Ceola vs. Barone
We in the Yorktown area are lucky to have several catering venues to choose from. Last week I attended events at both Sinapi’s Ceola Manor and Villa Barone Hilltop Manor.
Ceola hosted a Benjamin Franklin Elementary School fundraiser (card party). We were seated in the larger room, with the buffet set up in the smaller room. From what I could guesstimate, there were 150- 200 people in attendance. There were tables filled with items and baskets to be raffled off. The bar was set up on the opposite side of the room, and the desserts (brought by the group) were set up near the bar after dinner.
Our buffet had a nice selection of foods. Chicken marsala, green beans, eggplant parmesan, and penne pasta were among the hot choices, and a salad bar was set up also. Everything I tasted was delicious, and I went back for seconds of the pasta! The staff was very polite and helpful.
Villa Barone hosted a casino night fundraiser for The Lakeland Education Foundation. There were roughly 350 people in attendance. We were seated in the ballroom upstairs, with the casino being set up in the large area outside of the ballroom. The ballroom is quite spectacular, and looked very elegant with the tables set and every chair exactly in place. Of course the LEF did their usual wonderful job decorating, and the silent auction tables (with 100 items up for bid) lining the perimeter of the room looked great. We had the misfortune of being seated directly in front of the DJ’s speakers, so our eardrums were hurting, but we had a great view of all the goings-on. After the passed hors d’ouevres, we were served a sit-down meal beginning with pasta and salad, followed by choice of entree. I had the fish. I don’t remember what kind of fish, other than it was a white fish, because it had no flavor, nor did the sauce on top of it. It was served with mixed veg (mostly green beans) and potatoes. Our waiter was friendly, but messed up the orders, serving the wrong entrees to a couple of people at our table. My husband and I were thankful for the open bar, and the staff was courteous and quick serving drink orders in the casino. I missed the little dessert platters that were served in the dining room as I was on a roll at the blackjack table…
In my opinion, both places have their strengths and shortcomings. Of course a sit-down dinner for 350+ is much more difficult to coordinate than a buffet for 200, but is that an excuse to serve bland food? Villa Barone does get the edge when it comes to elegant presentation though. Each venue does a good job and works hard to please its customers, so I deemed both events to be successful.
Eat Westchester! (and Putnam)
Adam has worked in the local news industry for the past two decades in Westchester County and the broader Hudson Valley. Read more from Adam’s author bio here.