Frequently Asked Questions
for hosting at First & Green Celebrations
Where is First & Green?
Our properties are located alongside Grenada’s historic downtown square. Our flagship building, locally referred to as First & Green, Is located at the southwest corner of the Square, at the intersection of First and Green Streets
What are the correct street addresses if I want to put them on invitations?
The Main Hall at First & Green – 97 First Street
Miss Emma’s Dining Room – 85 First Street
The Hide at First & Green – 149 Green Street
The Garden at First & Green – 120 Doak Street
The Courtyard at First & Green – 124 Green Street
Molly’s Place – 120 Green Street
How do we secure our date?
To hold your date, we will need to receive your deposit and signed contract. We will invoice you for the deposit, send the contract, and hold the selected date for 7 days to give you time to complete those steps. We are excited that you have chosen to share your celebration with us.
Once we have paid the deposit and signed the contract, what happens?
We will be available to develop the overall event plan with you whenever you are ready. The first step we usually take is to sit down and talk menu and style ideas and bar plans, if any, which will give an idea of the total cost of the event. We can also help identify vendors you need for cakes, music, florals, carriage rides and so on if that Is helpful. Next we turn to the physical plan for the venue: the number of guests expected, the possible traffic flow, location of music, dance floor, bars and food, décorating plans and anything else.
Do you work with event planners?
Only rarely are event planners involved. Some folks will use a décorator to help them create their event, and some use a day of coordinator to help sequence the event and herd the players. From our point of view, having one decision maker to work with on venue planning and executing the event is an imperative. More than one can result in conflicts and confusion for you and for us.
How do you handle catering?
We provide on-site catering for all of our venues. The safety of our guests is important to us, as is the smooth execution of their celebrations. For those reasons we discourage use of outside caterers.
However, outsider caterers are allowed with a few requirements:
We require event insurance and the caterer’s own insurance to list First & Green LLC as a named insured
A three-way contract making each party’s responsibilities clear will need to be signed.
We also charge a third party catering fee of $300 as working with an outside service provider creates additional work for us.
We do offer the ability to bring in food at Miss Emma’s Dining Room, and of course cakes can be brought in from the wonderful army of cake bakers in our area.
For some events, sharing a timetable or a menu with guests can be very helpful. We had one recently in which the appetizers were gobbled up as the guests did not know a full meal was coming. We are happy to post the full menu if you ask us to do that.
What about leftovers?
If you want to take leftovers home with you, let us know in advance so we can have containers ready. If you have a cake baked by a professional, ask them for a box for leftover cake and another for the topper as they will know the shapes required.
What are your rules regarding alcohol?
The comfort and safety of our clients and guests are paramount. Therefore no alcohol from outside sources can be brought onto our property. First & Green is required to control and supervise consumption of alcohol under the terms of our license and insurance. We work with you to develop your bar format and order the alcohol you want. See Bar Services for more information on the options available.
Please remind your guests of this before the event begins. We are happy to hold bottles on behalf of guests and return them at the event’s conclusion. The only trouble we ever have is related to alcohol we were unaware of. We will ask anyone who brings it in to deposit it at the bar, and we will return at close of the evening. Contract provides for fine to the event organizer.
Can we come in early to decorate?
The easiest way to be sure you have ample decorating time is to book the time you need. If that is not feasible we do offer a half day rate if you must get in before the time interval starts. We operate 7 days a week so if we are not hosting another event we are no doubt busy cleaning and maintaining, getting ready for you!
What if we are too tired at the end of the event and want to collect our stuff the following day?
To make the celebration easy and joyful for all, planning the leaving process in advance is very helpful. Booking the time required to both decorate and undecorate helps everybody relax. Some folks hold undecorating brunches the day after, which we are happy to accommodate if it is planned in.
If something unexpected happens and you must leave without removing your items we offer the half day rate described above.
Are children welcome?
Of course children are welcome. For the comfort and safety of all guests, including the children, they need to be supervised. In our experience it works best when there is a designated child minder, as the parents want to enjoy the party. Some folks organize kids’ activities and a kids table.
What is your policy regarding flame burning candles?
Burning candles has an immediate impact on our air filters, so we ask you to keep them to a minimum. Any candles used must be enclosed in glass pillars or other containers, and never put on the table without a plate or equivalent underneath.
What other decorations do you not want us to use?
Glitter, feathers, and confetti are very hard to completely clean up. Thus, we ask that you not use them. We have rods and hooks in various places to use in decorating to preclude the need to stick anything to the walls or hammer anything.
Do you have a photo booth?
Yes, we offer Simple Booth - a digital photo booth and selfie station as a premium add-on to your rental package to add even more fun to your event! See an overview at Photo Booth & Digtal Selfie Station, and when you contact our team about availability, we’ll be happy to share more details.
How are Molly’s Place and First & Green related?
Molly’s Place, named for owner Deborah Bailey’s mother, is a small restaurant open Thursday - Saturday from 5-10. It works well as a place for planning meetings, for pre or post event get togethers, and often provides what amounts to an ancillary bar when events do not include alcohol. It can also be rented for your events when Molly’s is not open, from Sunday through Wednesday.
What parking is available?
There is ample on street parking around the Square and along First, Green, and Doak Streets. There is also a public parking lot on the north side of First Street, which is a good spot for buses. Let us know if you want to save a specific spot.
How do we organize street closing?
The Police Department handles street closing requests. The surrounding businesses are not happy with long closing, so please set the closing hours to the narrowest possible time period and leave space for access to local businesses.
What last minute items do we need to worry about?
We will send you a reminder note when we ask for your final headcount two weeks in advance. Share with details on any needs for handicapped access as well as any food allergies we need to plan for. We will also be looking for your desired floor plan and the number of chairs and tables by type you will want. Finally, we will want a timeline: what do you plan, and when?
When does music need to be turned down?
By city ordinance loud music needs to be turned down by 11:00 pm.
What about tips?
Our team works hard, with servants’ hearts, and they all want to make you and your guests happy. It means the earth to them when their contribution is recognized with gratuities. That said there is no requirement for tips though we can build it in to your invoice if you ask us to.
How are damages handled?
We are blessed in that damages only rarely occur. If something is broken, the issue will be discussed with the host and a plan to pay for fixing developed.
What if something is left behind?
Check for belongings before you leave. We cannot take responsibility for items left behind.
Since we are heavily booked and have limited storage, anything left more than 24 hours will be donated to charity unless specific arrangements have been made.
Do we need to clean up before we leave?
All you need to do is to remove your personal items, generally gifts and décor. We will handle the rest.
Can we store items during the event?
We have limited storage on site. The easiest way to store décor containers and so on is to ask us to show you the spaces designated for that.
Where can we find overnight accommodation?
We have over 500 hotel rooms in Grenada given its long history of being a way point between Memphis, Jackson, Oxford, and Greenwood. Here are some of our favorites!
What suggestions do you have for making our event spectacular and trouble free?
Plans fully developed In advance so everyone knows what to do when.
Clear decision making process in which one person has final say so.
Clear timetable of events, including vendor arrivals.
Relaxed frame of mind, knowing that while minor mishaps may occur, everything will run smoothly and all will have a wonderful time.
