Venue Profile: Blue Hill at Stone Barns in Pocantico Hills, NY

If you’re a couple that loves great food and dream of a reception in a bucolic setting, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better place to host your wedding in New York than Blue Hill at Stones Barns. Set on 80 acres in Pocantico Hills, just 45 minutes north of New York City, Blue Hill is an active, four-season farm with a critically-acclaimed restaurant run by famed chef Dan Barber (if you’re unfamiliar with him, check out more about his philosophy to food and sustainable farming in the Netflix series Chef’s Table).

Despite it’s proximity to Manhattan, city life feels very distant when you’re at Blue Hill at Stone Barns. A long driveway winds through the ample farmland where guests may spot some of the resident cows, goats or chickens. The farm has been built on land that had been in the Rockefeller family since the late 1800’s, having once been their cattle farm. The old dairy barn (the eponymous stone barn) is now the where larger indoor receptions (and ceremonies) are hosted. It’s vaulted ceiling and vast windows provide a dramatic atmosphere upon which couples can fill tables with floral centerpieces and candlelight to evoke romance. Outdoor ceremonies can be held in the front garden (for intimate ceremonies) or the stone courtyard (which, for large weddings can have lights strung above), has the feel of a Tuscan villa. For couples who choose to have the entire property for their wedding, the courtyard can be used for outdoor receptions.

Food is the epicenter at Blue Hill with it’s educational center operating under the mission to “create a consciousness about the effect of everyday food choices.” Nearly everything served at the restaurant (and to wedding guests) is grown or raised at the farm. Cocktail hour and dinner at Blue Hill at Stone Barns weddings are not merely meals, they are experiences. Each course has been crafted to honor the land on which it has been developed and the greater Westchester region it calls home.