Secret Garden in Palo Alto? You bet!

Talk about a well-kept secret! The Elizabeth Gamble Garden is in the heart of Palo Alto, and I have passed this event space many times rolling down Embarcadero and never even noticed it. That made seeing the property all the more spectacular.

It is a small venue (maximum attendees for a wedding ceremony is 50), but the gardens are jaw-droppingly beautiful. The garden surrounds a beautiful historic home. The home's first floor can be utilized for parties or meetings, and there are two additional event rooms on the property for the same purpose.

Picture a bride readying herself inside this grand, historic house and just a few steps from there, she walks out onto the back porch to an enclosed garden space that is so picturesque I actually got goose-bumps when I saw the doors open.

Picnic at The Gamble Gardens for Ed's birthday

The gardens are lovingly cared for by volunteers. They have an intergenerational garden which is worked on by senior volunteers and kids from a local school. All the flowers for the house are cut from the flower gardens out back. There are a couple of picnic tables in one corner of the property. I was so inspired by the grounds that I rode my bike back that same week for a picnic with the kids.

They seem to be governed by oodles of committees that "handle" all sorts of things and they don't use email for communications, but the location is so pretty, it would be well worth that inconvenience. You can use the house and event rooms during the work week, and rent the gardens and event rooms for weddings on weekday evenings, Saturdays and Sundays.

Visit EventCounselor for more ideas on beautiful outdoor spaces for events in Menlo Park, Mountain View, Palo Alto and Redwood City.