My daughter Gianna and I are very close. She lived at home for 28 years, so her absence has been difficult to adjust to, but I am so proud she found a wonderful, loving, kind, and hard working man like James.
After Gianna and James became engaged and we started the guest list, Gianna told me that when she looked out into the room she wanted to see people that meant something to her throughout her life. I knew we would have a great time planning her wedding because her heart was leading her.
We actually had booked another restaurant to cater the wedding, but just three weeks before our event their chef left and took the menu we were counting on with him. To make the situation more stressful, we got this news as Gianna and James were in the midst of renovating a house, moving in, and James started his new job.
Thankfully we had used Frescos, Franchesco’s sister restaurant, for Gianna’s very large bridal shower in the summer and was so pleased with everything that I immediately thought of calling Michelle to see if she could help.
Even though Michelle was on vacation, she called me back and assured me she would take over and everything would be perfect.
Gianna and James’ wedding reception was more than perfect! All my friends and family are still talking about how fabulous the food was, and how the service was excellent.
Our great experience with Fresco’s for Gianna’s shower and Franchesco’s for her wedding led us back to working with them for my son Albert’s wedding.
Albert and Ellen met six years ago and had their first date at Franchesco’s. I am so thankful I have a wonderful relationship with my daughter-in-law. As Mother of the Groom, I know my role is to be more of a support, but she shared with me all of her thoughts and dreams about what her wedding would be like and it was so special to see those become reality.
We hosted a very large shower in the main dining room at Franchesco’s on one of the coldest days in January, but Andrea and Michelle, along with their staff, helped make our shower warm and welcoming.
They helped me decorate and turned on fireplaces that made for unforgettable pictures. They provided a hot chocolate bar with a delicious breakfast and their mother Kim’s fabulous cake, which we had at both showers and Albert’s wedding.
As you can imagine my plate has been extremely full this year, yet there was one more event I was responsible for -- the rehearsal dinner! I turned to Michelle for help and once again she did not disappoint. We threw an Italian-themed pasta buffet at Francesco’s for 60 people.
Michelle and Kim helped me decorate and coordinate food, drinks, and service to make a wonderful and memorable night.
From showers to receptions, Franchesco’s has been part of every step of the wedding process for us, and we wouldn’t have it any other way. We can’t thank Franchesco’s and the Salamone family enough for all they have done for us this year.
The entire family works so hard at what they do and it certainly shows. They have the best food and are the best restaurant in Rockford. Both weddings were beautiful and so much fun. Now, we will patiently wait for babies (hopefully not too long)!