Banquet Facilities

Reception in Dining Hall

Hours of Operation: The Dining Room is currently closed to the public for the winter season and will reopen mid-March 2012. In the meantime, visitors can stop by the Gift Shop (open every day except for Christmas Eve and Day and New Year's Eve and Day) and purchase a soup and sandwich lunch to eat in the cafe area. The Dining Room can still be made available to serve large groups (15 or more) by contacting Benedicte Merian. See the menu options for groups.

When the Dining Room resumes operation in March, it will serve the new menu introduced last summer--a delicious mix of traditional Southern and French cuisines. The Stratford Dining Room is a regular venue for:

• Business retreats
• Wedding receptions
• Rehearsal dinners
• Banquets
• Catered events

Email Benedicte Merian to arrange for special meals and catering.

Dining Room History

In the early 1930s, Stratford began serving meals to the public on the lower floor of the Great House. In May 1937, a new Plantation Dining Room was opened adjacent to the Astor Guest House. Tragically, that structure survived less than a decade; it was destroyed by fire in 1944. The present Dining Room, with its handsome fieldstone fireplace and hardwood floor, was completed in 1951. An airy porch overlooking a wooded ravine was added in 1957 and enlarged 8 years later.