Adios To All The Drama. Diana Rodriguez Wallach
façade was impressive and looked as if it had been on that street for quite some time. A bellman in a dark hat helped us push through the antique revolving door. The marble lobby, with its arching glass windows and antique metal trim, looked more like a train station than a fancy hotel. It was oddly funky in an historic kind of way.
“It says here that it used to be part of City Hall,” Teresa read from the travel guide where she had selected all of the hotels on our wedding reception tour (at this point, if Fodors didn’t like it, neither did she). “It’s an historic landmark.”
“Isn’t everything in this city historic?” Lilly sighed.
“Hey, don’t knock it. It’s our ‘thing,’” I said.
“I thought cheesesteaks were your thing.”
“They’re our other thing.”
Teresa stopped at the concierge desk to locate the event planner, who would be showing us our fifth room of the day. I briefly closed my eyes; they were starting to glaze over from all of the floral carpeting and crystal chandeliers.
“Hi, I’m Suzanne,” chirped a petite blond as she hurried out from a back room. She held out her navy-suit-covered arm to shake Teresa’s hand. “You must be the bride.”
“Sí,” Teresa said. “I mean, ‘yes.’”
“No problemo.” The woman giggled with an awful South Philly accent. “I can’t wait to show you the space we have available. Now, you spoke to Richard on the phone, right? Because he said you’re only looking for space for about fifty to sixty people. And let me tell you, you’re in luck.”
The woman whisked us into a copper-trimmed elevator without pausing to take a breath between sentences.
“We have a room that just opened up. It’s not a ballroom.” Suzanne grimaced as if it were a painful thing to say. “It’s one of our smaller party rooms. Now, Teresa, I know what you’re thinking…”
She looked at us all with a serious expression as she held up her palms.
“You’re thinking, I wanted a ballroom for my wedding. But let me tell you why you’re wrong. While a ballroom is great, I really think that for the size of your affair a smaller room would really create a more intimate setting. You don’t want your guests getting swallowed by the room.”
Suzanne laughed loudly at what she thought was a joke as we all stared blankly.
“Teresa, this room has everything you’re looking for. Beautiful décor, elegant chandeliers, plenty of windows, and enough space for a dance floor and several round tables. Plus, you wouldn’t have to overpay for a giant ballroom you don’t even need.”
The elevator stopped and Suzanne sped out, shuffling us down the wallpapered hall.
“Now before we go in, I want you to picture this: nighttime, candlelit tables, the smell of fresh flowers, the sound of a string quartet…”
Suzanne pushed open the doors and we were pleasantly greeted by a stylish room half the size of the others we’d seen, but perfect for Teresa and her small collection of guests.
“Teresa Mendez, welcome to your wedding,” Suzanne whispered.
Graceful wallpaper with gold accents perfectly matched the crystal chandeliers and chair-frame detailing. The carpet was floral but not as tacky as those in other hotels we’d seen. The linens were crisp, the ceiling paint was fresh, and the windows looked directly onto City Hall. I turned to Teresa and her face was glowing. Of all the rooms we’d seen, this was most like the vision she had described: elegant yet modest enough to fit her budget. Now it was time to work some negotiating magic.
“So, you say this room just became available.” I approached Suzanne, who was busy pulling the wedding package portfolio from her briefcase.
“Yes, you’re very lucky.”
“Well, the holidays are just around the corner.” I walked to a table and sat down, smiling pleasantly up at her while trying to channel my best Madison Fox (or better yet, Madison’s father, who taught his daughter everything she needed to know). “I’d imagine it would be hard to find another group to book this space on such short notice.”
Lilly snapped her head toward me. After years of being surrounded by corporate-level, Main Line–living negotiators, I realized that quite a bit of knowledge had sunk into my brain. It was now time to dig it out on my tía’s behalf.
“Well, this is a very popular hotel and we have a great location,” Suzanne told me.
I nodded toward the massive windows. “I noticed. Right below William Penn’s hat.”
“Yes, and we can offer you a discount on hotel rooms for your guests.”
She sat down across the table as Teresa and Lilly stood behind me.
“I’d imagine the Mummers Parade on New Year’s Day presents a lot of logistical problems,” I stated.
“We could offer a discount at our parking garage.” Suzanne pushed the wedding portfolio toward me.
I flipped open the folder and scanned the prices. The per-person costs were at least twenty percent above Teresa’s price range. I turned the pages carefully, absorbing the information.
“I see.” I nodded casually.
“You’ll notice our prices are very competitive given our location and superior amenities. And our food is spectacular.” She tapped the page before me, pointing to the entrée choices. “We can set up a free tasting.”
“Mmhmm.” I hummed, examining the page slowly before passing it to Teresa and Lilly who were still hovered silently behind me.
When I spun back around, the smile was lost from my face.
“You see, Suzanne. The prices on that sheet are rack rates, which while they are very reasonable”—I tossed out a fake, hollow chuckle—“they don’t really reflect the situation we’re in right now. Do they?”
Suzanne coughed slightly as she turned her attention back to her briefcase.
“Because, Suzanne,” I stated firmly, “I know you’re in a bit of a pickle. Losing a booking only two months out usually means a big dent in revenue. Most groups, and definitely most weddings, book months—even years—in advance.”
I stood up from the table and waved my hands around the room. “All of this beautiful space could be left vacant. And that really would be a shame, wouldn’t it?”
I smiled at her, my head tilted.
Suzanne huffed, then leaned back in her evergreen upholstered chair.
“I see what you’re saying,” she said simply. “And you’re right. I can’t believe I didn’t mention it sooner. Of course, we’ll offer a discount.”
I plopped back down at the table and met her hazel eyes dead on.
“We can probably knock ten percent off the cost per head and maybe offer an extra appetizer.”
“You know, I’m looking at this.” I snatched the paper back from Lilly. “And I can see you already offer a choice of six appetizers. I really don’t think we need more than that. Maybe instead we could get twenty percent off the per person cost?”
I pulled my lips tight.
“Uh, I’d love to.” She winced. “But my boss would have my head!”
We both pretended to laugh.
“But, and I really shouldn’t be doing this,” she offered. “I could probably do fifteen percent off.”
“How about fifteen percent, a free bridal suite and free valet parking?”
“Fifteen percent, the bridal suite and half-off valet parking.”