Stan Mansion

We recently attended a wedding at Stan Mansion and all I have to say is WOW. From the exterior to the interior this place is amazing. The staff was friendly and very helpful. I noticed the manager running around to accommodate anyone and everyone in her path. (Blonde young lady) we had a wonderful evening and my niece (the bride) is still gushing.

I had my retirement party at Stan Mansion with my cousin on May 22, 2016, and people are STILL asking me about it! Stan Mansion is a beautiful, quintessential and inviting venue. Cera Stan and her staff provided impeccable service and are warm and inviting… they make you feel like royalty. Cera made sure my party was a success and it was fantastic! I highly recommend Stan Mansion for any occasion!

I wish I could give a review in general… have been trying to get in contact with someone at stan mansion for the last year. I have sent emails and left voicemails and no one has yet to return my call.

I knew I wanted to get married in this mansion from the moment I saw the ballroom. This venue is nothing short of gorgeous. All of our guests were impressed with the details of the mansion. It is the type of venue for a more hands on planner but the coordinators (Lale, Cera, and Elena) will make sure your day goes on with minimal to no issues. It is very spacious with a great bar area for cocktail hour and the beauty of all of the different spaces provide ready made photo backdrops.

I had my wedding ceremony and reception at Stan Mansion this past September. The space is beautiful and I loved the old-​world charm it has. The bridal suite was recently redone and is gorgeous, so I highly recommend renting it. The lobby is also big and welcoming. We had both our ceremony and reception in the ballroom.
The pros: the overall look of the venue, the price is reasonable for Chicago, and it’s very unique compared to hotels and banquet centers.
The Cons:
Here is where I feel really let down. I had a hard time from the very beginning getting my emails answered in a timely manner, if at all. When I did get responses, they were short, curt, and usually not answering all of my questions.
The ballroom is also old and in dire need of a paint job. It was just… dirt/​dingy. Sure with the lights dimmed, you can’t tell as much, but it really needs a good cleaning.
We also hired Kevin as our day of coordinator and I had no idea where he was the whole day. I saw him at the beginning and when I walked down the aisle, but that’s it. I don’t think they had the A/​C on and it was the hottest day of the summer. I sweat through my wedding dress before the reception. Some guests even left because they just said it was too hot. That is unacceptable! I kept asking people to turn the air on and they said they’d try to find Kevin, which turned into no one can find Kevin. We did have a mishap with our flowers, and I know he went to help with that, but that was before the wedding even started, so not seeing him for the entire 7 hour event isn’t exactly what I was hoping for. He was also rude to my officiant (my opinion, I guess).
Also, the floor in the ballroom is disgusting. A lot of time, at receptions, guests take off their shoes and dance. The bottom of people’s feet were pitch black within an hour of dancing. I’ve never seen that at a wedding before. The carpet, too, is stained and dirty. It was a tad embarrassing.
Overall, for the amount of money I spent on the venue and decorating it, you’re better off going somewhere that will have attentive staff and more conveniences… like A/​C apparently. I know they have it, but perhaps they just use it sparingly.

I have not signed a contract here (yet)… but absolutely loved both the space and the employees (and owner). We were greeted just moments after walking into the building and instantly felt welcomed. Lisa also came down moments after arriving, and was super patient with our group throughout the entire tour.
Side note: I visited the space with my mother and two aunties. All three of which are extremely vocal and opinionated, and Lisa was just awesome!
After the tour, we met with Sara/​Sarah… and we were just blown away. She’s absolutely amazing at both «keeping it real,» and being helpful. We literally all sat there discussing ideas and nearby restaurants to check out.
The space itself is beautiful. Plain at first sight — but it has the potential to be transformed into ANYTHING you want! Sarah/​Sarah has photos of many different weddings that have been hosted there, and each one was breathtaking.
Worth visiting! I think the only thing taking me aback is the fact that parking is a block away… I read a review stating they offered valet parking, so I’ll have to look into that :)
Congrats on getting engaged, I hope you pay Stan Mansion a visit. I promise you won’t regret it!

I had 2 events for 2 years with Stan Mansion. Both times were to expectations, and i still feel we were taken care of. I have been in and out of the mansion and seen it transform for different events, price points, budgets and needs. I believe the space has the flexibility to be transformed to whatever they dream depending on budget. Cera has always been gracious and helpful especially when I had a row with my original caterer. I agree the entrance maybe a bit wanting, but it opens up the ballroom and the bar to its majesty it deserves.

I have had the pleasure of visiting the Stan Mansion on 2 occasions.
The first time back in October 2008 for my first Unilocal Event which was the infamous Halloween party that still gets talked about to this day.
The 2^nd time was this past weekend at a friends wedding reception which was a heck of a party… definitely a blast!
A nice, beautiful space as the main room is quite spacious and can accommodate any kind of event. There is another area opposite of this room as both times I’ve been here it housed the drinks and dessert options.

If you are looking for the quintessence of vintage elegance, look no further. The unique building can be done up however you like and Kevin will help make that happen, but vintage elegance is its natural beauty. Cera and Kevin have such an inviting approach to help make your perceptual ideas a reality for any big occasion, especially your wedding! Everytime my wife and I threw an idea to Kevin he would show us decorations that he had to give us a better visual idea. Best part was, if we liked the decorations, we could use them for FREE.
Stan Mansion works with ample «partner» companies that frequent the venue. Whether it’s lighting/​draping, food/​liquor (catering), photo booths, etc. Kevin has a company and contact info for you to get what you want at the price you want. Not to mention the venue itself is affordable and will make for one of the most beautiful weddings in the city.
All that aside, Kevin is the real deal. If you decide to make this your venue, he will make certain that everything is as you requested and goes above and beyond to create your perfect evening. It wasn’t until my wife and I got to our honeymoon, did my wife remember to tell me how Kevin went from awesome to incredible. Kevin knew she wanted Champagne served for the actual ceremony. Being a hectic day, she forgot the flutes and Kevin went and bought some on his own and made it all happen. Still haven’t found the time since the honeymoon ended to properly thank him.
2 thumbs up, 5 stars, 10/10…any way there is to express that this venue, ownership and staff is top notch, I will!
Thanks for the memories. I’m acutally hoping we have friends get married here in the future. I want to relive the night.
Amanda and Garrett (Shad)

Wonderful space and Cera Stan has done a wonderful job restoring the building. Definitely consider it for an event space. The rooms are beautiful and can accommodate small or large groups. They work with a long list of caterers, musicians, florists and valet services.

My husband I had our wedding reception at the Stan Mansion on 8÷9÷14 and could not have been happier. Working with Kevin, the Stan Mansion’s coordinator, was honestly the best decision I made in the entire planning process for my wedding.
First, the Stan Mansion is an amazing venue to mix up all the hotel weddings in Chicago. It’s a beautiful, historic building with a gorgeous marble lobby and an amazingly stunning bar upstairs. We loved what a large space it is, and the different areas of the venue for guests to enjoy. I agree with some other Unilocalers that on first glance in visiting, some things looks a little dingy. But seriously, the day of with everything in place, they made it perfect.
Kevin let me drop off everything a few days before, and went over the timing of everything enough times to soothe my very Type-​A personality. The security they hired were the nicest people and took care of everything.
Thanks for creating our dream wedding!

I have to admit, I was a bit nervous when we first rented the place. I thought it was going to take a lot of money and drapery to really make the place look nice, but to our surprise, a few months before the wedding we met with our vendor there and they had touched up the paint, cleaned the carpets and installed new lighting at the bar. It look beautiful! I was so happy!!! They even had new air conditioning put in and everything. The place was beautiful.
The only thing that bothered me was that it det a little hot in there and we paid for mandatory security that showed up extremely late.
But besides that, the wedding was perfect and I was extremely happy with the place. I loved the fact that we could bring our own vendors and even have our liquor delivered.

Their website advertised an open house, so I’m still wondering why when my fiancé’ and I appeared the staff looked so annoyed. For goodness sakes, they didn’t even say «how can I help you?» Within about 30 seconds we were so turned off by the attitude of the people in the office that we knew we wouldn’t rent the place, but I spent about 5 minutes trying to extract information from the terrible salesperson. She never asked our names, just started to flip through the date book telling us which weekends in 2015 were already full. She reluctantly gave a half-​hearted tour (again after I prompted her).
I can say it wasn’t Cera or Kevin and maybe if you encounter them you’d have a good experience, but they should really have a talk with their team and train them not to answer questions with «I’m new.»

I’m with Kate M. on this one. After repeated attempts to contact them I eventually emailed them «Your venue is my first choice, but I need to hear back from you…» That was over two weeks ago and I haven’t gotten so much as an email, call, text, or carrier pigeon.
My opinion is to stay away from this place if they can’t even help prospective customers… I don’t even wanna know how they drop the ball once they actually GET the money in their hands.
What a shame, it’s a beautiful venue.

I just recently had my wedding here, and I couldn’t have been happier! Kevin and Cera were so wonderful to work with, and the venue was perfect for the 100+ people we had as guests. I loved how much was available just for renting the venue.
On top of that, the place is breath-​takingly beautiful. It was perfect for our friends who use public transportation as well as walking to get everywhere, and super friendly for those who drove, though we did opt for the use of the parking lot and valet service.
I highly recommend people look into Stan Mansion not only for weddings, but for any large event, especially if celebrating.

Stan Mansion probably would have been a fine place to have our wedding reception. However I will never know because after multiple attempts at contacting them to set up a meeting, or even just have more information sent to me, I gave up because no one ever responded. Sounds like I am not the only one, given other reviews. While planning our wedding, it has really shocked me at the number of vendors and venues that completely ignore inquiries, even after multiple tries. I realize these people swamped with requests but if I am reaching out to you because I potentially want to pay you A LOT of money for your services, I think an email or a call after more than one or two tries is not a ridiculous expectation

My partner and I recently (September 14^th) had our ceremony at the Stan Mansion. We live in Zürich, Switzerland, so unlike most couples, we had to conduct most of our communications from abroad.
Kevin (our ceremony coordinator) and Cera (the owner) were very pleasant to work with from the start. They were flexible to speak with and listened to all our unique ideas to make it a special day for us. They made us feel like we weren’t just another couple looking to have just another ceremony… but that our day truly mattered to them and to Stan Mansion.
When we entered the Mansion on the day of the ceremony we were blown away that Kevin listened and created exactly what we had envisioned. He did everything perfect, according to our drawings and exceeded our expectations.
My partner and I come from the events and hotel industry so exceeding our expectations was not going to be easy. Hats off to a great job Stan Mansion!
If you looking for a unique, elegant venue to have a classic Chicago experience… pick Stan Mansion and you won’t be disappointed. Your guests will be happy that it is not another hotel or banquet hall, but truly a unique elegant venue. They will be happy to have a new, fresh experience that will they will talk about long after your day is over.

Anyone married in the crowd will know without a shred of uncertainty that one of the most difficult aspects of planning any wedding is picking the venue. After all, under who? what? where? when? and why?, it’s the third thing after figuring who who is getting married. So, it can be overwhelming when there are so many places trying to get you to book your special day.
When my then-​fiancé and I were narrowing down places to tentatively tie the know, we waffled back and forth. Navy Pier and Downtown Chicago proper wasn’t just far beyond any budget we had in mind, it would’ve been gratuitously inconvenient. So, progressively moving outwards from the heart of the Windy City, and my fiancé recalling how amazing a previous wedding she’d attended there had been, we found ourselves making introductions with Cera and Kevin at Stan Mansion.
a 1920’s-styled off-​white mansion, the history and beautiful architecture of the place practically seethes into the air when you walk onto the property. It’s truly a sight to behold as it sits nestled behind a gated fence and shrubbery off Kedzie and Fullerton. It’s close enough to the city to give you the flavored charm without the inconvenience of fighting your way into The Loop or up the Magnificent Mile.
Sitting down with Kevin and Cera, we began laying out the date we intended to have the wedding and they were more than happy to toss out ideas, show us around and immediately gave us the impression that they not only knew what they were doing, but knew it well beyond any shadow of a doubt. Given our wedding would be in the off-​season, they were more than happy to cut us a spectacular deal and, while offering us a list of vendors they had worked with in the past, assured us the utmost coordination with anyone who would be part of our big day.
A small snag three days before the wedding with KO Valet whom we’d hired for the day, and which resulted in a breach of contract on their part, was adeptly handled by Kevin as he found us another valet who would be willing to work for the same price, time and offer the same level of service reminded us that we’d made the right choice. But when the big day rolled around roughly two days later, they made well beyond good on their word.
It was amazing. Everything came together better than a plan hatched by the A-​Team. From the smallest minutia up through the grand scheme of things, every single detail was touched upon beautifully. Art of Imagination, our fabric company, made the place look even greater than we could have hoped. J&L, our catering company, was on-​site coordinating with Kevin and both executed every last task with exceptional gusto going far and beyond any expectations that my now-​wife and I had set out for the day. In fact, they ensured other vendors were on the same sheet of music, delivering the same level of outstanding service. It was a orchestral level of service combined in concert that neither of us had ever experienced or witnessed and were thrilled. Stan Mansion brought their A Game.
Going forward, would we ever host another event at Stan Mansion? Without a doubt. There is something ridiculously comforting about knowing that for the price we paid, we got triple the service. That Kevin, Cera and the rest of the team at Stan Mansion are more than happy to work to the very best of their ability to make sure our special day was truly as exceptional as it could be. It’s difficult to put a price on peace of mind, but on our wedding day, Stan Mansion ensured we had just that. The day was priceless to us, went off without a hitch and can’t thank Kevin and Cera enough.

My fiancé and I made an appointment to see Stan Mansion with Cera a week in advance, and I was really excited about it after looking at pictures and thinking about the versatility of the space. I should have checked Unilocal first, as similar to the comments of others, Cera never showed up for our appointment. Nobody knew we were supposed to be there, and the girl in the office looked annoyed and could barely look up from her phone. She called Kevin, who told us Cera was sick and that he had failed to look at her calendar. He then stated that we could come back tomorrow.
No thanks. The beauty of the place wasn’t impressive enough to warrant dealing with that kind of rudeness and it smelled of cigarettes. We both rearranged our hectic schedules to see this venue, the first venue we actually saw in Chicago, and braved the Friday traffic to be sorely disappointed. If they can’t get organized enough to have someone available during a scheduled appointment, I can’t trust them with my wedding.

My partner and I held our civil union ceremony and party for 150 guests at Stan Mansion in September 2012. It’s a very handsome event space, but that’s all it is: a blank canvas. It’s not an end-​to-​end solution for your party, but a starting point.
We’re not professional party-​planners, so we had to learn some hard lessons about using such a venue. It was the best day of my life and I have no regrets. But if you’re more DIY-​oriented or have special needs like we did, this may not be the venue for you.
Expect to spend time, effort and money to get what you want out of the Stan. Even the lighting that’s right there in the ballroom costs extra to configure. Ultimately we threw a cool-​looking party and had a blast with our guests, but the stress along the way was considerable.
If you plan to do anything outside the norm — for example, using a friend’s vegetarian restaurant to cater — make sure you go over your expectations in very specific detail with the Stan team. Your caterers won’t even be able to set up until hundreds of chairs are hauled out from the food prep room and into the ballroom.
Don’t confuse the venue’s «day of coordinator» (available for an additional fee) for your very own wedding planner. Do recruit a friend or hire an event professional to play traffic cop with your vendors, because there will be a zillion of them: bartenders, wait staff, caterers, delivery folks, security, etc.
Given that the Stan is typically booked for different events on consecutive days, I’d plan to arrive extremely early on the day of so you can make sure everything is where it needs to be. Otherwise you’ll find yourself putting out fires at the last minute.
For example, we found ourselves without tablecloths two hours before our guests were due to stream in. We’d spent $ 600 on awesome linens from the Stan’s approved vendor, but the Stan staff lost them in the basement after they were delivered two days ahead of the event. Luckily, our friend the vegetarian caterer was able to find some (much less picturesque) tablecloths, but the stress on her and us was considerable.
Credit where credit’s due: After some back and forth, Stan Mansion accepted responsibility for the screw-​up and compensated us for the $ 600 in linens we didn’t get to use. I appreciated Cera and Kevin’s willingness to meet me halfway, even though I also wished they had under-​promised and over-​delivered in the first place.
Our experience at Stan Mansion wasn’t perfect, but our guests didn’t seem to notice. And ultimately, we really enjoyed being able to throw our event at a cool brownstone just blocks from our home in Logan Square. If you walk into the Stan knowing exactly what to expect, you can throw a great party there without any of the surprises we experienced.