Elite Valet

If you are planning a private event, it’s important to find a venue that fits the mood and impresses guests. If your setting happens to be in Dallas, you’re in luck. Biases aside, the Dallas landscape is a canvas of culture, history, and eloquence. With the right venue guide, you’ll find Dallas has everything from lavish low-key gems to elegant country-style farmhouses with all the trappings of luxury.

You can find incredible places to rent for your event in this city. You’ll just need a bit of local insight. That’s why we’ve listed some of our favorite most elegant and sophisticated event venues in Dallas.

1. Rosewood Mansion on Turtle Creek

This venue is on the property of a gorgeous mansion dating back to the Jazz Age. It offers architectural beauty and in-house catering. Menu options can be tailored to your specifications, so you can match any themes and make sure the menu is right for the occasion. Events booked at the venue can have access to the elegant Promenade room for receptions, to provide guests with a view of the splendid mansion grounds.

2. The Dallas Museum of Art

For a truly special experience, you can host an event in this art museum. There are five venues to choose from, with three meeting rooms, a plaza, and the sculpture gardens as location options. Depending on the location, you can receive anywhere from 135 to 700 guests, with the garden providing the largest capacity. You can choose the venue catering or bring in caterers of your own, and there is a full bar available on-site.

3. The Granada Theater

This venue is perfect for large events, with its capacity of up to 1000 guests. The building dates back to World War II and used to hold a movie theater. It has been refashioned into a venue for live music, with legends like Bob Dylan gracing the stage, as well as a private venue for events. The historical building holds plenty of charm, and guests will enjoy the good acoustics of the space.

4. The Magnolia Hotel

This luxury hotel is a beautiful place to stay, but it also rents out eight different spaces as Dallas event venues. Capture some of the glamour of this high-end location for smaller events, as the largest venue holds 250 guests. Elegant furniture, crisp white tablecloths, and carefully matched decor will all help your event be successful, along with hotel staff and catering. The options range from casual meetings and get-togethers to a more formal, structured situation in the famous Pegasus room.

5. Hickory Street Annex

Hickory Street Annex is located in a building that was originally built for the Gulf Oil Company. The building has since been renovated, and now it’s a modern, industrial space that can hold a versatile range of events. The exposed brick, concrete floor style will win any minimalist’s heart, and the amazing floor-to-ceiling views of downtown Dallas are sure to impress any crowd of up to 200 guests.

6. The Dallas Arboretum & Botanical Garden

These gardens hold five separate event venues for you to choose from. The 66 acres of gardens will give your event a sweet, floral scent that can’t be replicated. Options include a historic mansion, a hall, or even one of the gardens. Depending on your event, you can get a whimsical garden party going, or try something a bit more formal indoors. They welcome everything from corporate events to weddings, and their planning team can help you get everything together.

Host The Perfect Private Party, Call Elite Valet Today!

Elite Valet offers a valet service that will provide sophistication and elegance to match any of these event venues. Once you have made your choice out of all the venues in Dallas, Texas, elevate the experience for your guests by removing a stressful parking situation from the equation. Allow them to get inside the venue with minimal fuss with the help of our skilled, polite valets. Contact us today for more information on the services we offer for events.

Rules to Follow When Tipping Valet – Complete Guide 2020

Valet service sets you up for a great start to an event. It takes the frustrating search for parking out of the equation, saving time and headaches. Plus, choosing valet service at a restaurant or hotel gives the occasion a bit more extravagance. Once you decide on using a valet, you may be left wondering, how much should you tip a valet, anyway? Figuring out tip etiquette is an important part of the equation to properly thanking your driver for great service, so read on to learn about the best way to approach it.

Wondering When to Tip Valet Drivers?

Since valet service includes both parking your car and also bringing it out to you, figuring out when to tip is something plenty of infrequent valet users wonder about. When you drop your car off, a valet driver will take it and park it for you. Should you tip this driver, or wait until the end of the night to tip the one who brings your car back out?

Some recommend tipping the driver that takes your vehicle, especially if you are hoping for a convenient spot that will make leaving faster or other favorable treatment. That is also your chance to ask for any favors or special requests as you hand over the keys. Adding a good tip can help make those requests happen.

Others say that it’s more customary to tip the driver who returns your car to you at the end of the event. If you only tip once, it should be when you receive your car back from the parking lot. Whether you tip both times or only upon receiving the car is mostly a matter of personal preference. If you want to be generous, feel free to tip both of them.

What if the Service Is Free?

Some events offer free valet parking. Even though the service is free, a tip is still standard for the service. Valets are still carefully parking your car for you, and potentially even helping you load or unload items from your car, so it’s important to acknowledge their help.

Tips for valets are completely separate from the cost of the service overall, and not proportional to each other. Valets rely on tips the way waiters do, so make sure to tip to avoid looking like a cheapskate.

How Much Do You Tip Valets?

Currently, standard tipping for valets ranges from $3 to $5. A poll conducted by AAA found that at 40%, a majority of readers normally tip $3 or $4. That means if you plan on tipping both drivers, you’ll tip each one around this range. This is the baseline, but if a driver goes truly above and beyond, you might want to recognize the effort and quality of service by increasing the tip to show your gratitude. It’s nice to encourage great service when it’s received. Some people think that tipping is a universal way to let someone know you appreciate their quality service. Giving a little extra might encourage that kind of service to extend far beyond our own experience.

As for how much to tip hotel valet drivers, it really depends on the situation. If you are parking at an especially fancy hotel with a valet who opens the door for you or goes out of his or her way to accommodate you, you might want to increase the tip accordingly. If you are staying at a hotel and relying on valet services multiple times a day, it is acceptable to tip less frequently, to avoid the cost adding up too quickly.

Should You Tip Extra for Special Circumstances?

There are plenty of potential situations where you might need to ask something specific from your driver. An appropriate tip for valet service depends on what you have asked of your driver, where you are, and other factors. If you need a valet to pick something up from your car, that might warrant an extra tip. If you ask to be parked near the front, your request will probably be taken more seriously if you give a larger tip.

If the weather is extreme, such as on a snowy or rainy night, you can factor this into your tipping, since valet service lets you bypass a chilly walk from the parking area to the event entrance. You can take the same approach to a busy parking lot, giving a higher tip for the benefit of avoiding a crowd.

Similarly, if you lose your parking ticket, the process of getting your car back will be longer and probably require paperwork of some kind. You’ll want to give a higher tip to the valet who helps you finally get your car back, to account for the longer amount of time spent on you and the inconvenience. Any extra help from a valet that extends beyond parking the car merits a larger tip.

Is It Best to Tip in Cash?

At plenty of restaurants and other stores, it’s common to give a tip via credit or debit instead of in cash. Most people carry less cash than they used to keep on them. That’s why if you know you plan to use valet service, it’s best to keep some small bills around in preparation.

You may be able to add a tip to your charge when you pay for the service itself, but it’s much more convenient to use cash upon pickup or drop-off of your car. That way, your specific driver gets the tip directly from you. Cash is more convenient and easier to deal with, both for you and the valet.

Is It Standard to Clean Out Your Car First?

Another question people often have about using a valet service is whether they should clean up before allowing a valet into the car. It will definitely be helpful to your valet if you keep the driver’s seat clean and free from trash and other items for ease of driving. Other than that, it depends on how comfortable you feel letting your valet see a pile of receipts or a messy backseat.

It is best practice to stow away valuables, either by placing them in a glove compartment or taking them with you. This is better both for you and your valet. It ensures you know where your items are, and it prevents the valet from worrying about being responsible for them. If something does turn up missing, it’s important to let the head valet know immediately, for insurance purposes. Valet services usually have insurance to protect them in the case of damage or lost items. The faster you let them know, the better your chances of getting results.

Is It Okay to Call Ahead?

If you have any specific questions about a particular location’s valet services, you can call ahead to find out the details. This will let you know if you can tip via credit card, what the parking area is like and any other information.

You can also call as you are on your way to the valet station to let them know you are coming. That way, you can reduce your waiting time and get your car more quickly once you arrive. This is especially helpful when you are expecting a big crowd of people all leaving at the same time.

Take Your Next Event To The Next Level With Elite Valet

Now that you know how much to tip a valet, you can confidently use their services the next time you want to treat yourself. For polite, friendly valet service, try Elite Valet at your next event. Contact us for more information and a quote.