Walden Chicago
Guest capacity
Up to 275 seated guests
About this venue
We offer more than just being a venue to host your event. We deeply understand your event is a living mosaic. We pull all the pieces together for you under one West Town roof to create a seamless, sustainably minded experience. Every party, and the work that goes into planning it, should feel this natural. The process and pricing should be transparent. At Walden, it does and it is. Included in every buyout: chef-driven cuisine, top-tier bar service, rentals, staffing, amenities and the full scope and hands-on support of our event planning team.
Our event spaces
- First Floor - Cocktail and Reception
- Second Floor - Ceremony Space
Available services that can be provided by Walden Chicago
Services & amenities
- Bar services
- Catering services
- Clean up
- Dressing room / Bridal Suite
- Event coordinator
- Event rentals
- Event staff
- Lighting/Sound
- Pet friendly
- Service staff
- Wheelchair accessible
- Wifi
Transportation & access
- Self parking - free
- Valet - paid
- Wheelchair accessible
Rentals
- Barware
- China
- Glassware
- Linens
- Sound / AV
- Standard Chairs
Reviews
Write a review- Zola (12)
5.0 (12 reviews)
Don't Hesitate - Book Now!
Hosting your wedding, vow renewal, or special event at Walden will be one of the best decisions that you make. This team is incredibly kind, proactive, and thoughtful and your day will go off seamlessly. This is a well-oiled machine that, for a very busy bride and groom, was a godsend! I first encountered this group as a bridesmaid for a dear friend's wedding just after the pandemic. They were great then, and have only excelled in all aspects of their operation since. I didn't hesitate to reach out to them when it was our turn to start planning. We chose this venue for so many reasons - it's absolutely stunning, in a great location, and F.U.L.L service. The two most important things for us was (1) to have an in-house and high-caliber culinary and beverage program and (2) on-site support before, during, and after our wedding. Walden did NOT disappoint! Maria was wonderful answering all of our questions and working with us on the contract, even hosting virtual meetings with us when work travel prevented us from being able to meet together in-person. The planning team is out of this world - Erika, Krystle, Alyssa and Katie - made the planning process as stress-free as possible and were great to jump in with vendor suggestions, task-reminders, and overall coordination throughout the entire process. The F&B Team - Nick, Matt, Chef Nick and crew - were truly a joy to work with by creating custom dishes and cocktails for us, answering our many questions, and putting on a show that our guests are still talking about (don't skip the Tasting Party - it's such a treat!). The Day-Of planning team - Erin, Krystle, Jenny, and Sydni - kept us on schedule, coordinated with vendors and made sure our day was absolutely perfect. As such, this place is in HIGH demand. We booked in Jan 2023 for a late-Mar 2024 wedding (we wanted a Saturday wedding that wasn't in the dead of winter). If this place is on your list, just say YES! They are truly exceptional at what they do and we couldn't be more pleased with our decision and investment. It was worth every dollar and would do it again in a heartbeat. Bravo, team and thank you so much for making our day one for the books!
The best decision we made for our wedding
TL;DR Book Walden for your wedding, you will be SO happy you did. It’s hard to even know where to begin writing this review, but I do know our wedding day would NOT have been as amazing as it was without Walden and our planners, Alyssa and Krystle. I stumbled upon Walden in our venue search, saw that they had in-house planning services included in the rental fee (unheard of!) and knew we had to check this place out. Immediately after our walkthrough we knew we were going to get married there. The space is absolutely beautiful (exposed beams, brick) and set up to seamlessly accommodate weddings. Admittedly I was nervous at first about their in-house catering and drink program because food and drink were SO important to us (I had heard stories from other couples who were required to use a caterer their venue selected and the food was meh), but the food ended up being one of the best parts of the evening. We got so much feedback from guests about how amazing the food and drinks were, it was not typical “wedding food”, etc. I was also SO impressed with the way Walden handles dietary restrictions, it’s truly run like a restaurant. We have multiple gluten-free friends and family members, some of whom cannot eat food that has been cross-contaminated with gluten, so I was concerned about their ability to eat at the wedding and thought it would be a hassle for the team to accommodate. But Nick (catering manager) reassured me throughout our menu discussions that it would not be a problem to accommodate them with gluten free substitutions and that there would be no cross contamination. And can’t forget about the bar program - aside from two signature cocktails, we had three other special cocktails on draft, plus almost any other classic cocktail, beer, wine…the bar menu is delicious and extensive and our guests certainly took advantage of it! And now for the planning services…again, I barely know where to begin. We worked with Krystle and Alyssa, and they were THE BEST. Kind, funny, caring, patient souls who answered every single question we had and made sure our every wedding dream was achieved. Any time we were stressed and didn’t know what to do, Krystle and Alyssa would swoop in with recommendations and assurances that we were doing great. They pointed us to our incredible DJ when our plans to hire a live band fell through and we had no idea what to do; made my dream of having ice cream as dessert at our wedding come true; recommended multiple rehearsal dinner spots based on the vibes we told them we wanted (and then reached out to the spots for us so we could just review proposals and decide); always considered our budget when making recommendations; helped my husband pull off a surprise a cappella serenade at our reception that I had no idea was happening (which is a big deal because I was so adamant about being involved in every part of the planning and knowing the entire wedding day timeline). When unforeseen circumstances caused our wedding day timeline to fall off track, they were flexible and adjusted seamlessly. We didn’t miss out on anything, and I felt so at ease even knowing we were off track because I trusted that they would handle everything, and they did. If this extremely lengthy review didn’t convince you that Walden is the best I don’t know what will. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts to the Walden team, our special day would not have been the same without you.
Walden - March 2024 Wedding - Best Venue!
My husband and I were engaged in September 2022, and we booked Walden in November 2022 for our March 2024 wedding. Walden was the last Venue we toured and there was no question in our minds that we were booking with them as soon as we got in the car to drive home. I have an intense, "Type A" personality. I'm very particular with decor and planning. Many of the other venues we visited in Chicago...the reps were late, couldn't answer basic questions, led the conversation with budget, etc. Nowhere was molding what we were looking for. We received a personal recommendation for Walden and were put in contact with Maria. We took the tour and were given ample amount of literature and pricing to answer all of our questions. Maria was also very responsive with follow up questions. One of the coolest perks of signing with Walden is that it comes with in-house, full-time planners. This is incredibly rare, and we were ready to retain a separate planner as we were touring different venues in the city. Our lead planner, Kalila, and event coordinator, Alyssa, were nothing short of phenomenal. They were attentive, patient, experienced, organized...they had great suggestions and recommendations for when we were narrowing decisions down for all the things. I cannot tell you how many times I'd ask, "is this worth it" or "am I being too extra," and they would tell me the truth and they never guided me in the wrong direction. We had a very specific and eclectic vision for our wedding, and it was executed better than I ever imagined. Finally, the space/day itself. We had AMAZING food and alcohol (all done in-house at Walden, which we taste tested), espresso martini shots, late-night food brought in, hanging flowers and plants, hundreds of candles, a live painter, black draping, chandeliers, a CO2 cannon, our planners there holding our hands the day-of...EVERYTHING! I barely lifted a finger. I felt like an absolute queen. Given my personality, no one could believe how calm I was, and I thank the entire Walden team (especially Kalila) for that. I was able to sit back, relax, and enjoy my entire day and weekend. If you're looking for the coolest, most efficient, cost effective, and trendy Chicago wedding venue, look no further. Walden is your answer.
Planner is a bonus!
I didn't want a wedding so I wanted very little to do with any planning. Walden was an amazing venue not only because it was beautiful but because it came with a planner included in the price. They were so attentive, creative, and understanding to work with. I was sad when we had to say goodbye to our planner.
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