Wedding Ceremony & Reception

Saturday, September 17, 2016

Snug Harbor Cultural Center & Botanical Garden

1000 Richmond Terrace
Staten Island, New York 10301

BARAAT - 4 PM

CEREMONY - 5 PM

COCKTAIL HOUR - 6 PM

DINNER & MORE DANCING - 7-11 PM

Other Events

After Party

We are big fans of publicly funded infrastructure, so we plan on continuing the party on the Staten Island Ferry after the wedding. Everyone is welcome. Once we hit dry land, we will migrate to the nearby Pier A Harbor House in Lower Manhattan (22 Battery Place) assuming everyone still has energy left.

Sunday Brunch

We will be holding a very informal bagel brunch at J. Owen Grundy Park on the pier near the Exchange Place PATH station in Jersey City from 10AM – 12 PM on Sunday 9/18.  The pier is about a 15-minute walk from the hotels in Jersey City, is covered in case of inclement weather, and has wonderful views of the Manhattan skyline.  If you’re staying in the area or want to make a quick morning outing from Manhattan, come say hello and grab a bagel. 

If you are hankering for Indian dosas afterwards (because they go so well with bagels), we recommend you head over to Chutneys on Newark Ave.

Cultural Elements

We want our wedding to reflect the most fun elements of our shared Jewish and Hindu cultural traditions. Here are two unique traditions that we are looking forward to celebrating with all of our family and friends together:

The Baraat

A baraat is the groom's wedding procession where Varun will be led to the marriage ceremony by his family and friends. The music during a Baraat sets the festive mood for the rest of the event, with drums and upbeat and exciting Bollywood songs blasting. All our guests are encouraged to participate as we slowly dance our way to the Chuppah / Mandap under which we'll be married.

THE Horah

The horah is an Israeli circle dance that will happen at our Reception soon after the first dance. It is traditionally danced at Jewish weddings or other joyous occasions in the Jewish community. The dance culminates in Sarabeth & Varun being raised up on chairs by our most able-bodied friends and family.

Accommodations

We have a beautiful wedding venue in Staten Island that overlooks the technological marvel of the Bayonne shipyards, however we do not recommend our guests stay in Staten Island for the weekend. There are plenty of hotel options as well as Airbnb in Manhattan, Brooklyn, and New Jersey within 30 minutes of our venue (by taxi or Uber).

STAYING IN NEW JERSEY

Your most convenient option would be at the Courtyard Marriott Jersey City or the Westin Jersey City from which we will be providing shuttle transportation to and from our venue. Jersey City is located just across the river from Manhattan; it is a short, 10-minute trip on the PATH train to the World Trade Center and about a 45-minute shuttle ride to our venue. If you are flying in from out of town and plan on staying in Jersey City, we recommend booking your flight into Newark (EWR) Airport, though JFK and LaGuardia are fine, too.

 You can also book at the following Jersey City hotels. We are not providing shuttles directly from these but they are both within walking distance of the Courtyard and the Westin:

STAYING IN NEW YORK

Some of our guests may find staying in Manhattan or Brooklyn easier.  While we are not providing room blocks in the city we would recommend staying somewhere near or with easy subway access to downtown Manhattan (Battery Park or the Financial District) and the PATH Train to Jersey City at World Trade Center so that you have easy access to both the Staten Island Ferry as well as to our bagel brunch in Jersey City on Sunday morning.

Here are some hotels in the area:

Transportation

SHUTTLES FROM JERSEY CITY

Separate shuttles will depart for the venue from the Courtyard Marriott Jersey City and the Westin Jersey City.  

Please gather in the lobby of your hotel by 2:30 PM. Shuttles will depart promptly at 2:45. 

At the end of the night there will be 2 shuttles to pick up guests after the wedding to return to Jersey City.  One will be going to the Westin, and the other to the Courtyard Marriott.  For those going back to Manhattan, both shuttles will make a stop at the Staten Island Ferry terminal first.

If you plan to leave the wedding by taxi, the following local car services are recommended (although Ubers should be available, too):

New Storm Car Service: (718) 727-6262

Matamoros Car Services: (718) 390-1776

ferry FROM MANHATTAN

You can take a taxi or Uber to get to our venue from anywhere in New York, but if the weather is good we recommend the scenic (and free!) 3:00 pm Staten Island Ferry to get there and the 11:30 pm or 12:00 am ferry to return. The ferry leaves from Whitehall Terminal, near Battery Park; drinking is allowed and suggested (within reason); it is a 25-minute ride and ferries run every half-hour, 24/7. There is a taxi stand at St. George Terminal on Staten Island as well as readily-accessible Ubers, and our venue at Snug Harbor is roughly 10 minutes from there. On the way back from the wedding, both of our shuttles will make a stop at the terminal in St. George before heading back to the Jersey City hotels.

PATH TRAIN INFORMATION

If you need to get from Manhattan to Jersey City over the weekend, be advised that the PATH train is undergoing construction this month, and the 33rd Street-Hoboken line is not running from Saturdays at 12:10 am through Mondays at 12:10 am — you’ll need to catch the PATH at World Trade Center instead. Our hotel blocks/shuttle pick-ups are closest to the Newport-Pavonia stop. To get to the brunch on Sunday, you’ll want to go to the Exchange Place stop. Tickets can be purchased at any station (or use any Metrocard with a balance on it).  

Dress Code

Wear what makes you comfortable, but Western formal (coat & tie, tuxes, cocktail dresses) or festive Indian (sarees, salwar kameez, kurtas) are both great choices.  Just come prepared to dance!

Food

We like to eat, and we know you do, too.  At our wedding we'll be serving a variety of Indian specialities that will include chicken, fish, lamb and plenty of vegetarian options.

Beyond the wedding day, we hope you get a chance to experience why New York is one of the best food cities in the world.  A large part of our relationship has revolved around eating at restaurants and we would love for our visiting friends & family to enjoy and support our favorite establishments.  Here are some low-key places that are special to us:  

Ward III in Tribeca, Manhattan

We both have frequented this cocktail bar for work-related drinks, but it's also where we met for our first date.

Suteishi at the South Street Seaport, Manhattan

This was our second date spot, overlooking the Brooklyn Bridge.

Max in Tribeca, Manhattan

Max has been our go-to Italian restaurant in the city since the early days of our relationship. We have brought many of our wedding guests here with us.

Zafra in Hoboken, NJ

When SB lived in Hoboken, this is where we used to go for a nice dinner out.  It's about a 10-minute Uber ride from the Jersey City hotel blocks.

Chutneys in Jersey City, NJ

Go here for brunch to get a delicious South Indian meal.

Milk bar in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn

Our favorite brunch place in our neighborhood.  It is run by Aussies and we've had countless cups of coffee and poached eggs on toast here.

Miriam in Park Slope, Brooklyn

An awesome place to get Israeli breakfast in our neighborhood. We go here when we don't feel like walking to Milk Bar.

Morgan's Barbecue in Park Slope, Brooklyn

The best barbecue in NYC's burgeoning barbecue scene happens to be around the corner from our apartment.  Get the brisket tacos.

Pork Slope in Park Slope, Brooklyn

Our guiltiest pleasure — chicken & waffle sliders — is perfected here.

Gifts

We feel fortunate just to have all our friends and family together in one place to celebrate, and your presence at our wedding is the best gift we could receive. However, if you would like to get us something tangible, we have started a registry: