Room for four hundred people and whoever you want to cater it
McGowan Hall has been the neighborhood's gathering place for over a century. Three rentable rooms, original maple floors, a real stage, and a rate sheet you can read before you call anyone.
- How many fit
- 400 seatedIn the Grand Hall, with tables, chairs and room left for dancing. All three rooms together hold 550.
- What it costs
- From $450Bar Lounge, six hours, Sunday through Friday. The Grand Hall starts at $2,400. Every rate is published.
- About the food
- Bring your catererAny caterer you like, with no food or beverage minimum. That combination is rare in this city.
A hall built for the whole neighborhood, still doing the job
In 1922 the Knights of Columbus put up a hall on North Delaware Street with an auditorium that could hold a thousand people. It was where the city came to dance, argue, raise money and get married.
A century later the job has not changed much. On a Saturday it is a wedding reception for three hundred. On a Tuesday it is a neighborhood meeting. On the first Friday of the month there is a jazz trio in the basement bar and the door is open to anyone.
The floors are the original 1922 maple. The ceilings are twenty two feet. Nothing about the building has been smoothed over to look like a hotel ballroom, because that is not what anyone comes here for.
Rent one, or rent the whole building
The rooms are genuinely different from one another, so most people know within a minute which one they are looking at.
The Grand Hall
The big one. Original maple, a stage at one end, two bars, and twenty two foot ceilings.
- Saturday from $3,100, weekdays from $2,400
- Up to 400 black banquet chairs and 100 tables included
- Wheelchair accessible on the main floor
The Council Room
Hardwood, neutral walls and warm sconce light. The right size for a shower or a meeting.
- Saturday from $900, weekdays from $750
- 15 tables and 90 round back chairs included
- Stairs only, so read the access note first
The Bar Lounge
A jukebox full of 45s and a speakeasy feel. Home of the first Friday jazz jam.
- Saturday from $500, weekdays from $450
- Tables and chairs for 50 already set up
- Good for after parties and watch parties
Your caterer. Your budget. Our room.
Most Indianapolis venues that seat three hundred or more will only let you use their kitchen and their menu. We do it the other way around.
- Any caterer you want. We keep no preferred list and take no cut. They cook off site and bring it ready to serve.
- No food or beverage minimum. Not a lower one. None. Spend what your family actually wants to spend on food.
- Tables and chairs come with the room. Up to 400 chairs and 100 tables in the Grand Hall, at no extra charge.
- Rates are on the website. You should not have to give a stranger your phone number to find out whether you can afford a room.
Tell us what you are working with
Pick whichever one sounds like you and we will point you at the right page.
That is the Grand Hall. It seats 400 with tables and chairs and still leaves floor for dancing, so 300 is comfortable rather than tight. Saturdays run $4,800 for twelve hours or $3,100 for six.
Good. Any caterer is welcome, we keep no preferred list, and there is no food or beverage minimum. They will need to cook at their own facility and arrive ready to serve, since our kitchen is a staging area rather than a cooking kitchen. Alcohol is the one exception: the bar is ours.
The Council Room holds 100 and the Bar Lounge seats 50, so either works for 40. The Council Room is the usual pick for showers. Both are on the lower level and reached by stairs, which is worth knowing before you book.
The Grand Hall has a permanent stage at one end and regularly hosts concerts and full theatre productions. We are confirming the current sound and projection inventory with our operations manager, so call and ask for the specifics rather than trusting a spec sheet.
Plenty of options. The Grand Hall for six hours Sunday through Friday is $2,400. The Council Room for twelve hours on a Saturday is $1,400. The Bar Lounge on a weekday is $450 for six hours. And because there is no food minimum, the rental number is close to the real number.
Then book the Grand Hall. It is wheelchair accessible and so are the main floor restrooms. What is not accessible is the lower level: there is no elevator, so the Council Room and the Bar Lounge are reachable only by stairs. We would rather tell you now than on the day.
Weddings, quinceañeras, annual meetings, jazz
First Friday, jazz at nine, bar open
On the first Friday of every month the Christopher Pitts Trio plays the Bar Lounge. Doors at eight, music from nine to eleven, no ticket needed.
It is the easiest way to stand inside the building and get a feel for it before you decide anything. Come down, have a drink, listen to a set, and look around. If you want to see the Grand Hall upstairs while you are here, just ask.
Quick answers
Yes. Any caterer you like, no preferred list, no commission, and no food or beverage minimum. They prepare off site and arrive ready to serve, because our kitchen is a staging area rather than a working kitchen.
No. All drink runs through our bar, and outside alcohol is not permitted anywhere on the property including the parking lot. You can choose a cash bar, run a tab, or prepay an open bar at $20 a head for beer and wine or $30 for beer, wine and liquor.
From 9am, with everyone out by midnight. You pick a six hour or twelve hour block, and your set up and clear up happen inside it. Our office and tour hours are 9am to 6:30pm, seven days a week.
A refundable damage deposit of $300 or twenty five percent of the rental, whichever is greater, is what locks the date. Fifty percent of the balance is due ninety days out and the rest fourteen days out.
The Grand Hall is, restrooms included. There is no elevator, so the Council Room and the Bar Lounge on the lower level are not. Please call before booking if this affects anyone on your guest list.
What it was actually like
Book a tour with Jacob
Jacob Smith runs events and operations here. He answers the phone, walks you through all three rooms, and is often on site the day of your event.
Pick a time that suits you, or call and ask him anything. There is no pressure and no packet to sit through.