A brilliant choice for partners who aren’t looking for a cookie-cutter, off-the-peg , corporate style of wedding, this quirky venue has bags of personality. Located in a converted school house in the historic town of Rayleigh, The Old Parish Rooms blends a traditional setting with cool modern interiors.
The plain white setting makes a serene backdrop for partners looking for a venue with Scandi-style clean lines or is also a blank canvas for couples looking for a venue that they can make their own by decorating it in their own style.
An in-house team is available to guide couples through every step of the wedding process, from the first stages of planning to the big day itself. They also understand that a wedding is, as well as a celebration, a party, too, which is why they work with Toulouse restaurant in Westcliff-on-Sea to lay on food, drink and service as individual as the venue itself.
Wedding packages take in canapés, fork buffets, afternoon tea and sit-down meals, plus party food for the evening. The Bronze package (£60 per adult, £25 per child) features a welcome drink, three-course meal with coffee or tea, half a bottle of house wine, a glass of Prosecco for toasts and evening food.
The top-of-the-range Gold package (£85 / £30) features a glass of Italian Prosecco Spumanti on arrival, canapés, a five-course meal with coffee or tea, half a bottle of wine from the wine selection list, Champagne for toasts, evening food and a one-year anniversary dinner in Toulouse restaurant.
In between is a Silver package (£72/£25), which falls halfway between the two.
Canapés include the likes of smoked chicken and mango tartlets, honey and soy beef brochettes and caramelised onion and goats’ cheese tartlets. The menu proper takes in the likes of starters of Cornish mackerel fillet with baked avocado and chilli tomato concassé followed by slow-braised lamb shank with wholegrain mustard creamed potato, honey parsnip purée, roast vine tomatoes and rosemary jus. Desserts are classic: apple and raisin crumble with hot custard, crème brûlée with short bread biscuit, Eton mess or profiteroles.
The best bit, of course, is always bacon rolls and hot dogs for the evening and, like all of the food here, vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free diets can easily be accommodated.
The venue accomodates 80 for a seated meal, 100 for a stand-up party, 50 for a wedding ceremony or 80 if you're heading to another reception venue afterwards.