This Couple Followed Up Their Secret Garden Wedding in New York City with a Disco After-Party

After matching on Bumble, Eli and Arjun met for drinks in the West Village on a Monday night at 9 pm. "We still marvel that we kept the date and didn't cancel!" Eli says. The two hit it off and eventually moved in together up the street from the Warren, the site of that first date. As for their proposal story? Eli and Arjun share a Saturday tradition; they start the day with pilates, and then Arjun plans a surprise restaurant reservation for dinner. Each week, he would send Eli hints for the surprise dinner. One Saturday, after their workout class, Eli got dressed up for a fancy-sounding dinner date—and then Arjun proposed in their living room. Her sister flew in from Florida to celebrate with the pair and their friends at one of the bride-to-be's favorite restaurants in the city.

The couple initially planned a June wedding in Italy, but their preparations quickly changed when the pandemic hit. "When we saw how impacted New York City was by the pandemic, we knew that we had to have our wedding here—at home," Eli says. The couple was married in an intimate backyard ceremony on their original date, and they invited 95 guests to a larger celebration on October 15, 2021, at The Bowery Hotel.

Eli and Arjun enlisted Jove Meyer of Jove Meyer Events to help them pull off a secret garden dinner party with a joyful spring color palette. "A few weeks leading up to the wedding, the only nerves we had were around everyone being comfortable and safe," the bride says. "We knew that anything else was totally under control by Jove."

The invitation suite featured a classic design with letterpress and flat printing. Hand drawings by Fourteen-Forty included a custom crest with the couple's initials and a crown and a custom envelope liner featuring mythical creatures in love to represent the couple. For a personal touch, the couple used sunflower stamps on their save-the-dates to honor Eli's mom, who she lost in 2013; they were her favorite flower.

Eli wore a crepe V-neck wedding dress with lace and beading embellishments along the train by Adam Zohar from Mark Ingram Atelier. "I felt very confident wearing it, and I knew it would get a reaction out of Arjun, so I knew pretty easily it was the one," Eli says. She finished her look with silver Jimmy Choo sandals, diamond drop earrings from Verstolo, and her mom's wedding band, which she placed on her right hand. Arjun donned a custom tuxedo from Alton Lane with a black bow tie paired with Christian Louboutin loafers.

Her bouquet from Mimosa Floral Design featured blooms including larkspur, clematis, and butterfly ranunculus. "The bouquet embodies Eli's bright spirit," the couple's wedding planner, Jove Meyer, says. "It was filled with various shades of whites, purples, and blues to be a little more subtle than all of the other colors used throughout." When Eli lost her mom, her uncle gave her a baby blue embroidered handkerchief; she used it as her "something blue" for the wedding day. The couple's florist wrapped it around the arrangement so she could feel her mother there with her.

Eli and Arjun shared their first look on the balcony of their suite at The Bowery. "During the first look I think we both realized that the moment was finally here!" Eli says. "And afterward, we knew that the rest of the day was going to fly by and that we really needed to soak it all up."

The ceremony brought the outdoors in; overgrown flower arrangements were placed on both sides of the aisle, creating a garden of love. A fireplace, where the altar was adorned with lush florals and greenery, served as the focal point. The spring-informed palette included pinks, blues, purples, and yellows.

A string quartet performed as guests were seated for the service. "They played everything from Dua Lipa to Bon Iver while our guests were arriving—they were amazing," Eli says. Her father, Bob, accompanied her down the aisle to a string rendition of The Temper Trap's "Sweet Disposition."

Since Eli and Arjun exchanged personal vows at their previous backyard wedding, they decided to give their officiant, Eli's uncle, creative freedom with the ceremony. "He had everyone cracking up throughout the whole thing," the bride says."It totally set the tone for the rest of the evening."

After the ceremony, the couple went up to their suite for a quiet moment together, where they enjoyed cocktails and canapes which included mini crab cakes, crispy fried oysters, and meatball parmesan sliders.

The couple served two signature cocktails: the "Regalo Verde," made with tequila, chartreuse, St. Germaine, lime, and basil, and the "Very Limey Gin Gimlet." "It's an ongoing joke between Arjun and I from one of our very early dates," Eli says. "He took me to Little Branch for a nightcap and I didn't know what to order. So he asked me what I liked in my cocktails, and translated that to the bartender as a very limey gin gimlet. Ever since then, it became my cocktail of choice. I should have known right then he was the one."

Cloches filled with vibrant flower arrangements were displayed on a white table and calligraphed with table section numbers.

Guests found their names displayed in front of each arrangement to determine where they were seated for dinner.

The focal point for the reception space was the hanging floral installation. "It was meant to be a floating upside-down garden," Jove says. "It replicated the flowers from the ceremony aisle, but suspended over the guests heads so they could dine under beautiful blooms, in front of colorful flowers—literally surrounded by bright blooms!"

They decided on one long table to seat all of their guests under the floral installation; numbers demarcated sections for easy access. The hotel kept a curtain closed until the reception started, and when they opened the drapery, there was an audible gasp. "It was every bit the magical secret garden we had imagined (and more)," Eli says. "That was a pretty big wow moment."

The table was dressed with a natural linen tablecloth and paired with white chairs with green cushions to brighten up the space. Settings included garden-inspired plates, pink Champagne glasses, and modern gold cutlery with white handles. Blue, pink, purple, and yellow taper candles matched the vibrant centerpieces, which were strategically lit; flower petals were strewn, as if they had fallen from the overhead installation.

Eli and Arjun served a three-course meal that started with a buffalo mozzarella caprese appetizer. The entrée was a grilled branzino with olives and capers or a steak-frites dish with a bearnaise sauce. For dessert, the couple offered a gelato cart with coffee, peanut butter chocolate chip, stracciatella, and peach sorbet flavors. A live band kept everyone dancing after the meal.

The pair took their first dance to Leon Bridge's "Beyond." "We saw Leon perform one summer at the Hollywood Bowl, and his album—and especially that song—just stuck with us after that night," Eli says. "Plus those lyrics!"

Eli and Arjun selected three types of cheesecake from Mah-Ze-Dahr Bakery, including iterations with dark chocolate cookie, graham cracker, and speculoos cookie crusts. "It felt really special to have cheesecake as our wedding cake because my parents had it at their wedding," Eli says. "Plus, it's New York!" The couple worked with the bakery owner to come up with designs inspired by the couple's invitation suite.

The couple held a late-night after-party in a disco themed room at the hotel, where their DJ played Robyn, LCD Soundsystem, Calvin Harris, and 2000's rap. Eli changed into a sparkly silver Retrofete mini dress to be more comfortable, but kept her strappy Jimmy Choo heels on. "The shoes were so comfortable, I didn't even change into my after-party sneakers!" Eli says. "Never thought I'd say that about my wedding shoes."

During the disco dance party, the couple served their favorite pizza (from Joe's in New York City) to guests as a snack—and everyone partied until 1 a.m. To couples currently planning their own weddings, Eli and Arjun share a reminder to relax. "There are many things out of your control, especially these days. The more you can relax and understand that at the end of the day, you'll be married to your favorite person, the other things like ribbon and silverware seem pretty trivial," Eli says. "You'll look back on the whole process much more fondly if you can chill out and have some fun!"

Photography, Leila Brewster
Venue and Catering, The Bowery Hotel
Wedding Planning and Event Design, Jove Meyer Events
Videography, Love Brain Films
Flowers, Mimosa Floral Design
Invitations and Paper Products, Fourteen-Forty
Bride's Gown, Adam Zohar; Mark Ingram Atelier
Bride's Jewelry, Verstolo
Bride's Shoes, Jimmy Choo
Bride's Hair, Zuzu Studio
Bride's Makeup, Natalie Lageyre
Bride's After Party Dress, Retrofete
Groom's Attire, Alton Lane; Christian Louboutin
Music, Sterling Strings; Element Music; 74 Events
Cake, Mah-Ze-Dahr Bakery
Rentals, Party Rental LTD; Borrowed Blu
Lighting, Stortz Lighting