2021 N Stockton | Cafe Brauer

It’s always fun looking back at wedding photos, but it was even more fun taking a ride on the motorcycle to visit where we got married!! As we selfied on the bike out front I was reminded of how remarkable and cool Cafe Brauer really is. Today we’re celebrating our Second Anniversary (quarantine-style) so I’m taken the opportunity to shed a little light on beautiful Cafe Brauer and share a few photos of the interior from our wedding day.

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So for starters, a lot goes into choosing a wedding venue! The aesthetic, the location, the logistics and of course - the costs. As a longtime loft-lover I figured I’d fall for a modern-meets-raw type of event space. But in the end it was important to us to choose some where that we thought would last over time. A place we could maybe visit or drive-by from time to time. Maybe even a place that would out live us. We weren’t looking at historic locations in particular, but it didn’t hurt that Cafe Brauer was a city landmark. That seemed romantic to me! Once we got inside we were wowed.

On the initial venue tour, as we ventured upstairs with an event coordinator to the large rental space, it became clear that the essence of Cafe Brauer lives within the Great Hall. The sunlight leaked in waves from the skylight above and poured in from the many windows facing South Pond. About a year later we returned to stand in that same sun drenched spot to say our vows.

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Originally named the South Pond Refectory, it was built in 1908 by architect Dwight Perkins. The building has a subtle curve to it, thoughtfully intended by Perkins to mimic the curve of the South Pond outback. Later it was renamed after the Brauer family of Chicago, who worked in the restaurant business and proudly owned the ground floor Cafe from the 1910s in to the 1930s. In addition to the Cafe the building also operated as a boat house and seasonal warming shelter for ice skaters in the winter.

Everything about it truly embodies the definition of Prairie School style — an architectural style native to Chicago. Mostly seen in the Midwest, the Prairie School style is often characterized by horizontal lines, flat or “hipped roofs” with broad overhanging eaves, and an attempt to integrate seamlessly with the landscape. 

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In the corners of the room I noticed these faded painted murals of landscapes with the tiniest hints of color. Suspended above us hung two Tiffany-inspired decorative glass chandeliers that nodded to the past in an ever so subtle way. Warm natural tones were everywhere. And the repetition of earth-toned exposed brick soothed the loft-lover in me who wasn’t sure what she wanted, but didn’t want anything too opulent or too elegant. Because that wouldn’t have been us. We loved the the history here. All the intricate brickwork, and the abundance of natural light. On either side of the Great Hall are these large outdoor “loggias” (think covered balconies) that reached out like wings offering views of the pond and prairie ecosystem juxtaposed with the city skyline. The loggias pretty much sold us on the venue. We thought about having our ceremony out there at first, until we thought better of it. By then we had looked at enough venues without an outdoor element to know we kinda wanted an outdoor element, especially if we were shooting for a Spring wedding!

After touring in person it came as no surprise to hear that the Great Hall - where we were wed - was first conceived as a ballroom. In the 1940s the building opened to the public for community recreation. Children from decades past had learned to square-dance and waltz on that same original maple floor where we First Danced to I Only Have Eyes For You. So cool.

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By the 1960s the building was overlooked, neglected, and unfortunately was being used by the park district as storage! Cafe Brauer earned a spot on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986 and thankfully around that time, in 1987, the Chicago Park District and Lincoln Park Zoo Society came to their senses and began the ($4.2 million dollar) restoration to bring this beauty back to original condition. It gained Chicago landmark status in 2003 and we were married there in 2018.

Remember those faint murals I mentioned? Turns out the architect’s wife, Lucy Perkins, was involved in many of her husband’s projects. In fact it was she who had hand-painted the murals I adored along the perimeter of the ballroom. I love that tidbit — talk about a woman’s touch!

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For our big day we filled the venue with family and friends. We curated vintage inspired decor and furnishings that didn’t adhere too strictly to a certain decade. (The venue comes completely empty, so what you see inside we actually brought in with us. I think that element may even discourage some couples for choosing Cafe Brauer) I aimed to mix retro vibes and art deco designs, hoping it would all look somewhat timeless, and trying not to take the decor aspect too seriously. The table numbers were simple illustrations of architecture from across the city, a love shared between Shawn and I. We rented sofas and soft seating for the loggias to encourage our guests to linger outside and enjoy the view. And yes, we even paid extra to hang all those tiny tea lights from the ceiling!

The Processional song was an instrumental version of Elvis Presley’s I Can’t Help Falling In Love With You. Our Recessional song at the end of the ceremony was Once in a Lifetime by the Talking Heads —largely so we could scream-sing along to the lyrics “And you may find yourself in a beautiful house. With a beautiful wife. And you may ask yourself, well, How did I get here?” The Beatles saw us through dances with his Mother and my Father. And because Cafe Brauer sits on the edge of the Lincoln Park Zoo I requested the final song to be none other than The Lion Sleeps Tonight. A favorite from childhood that I was able to sneak into this milestone moment of adulthood.

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Images by Bassos Weddings

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