Pen Ryn Estate

A certain political party in Bucks County had its annual Jefferson Dinner at Pen Ryn Mansion last week.
The entire locale is incredibly pretty for Bensalem, Pa., but the Delaware River still has its charm, and the building and landscaping there are very nice. There is plenty of parking and if you have time you can stroll down to the banks of the river and watch the dusk settle in and the lights of Burlington, NJ come up across the river.
The dining facility is ornate with heavy curtains and chandeliers, but although dated, it does give off an air of historical pretense. If there is an issue it is with the HVAC. On this relatively warm October night, the bar area was downright hot, and the large banquet room only a little more comfortable. Of course, all the hot air from the podium may have had something to do with that.
Pen Ryn would be a nice place for a traditional wedding or other large format celebration. This is my third of fourth visit, and it is always an attractive, if not completely comfortable place to spend the evening with a few hundred of my closest friends.

An acquaintance planned her wedding at Pen Ryn for April 2016. Her fiancé died suddenly recently, and the venue refuses to return her deposit. Whatever the contract said, it is bad form to take advantage of a grieving woman.

I was a bridesmaid in a wedding here. The grounds are beautiful. Some aspects of the inside were a little too old for my taste but if you have very old fashion taste then you have nothing to worry about. The room that the actual wedding was in was great but I didn’t like the happy hour too much because I felt like everyone was super split up into different rooms instead of being able to mingle all together.
It was raining for the wedding and we took a really cute picture with umbrellas and rain boots! But beware because the beautiful grounds are half (if not more) of the appeal of this place and if there is inclement weather you aren’t even able to enjoy them.
The staff was nice but we did have to keep the bridal suite locked because of news that someone had gotten their things stolen allegedly from a staff member at a prior event. That definitely didn’t take away from the event though (we probably would have locked our stuff up anyway) and all in all it was good atmosphere and great time.

This place is BEAUTIFUL! I came here with my boyfriends family for their Christmas Brunch, the place is beautiful, I felt like I went back in time when I stepped in, their food was delicious, the only thing I did not like was the chicken marsala was a bit dry and the breakfast potatoes had onions and peppers cooked in with it, but man oh man did I LOVE their salmon with asian sauce on the top! I want to look into this place for my wedding when it comes time for me to plan one.

Belle Voir manor was a gorgeous wedding venue, that delivered some incredible memories and photographs. The food was great, and we received SO many compliments on our variety and quality of offerings. (We did upgrade!) The mashed potato bar is a MUST, and was the favorite of many guests (including me!). The hibachi station is a great idea, but thanks to the downpour throughout our wedding day, the food was just thrown in another chafing dish. (And didn’t look appetizing either) The chocolate fountain was a huge hit as well. Our personal waiter (?) was fabulous, and took care of our every need! We did hit a few minor bumps on the big day, which I won’t get into every detail. I think that is to be expected. However, we did have one issue. BE WARNED! Just because the contract says gratuity is included, the staff informed us that night, that the only tips they receive are any extra cash we give them at the end of the night. I specifically discussed tip jars is my planning meetings with Katrina,(who is a HUGE loss to Pen Ryn, by the way. She was so professional and reassuring. I Felt like I could really trust her with all of our wedding details, until we found out from our FLORIST that she had suddenly left 2 months before the wedding. EEK!) because I find them so tacky and frustrating, and I was assured they would not be out during any part of the wedding. Instead, the bar tenders decided to leave dollar bills laying out on the bar, essentially begging for tips in my opinion. After being informed by one of my guests, I asked the bartenders to please remove the cash, and that I was handling the tips that night. If a guests wants to offer an additional tip, that is fine, but I did not want them begging during my wedding day. Especially when I am paying for gratuity in my contract! The man behind the bar agreed immediately and removed the cash, but the young girl decided to start arguing with me, asking about what was specified in my contract. Excuse me, but why is this a bartenders business?! Seeing that I was getting upset, my mother stepped in, and I had to go up to the bridal suite to stop myself from crying. (your wedding day leaves you VERY emotional!!) thankfully, my mom resolved the problem, and I was able to return to my reception and enjoy my day. At the end of the night, the event manager Linda, who I did not see once during this issue, popped in to see how everything went. She also informed me that «we sent that employee home crying». I’m sorry, but isn’t the married couple the main focus of the day?! What about the fact that I was crying at my own wedding reception? Not exactly a goal of mine! I didn’t receive a single apology from Linda, or any other form of management. While the rest of my wedding day went perfectly, this is the one problem that bothers me even 6 months later. I was not happy to be surprised by this issue in the middle of my reception. Also, my parents did end up tipping all of the staff extra that night, just as they had planned from the beginning. Overall, I loved Belle Voir for the beautiful setting and surroundings, the great food, and mostly great service. I just find their contracts very misleading!!!

I had a wedding there for my daughter did not get what i paid for, when i called after they would not even call me back

I was at the Belle Voir Manor for my cousin’s wedding last week and although I did not get to really explore, I did like what I saw.
Drove into the wrong wedding for a second because there was a sign for another wedding pointing straight but not one of my cousin’s in which we had to make a right.
There was an outdoor ceremony that was set up nicely.
Inside, I liked the balcony the bridge and groom could come out and look down at into the lobby.
There was valet parking and a cover area for when it rains like it did on the night of the wedding.
The reception area was nicely decorated but the catered food was only okay.
It was a nice change from all the Chinatown weddings I usually go to.

I had my wedding here recently in March of 2011. The end result was a very beautiful well managed wedding, but to get to that point was a bit of a struggle. I give the place 4 stars because of a woman named Patty. Try your hardest not to deal too much with her.
I live in CA and was planning my wedding across the country, so communication via email is very important. Once Patty had our deposit, she did not respond in a timely manner to emails and was not very helpful. When you ask a question, you would assume people would offer information and give you many options, but with Patty, it was like pulling teeth to get information out of her.
One example was the fact that I wanted ivory table cloths for the cocktail hour; she said it would be about $ 30/​table because they had to order them. A week or so later I find out that they have a different type of ivory cloth available for no cost which she did not bother telling me. There were countless events like this so be weary when Patty tells you something costs more, and make sure you write down all your questions so you can ask other people about your options.
Patty was not there on my day though, Cindy was, and although she missed an appointment that we had, she was helpful and I was very happy to have her there on my big day. Mary was also great but was fired while I was still planning.
Overall, great wedding and I would recommend this location to others. If you want your venue to feel homey and cozy, if you want to watch your guests arriving from the bridal suite, if you want a building with history, Pen Ryn is the way to go. All I can suggest is BEWARE of Patty because she is not helpful and just cares about the money.

I am writing my review for Belle Voir Manor, which is operated by Penn Ryn Mansion and sits on the same piece of land. Belle Voir is actually the «carriage house» to Penn Ryn Mansion, but I find it to be bigger and much nicer.
I held my wedding here a year & a half ago. I can’t even begin to express how awesome this place is. Everyone I spoke to said it was the best wedding they have ever been to. The food is absolutely amazing-​the mashed potato bar for cocktail hour was a big hit. The room was a perfect size & beautifully decorated. The staff was amazing & attended to everyone’s needs. The bridal suite was great too. I got married in December, but the surrounding grounds are beautiful for an outdoor ceremony if that is what you are looking for.
Pictures don’t do this place justice! If you are planning a wedding do yourself a favor & check it out.

The Pen Ryn Mansion is gorgeous, classy, adaptable, and fun.
I shot a wedding there in 2006. Both the bride’s and groom’s preparation quarters were beautiful. The grounds are extensive and well kept. The estate itself is beautifully maintained. The food is excellent. The staff is fabulous.
The couple was debating back and forth about whether to go outdoors or indoors for the ceremony because a drizzle was expected. The groom was in and out of the manager’s office checking the doppler radar all morning. At last minute they decided to move indoors and the staff of the mansion scurried around and got all the chairs brought in and a makeshift ceremony area set up in the reception room.
The couple was also brought the wrong cake and the venue staff spent their time and effort running around and coordinating with the bakery to pick up the wrong one and drop off a new one.
The only real negative side to this was that a lot of guests let their children run around unchecked and the staff did nothing to control them. While I agree that it’s not technically their job to control peoples’ children, when there are 8 year olds behind the bar and taking armfulls of glasses to run around with, someone should say something. (and it shouldn’t have to be the photographer)