, and cheerful wedding that felt elegant without being stuffy. Our inspiration word at all times was “fun,” especially since we had 250 guests–we wanted to keep everyone entertained and captivated throughout the evening.We picked bright colors early on as accents for our wedding – bright pinks, purples, and oranges – and then we brought in gold as a unifying background color for these bright shades and to bring out the rustic wooden walls of the Great Hall. We got married at a brewery in June, so we wanted to have merry, festive, and summery tones throughout!
The Venue:
The moment we toured the Great Hall at Pabst Best Place, we knew it had to be our wedding venue. The gorgeous wooden walls and floor are accented by romantic stained glass windows and a large wooden bar. In addition to feeling meaningful to us, it is a venue we knew would be a crowd-pleaser for our local Milwaukee family and impress our out-of-town first-time Milwaukee visitors.The cherry on top was the prohibition-era speakeasy underneath the Great Hall where our guests could explore all the different rooms and enjoy cocktail hour while the Great Hall was transforming from our ceremony space to our reception space. The entire space felt like Milwaukee, it felt fun, special, down-to-earth, and festive, and it felt like us.
The Photographer and Videographer:
The first vendor we booked after selecting our venue was our photographer and videographer. We were looking for a photographer who could create unique photographs that did not feel overly posed, and who made us feel comfortable having our photos taken. As soon as we saw Brian Slawson Photography website, we knew he was the one.His photos are works of art – they are unique, and he uses light, shadow, and creative angles to capture the most beautiful and flattering photos. We also loved that he has a videography package available in addition to photography, which made booking his services a breeze. He used drones to capture really cool birds-eye views at our engagement shoot and again at our wedding and made us feel so at-ease and special for every shot.
The Florist:
Color was extremely important to us–we knew we wanted to use color to create a merry and upbeat atmosphere for our guests, to accentuate our marriage in a brewery. We worked with Maggie at North Gate Floral, who created the most beautiful color combinations and arrangements.Our guests raved all night–and continue to this day–about the centerpieces, floral arch, bouquets, cake flowers, etc. The colors were so vibrant and romantic, and exactly what we were looking for. Maggie was able to accentuate the beauty of the flowers with greenery and her extensive rentals collection – her pillar and taper candles, bud vases, and lamps brought our vision home.
The DJ:
Hosting a wedding for 250 guests, we knew we wanted a DJ who could keep everyone on their feet and having fun. We picked Sound by Design based on their wedding packages (we added-on the Photo Booth and dance floor lighting), which created the mood we were going for. Together with the glow stick batons we ordered for our guests, they kept the party going!The Day Of Paper Goods:
Continuing our color theme into our day-of paper goods was extremely important to us. We worked with Bay View Printing, and Daniela created a beautiful and unified set of paper items, including cocktail napkins with artwork of our cats, signature drink signs with more artwork of our cats, and table numbers with our childhood photos on them, to bring our vision of festivity, color, and personality together. We focused a lot of our budget into our paper items and are very glad that we did.The Day Of Coordinator:
We cannot recommend Katie from Willow and Waylon Events enough! We could not have pulled off our wedding–with all the moving parts, guests, and details–without her.She answered every question we had in the months leading up to the wedding, calmed us down at our rehearsal and got everyone in line, picked up, set up, and took down our decor, and is just an all-around amazing person. Pulling off a 250-person wedding with no snafus is not easy, but Katie did it! All in all, a trusted planner/day-of-coordinator like Katie is an essential for a large summer wedding.
– The Happy Couple
A BIG thanks to the couple for sharing the Cost Breakdown of their wedding at Best Place at the Historic Pabst Brewery and to Brian Slawson Photography for the amazing photos!
If you’re currently working on your wedding budget, make sure to read through our previous Cost Breakdown articles featuring real Milwaukee wedding cost breakdowns.
