It took just one movie date for Michael to dream that Adriana could be the one. A simple movie date – 2007’s I Am Legend – was filled with high emotions: butterflies, laughter, and the awkward tension that comes with even the best high school date. The couple was just 18 years old when they met, their wedding 16 years later at MudHen Brewing Company, a Wildwood icon, cemented a love that had been fermenting for years.
MudHen is “their special place,” Adriana told Weddings by the Beach. The iconic brick-built brewery sits just over the George Redding Bridge, the gateway to Wildwood; when it opened, MudHen changed the face of the island. The brewery boasts an outdoor biergarten, the Station House for events, an upstairs lounge, and is just a quick walking distance from the beach.
Adriana and Michael have been frequent MudHen flyers since it opened. She and Michael both live on the island and come here all the time. “It’s where we shared countless meals, laughs, and dreams for the future,” Adriana said. They originally planned for their wedding to take place in the brewery’s main room space, but the Station House, with space for a full stage and dancing, delightfully opened just in time for their wedding. The space is open and airy and avoids the “office meeting” feeling that haunts some venues by having massive barn doors to the outside, beautiful brick and wood walls, and 2 indoor bars.
You have to hand it to the couple: they know how to throw a party. They had several entertainment acts including a light-up dancing robot, “LED man,” that might make Daft Punk plush. The Whoa Phat Brass Band, a famous Philly parade act, also made an appearance. Michael is a parade-marcher himself, a Marshall for the Satin Slipper New Year’s Brigade and a Seargent of Arms for the Anglesea Irish Society.
He usually plays a more low-key role helping move the floats along, setting up and tearing down, but last year he proudly donned a clown costume at the Satin Slipper’s indoor “Clown Town Carnival” show.
MudHen was super flexible and worked with all of the different moving parts that the couple wanted for their wedding, even dancing robots and paraders. MudHen weddings are versatile & customizable. They have a locally-famous menu with American favorites for guests to choose from, and a great mix of island favorite drinks like espresso martinis and orange crushes. But Michael and Adriana are fans of the simple things in life, and in addition to a chicken parm, crab stuffed flounder, and prime rib dinner they ordered McDonalds and Springer’s Ice Cream, a local spot, for their guests.
While Adriana took on most of the wedding planning herself, she credited MudHen’s team for making the process seamless, ensuring every detail came together perfectly. “It was all worth it,” she said, as she walked down the aisle at MudHen’s shaded biergarten, the love of her life waiting for her as a violinist had guests dabbing their eyes.
PS: Try one of MudHen’s Sour Ales. You won’t regret it
