


Tonia's Victorian Rose
(Rochester, Michigan's Original Tearoom)
* Please call 48-72 hours in advance for a reservation, as we specialize in events and may be closed to the public on certain days.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
1. Do I need to make a reservation? Weekends we are very busy, and many times we have private events directly after our "open to the public" hours. Therefore, reservations are required on Saturdays. That does not mean we won't accept walk-ins, it will just depend on how busy we are, if we have enough staff, and if we have a private event after. There has been occasions where people have not called for a reservation, have driven an hour or longer to see us, then were turned away due to being sold out, so it's in your best interest to please call us at least 3 days in advance for weekdays and 3 weeks in advance for weekends. We WANT to see you!
2. Are you open on Sundays? Many of our Sundays are booked up with private events. Lately, we've been sold out several weeks in advance for our Saturdays, so when we do have a Sunday that is not booked up with a private event, we will open up to the public. Check out our calendar or call in to see if we have any Sundays opened up for the public.
3. Are you open on any evenings? There are certain times of the year we are open on Thursday nights, by reservation only, and that would be in the summer months of June, July and early August and then again for the month of December. We are also open in the evenings during Lagniappe, Fire & Ice Festival, and other random busy evenings when there are goings-on in town. There are also night-time themed events every October (Harry Potter Dinner & Trivia Night), January (Gilmore Girls Dinner & Trivia) and some summers (Friends, The Office, Golden Girls, and other Dinner / Trivia Nights).
4. Is the Tearoom Child Friendly? Yes and No. We highly recommend age 6+. But you know your child. Are they able to sit quietly without running around, can eat their food without wiping chocolate hands on the chair covers, will not throw or break items and do not need to have a device played loudly to entertain them? If any of those are a no, then they're probably not mature enough yet to be in the tearoom. If they are babies and will be in a car seat, then that's up to your best judgement - we would expect parents to take their child out if they are crying. Also, please note, our bathroom is an older one and does not have a changing station. * Please note, we will be happy to put a linen cloth over a chair that your child is sitting in, to protect the chair cover from getting soiled with chocolate, diaper, or mud from boots, and keep the chair covering from getting torn from kids digging shoes and boots into the legs of the chairs. Please bring it to our attention, and we will cover the chair. Thank you!
5. Where do we park? We have limited free parking in our lot on the side of and directly behind the tearoom. There is one handicap spot in between our building and the neighboring building, and there's a sidewalk in between the two, that takes you to our handicap ramp. Please call ahead and make sure we know you will need it, so we can unlock the door. Also, please note, our lot sizes are small, so please do not hit the tearoom or swipe it while turning around the one-way corner around the building. Lastly, if you are dining in the tearoom and plan to do some shopping, we don't mind you parking for a bit. The lot is meant for our customers - so those who have not dined with us are not allowed to park without our permission.
6. Why do you have credit card fees? Because we do not have a high volume of customers, our credit card fees are a high 3.99% from our merchant service. We have many showers (sometimes as many as 8 in a month), where one swipe of the card would be a $40 fee for us. We simply could not afford thousands in fees, and I highly doubt our customers would want prices to go up on all food items to cover the cost of people using credit cards. So we moved to a "zero" fee credit card system that is a lower monthly fixed rate. We are more comfortable telling people about the fee that would go on their bill and letting them decide if they want to use credit card or pay with cash or check (for private events).
7. Can we bring decorations for our private event? The rental of our venue means we make it as enjoyable for you as possible, by providing all that is needed for you to just show up for your private event. We have decor, table linens, chair covers, center pieces, punch with fluted glasses, and even small party gifts for your guests. Sometimes we do still get customers who want to bring their own decor. All we can say is, please no big balloon arches, no glitter, and no confetti. If you want to put a stringed decor across the window seat, that is fine, but please no big banners with large banner holders. Our place is quaint and otherwise will get too tight and overwhelming for guests if their tables and the floors are too full.