The Columbus Athenaeum Reviews

Beautiful place. So happy my annual work event was held here

Beautiful large banquet hall with an upstairs balcony. Was there for a "Casino Night" party and I felt like I was in a 1920's casino.

This is a GREAT venue for weddings and whatever type of large parties you would like to have. You can have your wedding and reception at the same place but in different rooms. I'm not sure how the food is handled but at the wedding and reception I attended there was hors d'oeuvres and dinner, and they served both along with the cake. There was also a photo booth.
All in all it was a blast!!

We showed up for our Christmas party. There was not enough seating. The had an open space for more tables. It was a poor plan.

Originally a Scottish Rite Masonic Temple (at 33 N. 4th, no less... or is it 32?), the owners have kept it's interior in tact, complete with much of the original furniture. This is an event space with many types of rooms for almost any purpose. Promoters started booking bands here and it's a brilliant thing! Previously, it had been mainly a place for weddings & other celebrations or even meetings. There is only street or garage parking available nearby. Nonetheless, it's a gorgeous and historic downtown Columbus building and any opportunity to visit should be taken!

Sound was absolutely terrible for the Peter Murphy 40 years of Bauhaus show. He is a legend and deserves better! You couldn't hear anything over the kick drum and the piercing feedback that seemed to get worse as the evening progressed, ruined some of my favorite songs. I really wish I hadn't gone at all. I would much rather have missed it, imagining what a great show it might have been, rather than having such a lousy experience of a show that I was really looking forward to.

Beautiful! Looks like a lot of weddings take place in there.

Great new venue for Columbus. Not a bad seat in the place.

I go to a lot of concerts and this really is the best venue in Columbus. Great acoustics and cheap drinks.

I've only been here for special events. It's a lovely space and certainly well worth any price for rental.

Drove 6 hours to attend a concert here and waited for hours outside in the December cold to make sure we got good spots in line. Then they told us they don t want people waiting in line and we d have to leave and come back when doors opened. It was extremely frustrating, especially since they didn t come out and tell us this until an hour or so before the event. The venue itself was fine and the sound was good, but the lack of respect for the concert-goers was really disappointing and illogical. They really need to rework their system for concerts it s standard practice to wait in line and the huge crowd that resulted instead right before doors opened was just stressful.

Terrible venue. We had to cancel the reception due to COVID and they tried to keep ALL of our money. We had to sue the Athenaeum to get even part of our money back. And they kept thousands for nothing! Although we didn't get to have our dinner - the food at the tasting was not good at all. And they wouldn't provide vegetarian dishes for the tasting so we had to order foods we had never tasted for the reception. Stay away from the Athenaem if you want your night to be special. I DO NOT recommend the Anthenaeum for anything.

Came here for a prom years ago and recently attended a Rescued Ohio fundraising event. Always seem to putnon nice events!

I went there for the i see stars concert which was very good you guys rock. It was a nice small auditorium. A very historical and beautiful building. I prefer smaller a auditorium. Nationwide arena shot are nice but its like spending 300$ to watch a large screen tv i do that at home for free. Im looking forward to going back. Also if anyone is looking for a place to have a wedding this is it. The building is huge. More then just a auditorium. Dining area ect... Ok its sooo pretty the bathrooms are like beautiful.

Attended a conference here a couple of weeks ago. The facilities were nice. I was in several rooms on the right side of the building. We used both floors. Bathrooms on both floors too so lines were not too long.
They served a buffet lunch of soup, salad and baked potatoes. The food was good. It did take several minutes to restock the lettuce bowl, otherwise the buffet was well stocked. Food was delicious. I chose the Italian wedding soup.
We had to park in a garage one block north of the building. Cost $10 for the day.

Was here for a wedding. Great venue. Tons of character.

Beautiful place. Our room was nicely sized for our not humongous party, but there's larger rooms too. However, my party was on the 3rd floor and the men's bathroom was on the 4th. Then I found the only toilet was out of order and the other one was on the first floor. That one had 2 toilets, one of which was missing a seat.

I love the Columbus Athenaeum! I had my wedding reception in the ballroom on St Patrick's Day, and to this day my family and friends say that it was one of the best wedding receptions that they have ever attended. The atmosphere is very elegant and there are lots of fantastic photo opportunities inside the building. In addition, the food was amazing. The chef is a genius!

As a bride, you have a lot of emotions and concerns that seem to multiply as the big day gets closer. The staff was very knowledgeable and courteous. Gina Cristofani was very approachable and answered my questions with amazing timeliness. She took my crazy bride brain in stride.

I have read earlier reviews about the price, and yes wedding and receptions can be expensive, but they are expensive everywhere. I truly believe that you get what you pay for, and I don't regret any of the money I spent on my wedding, The staff at the Columbus Athenaeum provided me with a fabulous wedding reception and I thank them for it.

Beautiful and historic - very friendly staff and well organized.

Beautiful space! I was there for a Best Bites event and it was fabulous!

The building was very nice, but the food we had was terrible and the waitresses were not pleasant

Attended Thurber event. Beautiful venue, service was excellent.

Quick, friendly and inexpensive. They are so nice it is certainly enjoyable to stop for a quick bite to eat.

Beware the Columbus Athenaeum. I will say that the Athenaeum takes great pains to charge you for whatever they can, and when they can't they find some late fee or another to throw in.

My biggest complaint is how I, the bride was treated when I had a legitimate gripe. We asked, Ann Clark once we got off the Trolley at the Athenaeum where we could store the cooler, which only had alcohol, in which was for the Trolley ONLY. We were told it could be stored behind the bar. I do know that the groomsmen tried to make a drink and the bartender told them that they could not do that, so the alcohol and cooler were moved. They sent us a final receipt and order that UPGRADED the bar from beer/wine to full liquor bar for our entire wedding guest amount. How would one (1) cooler pertain to 219 people and change the overall cost of Bar setup? If we were told that storing the cooler at the bar would have changed the setup fee, we would have never put the cooler behind the bar, we would have had someone put in their car. This situation was NEVER discussed with the bride and/or groom or even mothers during the event. This was a BIG mistake, seeing as how no other drinks were ever made by the bartender to make it a Full Bar set up. All night the 219 guests had ONLY beer, wine and non-alcoholic beverage served by the bartender.

According to the General Conditions; under Food/Beverage it states as following "If outside food/beverage items are brought into the TCA without specific written authorization, TCA reserves the right to remove items until the conclusion of the event and the client is responsible for any applicable handling fee" We found not wording of such in our contract.

Four days or several phone calls and an email to Ann Clark and members in the Accounting Dept., a man named Mike (Banquet Manager) called to explain the situation. His tone and demeanor was VERY unprofessional and he had no interest in rectifying the situation or even hearing our side of the story! He constantly interrupted me and was raising his voice, as if I was doing the same or gave him any reason to be upset. If anyone should be upset it was this bride! I was hysterical after I got off the phone with him! I could not believe the lack of respect, professionalism and common courtesy. Is this how venues treat they patrons, especially since word of mouth the best way of referral AND we had dropped thousands of dollars on this event? We should get exactly everything I paid for when making that kind of investment.

Overall, we were happy with the service during the actual wedding reception and with the planning beforehand with Ann, but after we made our last payment and final detail meeting we were just another number to them. The Athenaeum is certainly impetuous with their clients. If you plan events here don t expect warm fuzzy customer service or any form of follow up. Which is sad to see when planning a joyous event that you are sharing with your loved one and to recieve such COLD hearted services from individuals you planned with for many months. Maybe, I just expect too much from people (shrug).

Words of the wise: More than anything else, MAKE SURE YOU GET AND PUT EVERYTHING IN WRITING.

Not a bad seat in the house for a concert. Sound was good. I was surprised they offered concerts. Thought it was strictly ba wedding/event venue.

Had my sister's wedding reception there and it was comfortably set up. The staff was great and went and got the bride and groom something to eat since they weren't scheduled to enter for another 20-30 mins.

Great venue for large, fancy gatherings. Friendly staff, too!

The service, the view and the contents highly recommended

This is a beautiful place to have a weeding, party, meeting, etc... The staff is very helpful and the kitchen makes great food. Parking is off-site but they have a great valet service.

We had our wedding in October in the Olympian room. It was absolutely beautiful!! Christine became our coordinator half way through our planning process, our 1st coordinator left. We were a little nervous to have someone new join us in the middle of our process, but she came in and did an amazing job!! She meet with us and instantly understood what we were going for with the look of our wedding. She was so easy to work with and was very detail oriented she did an absolutely amazing job with all of our ideas and setting everything up to look exactly like we wanted it too!! I honestly can t say enough good things about Christine!

Unique and awesome.
An institution, such as a literary club or scientific academy, for the promotion of learning.

No A/C refreshments were expensive. It was 60 outside and 95 inside. Won't be back

Absolutely horrible. If you re planning a wedding and want to choose your own vendors, stay away from this place. They have a preferred vendor list that you have to choose from, otherwise you have to pay extra to have your own vendors.
Unfortunately their vendors are not the best, they just pay them to be on their list. Since they are on their list, the vendors charge more because you have to use one of them.
They will actually talk you out of hiring another outside vendor because of this.
The most unprofessional, dishonest, untrustworthy place I ve ever seen.
If you want your own wedding, please go somewhere else. I will do the same and refer any other venue besides this place, since they said it would be in our best interest to use their preferred vendors. Laughable.

Nice venue! Always enjoy playing piano at the Columbus aethenaeum. Very large venue with many different rooms for any size of event. Parking is always an issue as there aren't many or any reserved spots available but that can be said of many places downtown.

Awesome concert venue - homey, plush, and intimate.

Celebrate your special day in a gorgeous piece of Columbus history.

Very beautiful venue. It provided an intimate performance for the show.

The historic building is beautiful. The staff catered the lunch and it was delicious. I would definitely recommend this venue.

Married my wife here. The staff was attentive and helpful throughout the entire process, and the venue/reception was absolutely gorgeous. It went on without any problems, and I could not ask for more on the most important day of my life. Highly recommend the Columbus Athenaeum!

Went for prom, and had the greatest night of my life.

Such a good venue for live music. It's clean and beautifully renovated.

The venue is beautiful with a lot of marble and ornate decor

Saw Cody Ko and Noel Miller here. It was awesome. The place is super old, but I feel it just adds to the aesthetic and atmosphere. And there is a parking deck right next to it so 5 stars lol.

It's a very old place,it was.
Very warm inside

Went and seen Sleeping With Sirens there. Small and personal. Great place.

I attended a wedding here recently and although the place was beautiful, the food and the service staff were great the event manager was terrible. I watched a grown man slam his fists on the bar while yelling at his two female bartenders in front of 100 or so guests while the wedding was still going on. No manager should talk to their employees like that, no matter the circumstances, let alone in front of guests. It was rude, disrespectful and uncalled for. I would never work with him simply out of principle and I will be telling others I know not to have events here as well.

Very nice old building in downtown Columbus. If you can't find street parking there are open inexpensive parking lots within a block or two. Restrooms were very clean. Concert area was large enough to accommodate a couple hundred people. We went to see Phineas and Wolves At The Gate and had an amazing time!!!

Beautiful building and architecture, but disappointed in the food. My vegetarian dinner was pretty much hard green beans and a pile of rice.

Beautiful location, lots of room, ample parking, and affordable. It's great that they host or rent out to parties of all type. Weddings all the way to animal rescue groups. We had a great time and look forward to the next event we are invited to.

Not impressed with the staff more so the "security" here. They tried to tell us we had to leave and weren't allowed to stand on the sidewalk that is public property. They went out of there way to come to us to tell us we had to leave the area. There was people they walked past literally standing in the middle of the sidewalk and came straight to us. I've had better experience at literally every other venue. Just hope your favorite band doesn't get booked here..

Attended one of the most unique and gorgeous weddings I have been to here. The location, ambiance, food, service and entertainment were all exceptional (and thankfully unforgettable).

Amanda and I had a great time photographing a beautiful wedding here @TheColumbusAthenaeum. The wedding was very classic 1920's. Look forward to anyone who is looking for or needing a wedding photographer.

Fabulous place. They are always so helpful and accommodating. We hosted a holiday party for about 140 and everyone raved about the food and desserts.

The staff is very courteous when attending events. The restaurant inside (Pine Room) is quick and serves great food!

Was in a friend's wedding here and it was a really beautiful place to have the ceremony. The food was amazing too. Very cool place.

Nice location for events with several different size rooms available.

Great venue for intimate concerts. Lord the steps tho!

Great intimite place to see music beautiful theartre. Acoustics very nice. Very profesional help a great plus to Dowtown Columbus

The Pine room is an excellent place for lunch. Try the meatball sub, it's really good!

Had my wedding here prior to covid. We did a tasting prior to the wedding the food was great at the tasting seemed not to be has tasty at the actual wedding. But these people went above and beyond to bring my vision to life they have everything planned and are great at keeping the event on time. They made sure I had the perfect day.