vancouverpetunia

Hello fellow Sapphire brides! We were in PDC last week for a last minute vacation and had the opportunity to visit Now Sapphire, meet with Juan Carlos and do a menu tasting. Overall the food was all very good, but I thought you might be interested in our opinions on the food we tried. Keep in mind that with different cooks in the kitchen at any time, I'm sure the quality could vary somewhat, but these were our experiences. Anything with a * was a favorite. Cold hors d'oeuvres Sushi & Nigiri - This came with a wide variety of items - I think 5. We found the rice was undercooked, but Juan Carlos also commented on that and said that it is usually better and that he really likes the sushi there. He even mentioned it to the manager. Note that a lot of the rolls included cream cheese, which is not my favorite, so if you want to avoid that, you could try making a special request. * Sliced tomato & mozarella al pesto - Delicious & very fresh tasting. Good vegetarian option. * Prosciutto ham bruschetta - Loved this as well. * Shredded beef mini tostada - Super yummy! Hot hors d'oeuvres * Beef brochettes with rosemary sauce - Beef was super tender. I think it also came with zucchini on the skewer? Oh, and the skewer was a rosemary stem. Fried shrimp & bacon - This was one large prawn wrapped in bacon on a skewer. FI loved this (of couse). I liked it and I do normally think "everything's better with bacon", but the bacon on mine was very fatty. I think his was more meaty. Luck of the draw, Cheese and bell pepper turnovers - These would be better described as empanadas. Not a lot of flavor though. Mini cordon bleu - Came with a sauce that was quite tasty, but overall thought it was pretty standard stuff. Fried chicken taquitos - A bit dry & bland. * Pork baked in leaves "sopes" - This was shredded pork and a sopes is sort of like a tostada. Absolutely amazing. Sweet hors d'oeuvres * Vanilla custard flan - Traditional and very good. * Coffee eclair - This was more like a mini cream puff, coated in chocolate, with a coffee cream filling. Yummy. * Mexican fritters with powdered cinnamon sugar - Also like a mini cream puff, filled with whipping cream. Amazing. Mini cheesecake - Admittedly cheesecake is not my fav, but this also seemed a bit dry. Appetizers * Marinated fish ceviche (Eternity Menu) - I LOVE ceviche and this was very nicely done and beautifully presented. * Mixed lettuce and shrimps, diced mango and ginger, mango dressing (Divine Menu) - This was so pretty to look at! I can't believe I didn't take a picture. It's actually 2 large prawns and the salad part is rolled inside a thin slice of cucumber. Hard to describe, but you get a "salad roll" and then the 2 prawns. Soups * Tomato chicken broth with corn tortilla strips, etc. (Eternity Menu) - Typical tortilla soup with a tomato based broth. Very tasty. Creamy lobster soup, brandy scented (Divine Menu) - Would describe this as a bisque. It was too rich for my tastes, but I'm sure some people would love it. Main Courses (all Divine Menu) Supreme of chicken stuffed with seafood - I didn't find this had a lot of flavor and the meat was a bit dry. The champagne sauce is cream based. Surf & turf of beef filet and shrimps, etc. - This was a filet mignon and 2 prawns. The sauce was very rich. The meat was not as tender as I would expect and there was quite a bit of gristle. * Beef filet bordelaise - So tender & delicious! Liked the potatoes as well. Desserts (all Divine Menu) Pistaccio panacota - Nice, not too heavy. * Cognac truffle cake - OMG chocolate covered chocolate mousse. To die for. I wish I had taken more pictures. I don't know why I didn't. But everything was beautifully presented. I definitely found that the descriptions can be somewhat misleading so you might want to inquire further if there is anything specific that is important to you. In our case, my FI is lactose intolerant (but I'm not letting that stop us from a good meal - too bad for him LOL), and I was surprised that some of the items included cream, cheese or other dairy product. I wouldn't have known that from the description. Anyhow, I hope this helps with your menu planning. Let me know if you have any questions!

We were just in PDC last week. Before we left, there was lots of rain & thundershowers showing up in the forecast. But while we were there, it rained only once, and I would barely even call that rain. We didn't even bother to get up off our loungers. I've been to the area 5 times and now and, as others have mentioned, these forecasts don't seem to be all that accurate. Or the forecast images are misleading. If you drill down into the forecast details, you might find that it's only a 30 or 40% chance of less than 5mm of rain (0.2 inches). And it can also be isolated - so it might rain a little further away in the jungle, but not at the beach. If it does rain, your WC will make sure everything goes smoothly. They are experts at this and know how to handle it. But my WC told me that he only had to move 4 weddings inside last year! Fingers crossed for you!

By cocktail hour, you mean the one included in your package? We're at Now Sapphire but the packages are the same. I'd hate to forego it, since it is included for 25 people. I am considering not ordering additional appies for the extra people. I think we'll end up with around 40 people, so everyone would still get 2+ pieces (you get 100 pieces, give or take, depending on what you chose). I mean it's an all-inclusive where probably a lot of people ate lunch late anyhow and dinner will be served shortly. It really irks me that you have to pay an extra $15 per person for the bar, though. The bartender is already there and liquor is included for all resort guests! I think we will probably go ahead with it anyhow. Then again the lobby bar might be a good option if it's not too far from your ceremony/reception location. I'm sure your guests can find their way there [emoji4] Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I've only been a bridesmaid twice and it really was too far to make it to most events. I live in Vancouver and the respective brides live in Portland, OR and Toronto. However thinking back to one wedding where I was a guest, it just seemed like event after event. I remember being somewhat annoyed at the whole thing and all the costs I was incurring (even if money isn't really an issue, it can still bug you). Do keep in mind it's your special day and I'm sure she's very happy and excited for you, but it's your wedding, not hers. We can get very wrapped up in our own excitement and big event but it's probably not the centre of her universe like it is yours Maybe there's even some jealously if she is single? Try not to stress about it and enjoy your friends who can be more involved. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

We're not at that stage yet (just sent out STD 2 weeks ago and wedding not for a year). I have noted on our wedding web site no gifts. But I'm guessing some people, particularly those who can't make the trip, will ask. I'm struggling with how to point the non-travellers to a registry without also including the travellers. I'm thinking parents can help and I guess we just respond individually if asked. If anyone has any other ideas, I would love to hear them. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

@@Smellsey - Sorry thought there was a way to share files through the site (oops I'm a noob). Email is ekjzwedding-at-gmail.com. Thanks. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

@@beckys98 & @racht33 - I think we did the exact same tour in 2010 (Coba, Mayan village & cenote), but unfortunately I don't know the name of the company either I've also done a tour with this organization: http://www.siankaantours.org/en/cont/tours/(Looks like I did a combo of the Muyil Forest & Float and Sian Ka'an Ancient Canal.) I loved floating down the canal and the lunch was delicious. I think they may only be able to handle smaller groups, but it might be worth checking out. @@Smellsey - I haven't started researching any catamaran options, so if you could send your list, that would give me a great head start. Thank you! Anyone who is planning an excursion and planning to also pick up the costs, are you also doing OOT bags, or is the excursion your "thank you" to your guests for coming?

I attended a wedding a few years ago in Tulum where we did a catamaran/snorkeling excursion. It was so much fun that my FI and I are thinking of doing something similar. I'm not sure who paid for the excursion in Tulum, but it was not the guests. We are planning on paying for the excursion ourselves. We are also planning a golf day (lots of avid golfers in our group). We will organize, but guests will need to cover their own costs.

Thanks, @@acw271011! Good point about the lighting!

@@lornj29 We are booked at Now Sapphire for April 2016. We were told we would get 2 main course choices with either the Eternity or Divine packages. Not sure about other packages. The WC told me that the best way to identify who gets what for food is to color-code the place cards - so red for chicken, green for beef and blue for other, or something like that. They should be able to accommodate special requests. I did ask about that, as I have some vegetarians & celiacs (gluten-free) among our guests. On the form we need submit about 1 month before the wedding, it does ask: 10. Do you have allergic or vegetarian people in your group? How many? Please write their names. However, again, that seems to only apply to private dinners, so not sure if it applies to you. I haven't thought far enough ahead as to how I'm going to get guests' meal selections in advance. I am using a Google Form to capture RSVPs and have asked for dietary restrictions there, so at least I have that covered.

@@emmapalmer - Thanks for the suggestions. There are some good ones there that I hadn't thought of. If you find your list or anyone else has any suggestions, I'd be happy to get some more feedback.

@@JenniferH114 - Thank you so much for the vendor info. Better than ordering from the US, even if it's not local. If anyone can recommend a vendor local to Playa del Carmen or Cancun for papel picado, please let me know! @@Jewilso23 - I'm sure everyone is different as to how much time they want or need. We just booked our resort and secured our group rate with Transat last week for our April 2016 wedding. Like @@JenniferH114, I think you probably have a few months, but better sooner than later. I found it took me a long time to decide on the resort, but then I'm really detail-oriented and like to do a lot of research. Take your time and make sure you find the place best suited to you!

@@MrsHK -- Are you still renting out items in the PDC area? Can you send me more details? I may be interested for our Now Sapphire wedding in April 2016. Thank you!

@@JenniferH114 - Where are you sourcing the custom maracas, paper fans and papel picado? I would like to find papel picado in particular. It would be great to source locally or at least from Mexico to avoid shipping costs and/or customs issues. We are getting married in the Mayan Riviera in April 2016. Thank you!

I'm new to this site so hope I'm posting in the right forum. We've booked our wedding for April 2016 at the Now Sapphire. We've recently booked a last minute trip to a nearby resort and have arranged to meet our wedding coordinator at Now Sapphire for a site visit. Does anyone have any tips or suggestions for what I should ask or review while I'm there? We're already booked, so it's not a matter of choosing the resort. I was thinking covering the following topics: Ceremony & reception sites (and alternate sites in case we don't end up liking the ones we've selected or in case we need a back up due to weather) A tour of the property, including: pools, beach, restaurants, bars, kids club and a few different types of guest rooms Possible food tasting? I will also ask if there are any weddings taking place that day so I might be able to see the set up And I will take loads of photos! Any other suggestions? It seems like I have answers to a lot of my other questions and/or they can easily be covered by email or phone in the next year. Since we don't want to spend all of our vacation time doing wedding planning, I'm not planning to meet with outside vendors. I don't plan on adding a lot of extras to the wedding package - maybe additional flowers and minimal additional decor for the reception - so hopefully this is not a big deal. Appreciate any tips! Thanks, Erin