Planning Your Large Group and Special Event!

The Cambridge Private Dining Room

Quick links to Event Request Forms: BOSTON • CAMBRIDGE • WALTHAM

[The "Choosing the Place" section below describes each restaurant's particular features. You can also find answers to Frequently Asked Questions at the bottom of this page.]

A perfect place for your party, business or pleasure

All three of our restaurants regularly host special events for large groups. Far from cookie-cutter facilities, our three restaurants each have singular personalities.

Each restaurant offers unique features and varying degrees of privacy suitable for a broad range of party sizes and occasions - from 15 to 150 - and from business meetings with Powerpoint presentations to office parties - from community and nonprofit fundraisers, to baby showers, birthday parties, bar and bat mitzvahs, family reunions, wedding rehearsal dinners - and, of course, weddings themselves.

The Elephant Walk is a superior choice for special events

The Elephant Walk is a uniquely versatile and convenient choice for your next special event:

  • We're convenient, with in-town locations on both sides of the river - in Boston [right on Beacon Street, near Brookline, with inexpensive valet parking], Cambridge [right on Mass. Ave., with a gigantic, free parking lot], and a Metro-West location in Waltham [right on Main Street, near Moody St., across from the Common, with a large municipal garage right behind us].
  • We're the farthest thing from the same old same ol' - Natually both exotic [Cambodian] and familiar [French], we epitomize [in event-planning parlance] the"upscale-casual", or "casually elegant" dining experience.
  • Now in our 20th year [yes, that news has come as a bit of a shock to us too!] we are very experienced planning and managing our guests' special events.
  • Perhaps most importantly, we are extremely affordable. We never charge room fees [though we do establish food-and-beverage spending minimums for prime-time accommodations - but we help your figure out how to spend it so you always get your money's worth!].

We hope you allow us to help you welcome your colleagues, friends, and family to The Elephant Walk.

Planning the meal

Our full menu is available for smaller groups. However, we strongly recommend all groups, and require larger groups to opt for prix-fixe menus. Narrowing choices serves many purposes, with these the most important:

  • Guests have a far easier time choosing, thereby helping them stay engaged with their companions and fellow celebrants,
  • both our service staff and kitchen staff have an easier time preparing and presenting food quickly, together, and well, and
  • event costs can be known and contained in advance.

We have standard dinner prix-fixe menus, that include both Cambodian and French dishes, ranging from $29.95 to $36.95 per person and will happily customize a prix-fixe menu for your guests at lower and higher price points if you so desire. - We also offer a special family-style menu we call "The Cambodian Table," for our most authentic Cambodian dining experience. - And of course our widely-varied and award-winning vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free menus make it possible for you to deftly accommodate an extremely broad array of dietary needs.

We also have a menu of delightful and ethnically diverse passed hors d'oeuvres for guests who prefer to greet, meet, and mingle a bit before their meals.

The beverage component of every special event is tailored to the unique and specific desires and requirements of each host.

Choosing the place

Cambridge

Cambridge is our largest and most versatile restaurant. There we offer three separate private rooms with capacities of 16, 45, and 70 people. Only in Cambridge can we help you pull off a cocktail party for up to 75 guests - and more if we include adjoining rooms. The restaurant in its entirety can accommodate well over 200 guests on two levels.

Boston [near Brookline]

In Boston we have one private dining room with a capacity of 25-30. Our main dining room in the center of the restaurant can accommodate up to 90 people. Our front dining room can seat a maximum of 60. The restaurant can accommodate 140 guests in its entirety.

Waltham

Our Waltham restaurant offers two dining rooms which can accommodate up to 35 and 65 respectively. The restaurant's maximum capacity is 90. We use free-standing, decorative screens to subdivide each room and create intimacy for smaller gatherings.

Quick links to Event Request Forms: BOSTON • CAMBRIDGE • WALTHAM

Special Event FAQ

Q: Do you charge a room fee for private dining areas?

A: We never charge a room fee. However, depending on the size of your group, the time of year, and the day of the week, we may impose a food and beverage minimum for large groups or parties that are looking for private accommodations.

Q: Can I bring my own dessert? Is there a cake-cutting fee?

A: Guests are welcome to bring in their own desserts, such as birthday cakes. We charge $2.00 per person as an “outside food” fee, if you decide to bring something in. Included in this fee is portioning, plating, and serving outside desserts.

Q: Can I bring in my own bottle of wine? Is there a corkage fee?

A: By City Ordinance, BYO is not permitted in Boston, Cambridge or Waltham.

Q: How are beverage purchases handled for large groups?

A: We can accommodate a variety of options for beverage purchases. The three most common choices are [1] to provide an “open bar”, where guests can order from our full bar and wine lists with the charge going on the host's check, [2] a “cash bar” where guests pay for their own drinks, and [3] a limited drink list, where the host pays, but guests are limited to a pre-selected list of beverages.

Q: Do your tables have linens? Can you get custom linens?

A: Our tables at all three locations are wood which blends perfectly with our decor. However, we do have white tablecloths and napkins available with advance notice, and we can also order specialized colors of napkins and tablecloths at an economical rate.

Q: Can I bring flowers or can I get them through the restaurant?

A: Guests are welcome to provide their own flowers for events. We can also provide them for a nominal fee.

Q: Do you have the ability to show presentations?

A: We have flat screen monitors at all three locations for DVD or laptop-driven presentations. Our Cambridge location features two monitors fixed to the walls of our lounge/bar area and one monitor on a rolling cart. In Waltham our monitor is on a rolling cart. At our Boston location the monitor is fixed to the wall in our private dining room.

If your question is not answered here...

Please email us. Please be sure to mention the specific location you're inquiring about.