Couple complains of ‘nightmare’ banquet hall after problems at wedding

TORONTO – Ravitha Singh’s smile disguises her ongoing frustration with a Toronto banquet hall where her Hindu wedding was held in August.

“It looked appealing to the eye,” said Singh, referring to the Royal Celebrations Banquet Hall in Etobicoke. But after booking the venue, signing a contract, paying a deposit and working through the details involved in planning a wedding, Singh’s outlook changed.

“They never call you back, it was a nightmare,” she said.

Singh and her husband, Stephen, paid Royal Celebrations about $33,000, which included hall rental and meals. But she says management at the hall did not deliver all of the services the couple paid for.

Among the gaffes leading up to the wedding, Singh said her family had to buy “$1,000 worth of groceries” again because the west Indian food her family delivered the Friday before the wedding disappeared (the food was going to supplement the main meal at the function).

Singh says the owner of the hall “held back” serving dinner for an hour, demanding cash payment for the food first.
Later in the evening, she said the arranged snacks for guests were taken away because the owner said his “staff needed to eat.”

Also on the wedding day, Singh said, Royal Celebrations did not provide table centrepieces that had been contracted and paid for. Singh says the contractor told her the hall had not paid the bill. As a result, the couple paid extra to ensure they were delivered.

“It was definitely the wedding hall from hell,” Singh said.

She and her husband tried to address the issues with company management after returning from their honeymoon. She said owner Bhaghat Singh (no relation) was unwilling to credit the couple for undelivered services.

When Global News first contacted Singh, he said he had fulfilled the terms of his contract. In person, after inviting a news crew inside his office, he said he had nothing more to say.

Online there are a mix of positive and negative reviews about Royal Celebrations. However, the Better Business Bureau gives the banquet hall an F rating for not dealing with customer complaints adequately.

Ravitha Singh, who may still sue the hall in small claims court, had this advice for other couples considering Royal Celebrations as a place to get married.

“If anyone is thinking of booking this hall, don’t.”