Boerner Botanical Gardens Reviews
Reviews
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![Tia]()
Tia Sent on 01/13/2026Excellent!
I’ve worked multiple weddings at Boerner Botanical Gardens, and it’s magical! As the owner of Beauty Unveiled by Tia, a premier on-location hair and makeup company, I love this romantic, storybook venue with its lush gardens, vibrant blooms, historic charm, and breathtaking natural backdrops that make every bridal look absolutely glow. Highly recommend! -
![Mary]()
Mary Sent on 09/07/2025Dream Wedding
If you want a dream venue with a dream team for a perfect wedding, I highly recommend Boerner Botanical Gardens.
My husband and I live in Chicago and wanted a wedding close to Illinois/Wisconsin for his family, but also near an airport since most of my family and friends were flying in from California. We also knew we didn’t want a barn or hotel, and we envisioned a wedding theme that reflected our love of plants, books, and fantasy — our vendors heard us say “Fantasy Botanical Garden Library” more than once!
After conversations with over 10 venues and tours of four, we narrowed it down to two. What put Boerner over the top was not only the breathtaking gardens, but also how quickly we bonded with Yvette. She is incredibly kind and calming, which was especially important for me as a very detail-oriented, Type A scientist who struggles to “let go” and trust vendors. Touring is essential because it shows you both the space and the people you’ll work with — and Boerner excelled in both.
On our wedding day, our photographer was thrilled because there were endless stunning spots for photos. The Zilli team at Boerner, especially Yvette and Dana, were truly the dream team. Even when we made changes the day before, they accommodated everything without hesitation. They answered all our (many!) questions quickly, listened carefully to our vision, and helped us bring it to life. Lori was also fantastic at ensuring the day ran smoothly.
They went above and beyond in accommodating my celiac disease, making sure every course — from hors d’oeuvres to dessert — was gluten-free friendly. The waitstaff and kitchen team were attentive, making sure we tried everything, including late-night snacks. The bartenders were equally wonderful — fun to chat with, flawless in mixing our specialty cocktails (Aperol Spritz and French 75), and a hit with our guests.
Our guests raved about the venue and how personal it felt to us as a couple — a true reflection of how well the team listened and delivered. And best of all, everything was affordable without sacrificing quality.
We didn’t hire a wedding planner, so we relied heavily on the Boerner team to execute our vision. They exceeded every expectation. Thanks to them, our wedding was a dream come true. -
![Jamie]()
Jamie Sent on 10/20/202410/10 Wouldn't change a thing!!!
Yvette and Dana are the best and sweetest people to work with. I wish I could work with them everyday, they were so easy going! They helped us so much in making our dream wedding come true. They went above and beyond for us and I am forever grateful for them!!! Everything went perfect and everything ran so smoothly at the Boerner Botanical Gardens. Zilli is a GREAT hospitality company. The food was amazing and the drinks were even better!
Our event manager on site was SO SWEET and not to mention we had Virginia take care of us all night! Virginia went above and beyond for us day of and was beyond nice, so great, and such a pleasure to be around! I hope to keep in contact with her! She truly is amazing inside and out!
Overall, we are so happy we went with Zilli and had Dana and Yvette! They really know how to get things done and are such a joy to work with. In times of stress they are always there for you and will answer all the 100000 questions you have! 10000/10 recommend Zilli!!! We wouldn't change a single thing!!!!!!!!! -
![Emma]()
Emma Sent on 04/30/2024So Perfect!
Zilli, particularly Dana and Yvette, could not have helped us create a better wedding. The process was simpler than I thought it would be, and most of my concerns were eased with their flexible approach to everything. The venue looked so fantastic, and everyone involved was kind and fun to talk with. The gardens are beautiful in spring, but the inside was just as lovely. Go for these guys! -
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![Brittany]()
Brittany Sent on 08/10/2022Beautiful Botanical Gardens!
We absolutely loved our wedding at the Boerner Botanical Gardens! We held our ceremony in the fragrance garden and the reception in the ballroom. Everyone commented on how dreamy and beautiful everything was at the gardens and venue. Our pictures in the formal gardens made the day even more special. Our 90 degree day was hot, but the inside of the venue was a cool oasis.
Yvette and Cheyenne were great to work with! They were very communicative and transparent. We appreciate everything they did to help make our wedding the best day of our lives! -
![Anna]()
Anna Sent on 10/17/2019Absolutely wonderful.
Zilli helped us put together a picture-perfect wedding at Boerner. The food was the best we'd ever had at a wedding (no joke -- we wondered if part of it was the benefit of having the kitchen right next to the venue), especially the smoked gouda orzo and the pork. I don't even like pork! The staff was helpful and responsive every step of the way, and helped us customize what we wanted to customize, and make quick decisions on the stuff we didn't care so much about. We only had one proverbial fire to put out the day-of, and our Zilli coordinator just jumped in and fixed everything, no questions asked. Did I mention the orzo? Our flowers, our decor, our food, even the craft beers at the bar were custom for us and worth the price. The only thing that got a little $$ was the things they had to order from outside vendors (those adorbs bistro lights in the ballroom!) sigh.
My only mistake -- which would've happened at any venue -- was pitching my original wedding budget to the venue as what my TOTAL wedding budget was (like, dress and photographer and music and other non-venue things included), rather than my VENUE budget. So for anyone reading this looking for venues, remember this when you're asking for estimates. (Seems obvious in retrospect, oops. Ha!)
Anyway, Zilli was great, and the botanical gardens were great. 10/10 would get married there again. -
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![vanbeckums]()
Sarah Sent on 07/09/2013Amazing venue for a wedding ceremony and reception. Boerner Botanical Gardens in Hales Corners, WI. Catering through Bartolotta's. Our event planner, Rachel Wiesner, was fantastic to work with. Very organized and so willing to help and take the load off our backs. Phone and email communication was great- very fast responses. Every question was answered quickly and thoroughly. The timing of each part of the evening was executed perfectly, thanks to the Bartolotta staff. All of our vendors were in constant communication during the wedding reception to make sure everything ran smoothly.
All engaged couples should consider having their wedding at Boerner Botanical Gardens or any venue that caters with Bartolotta's. -
![Abby]()
Abby Sent on 06/28/2011The gardens were the perfect setting for our fairytale wedding. And the fact that the gardens came with Bartolotta services was a double bonus. We are STILL getting messages and phone calls about how absolutely perfect the reception was. They are professionally staffed with people to greet guests, serve food, and make sure all the vendors arrived. Everything went so smoothly, I didn't have to worry about it. They even helped us make our centerpieces and put them up. Our wedding coordinator went out of her way to help us in any way she could.
Even more, our bridal party was far out into the back of the gardens taking pictures and two servers walked all that way to make sure the bridal party was fed by serving appetizers on silver platters. It was so sweet!
The setting is beautiful, the atmosphere is elegant, and the service is professional. When I walked into the dinner hall after they had set it up, I cried because it was so wonderful. They even added some Cinderella touches that I didn't pay for because they knew I loved Cinderella.
The food was also delicious. This was another thing that we got incredible compliments on. Every plate was individually looked after and prepared. We had one vegetarian entree out of 200 guests and Bartolottas made sure to get her a pasta dish discreetly. Gourmet excellence!
If you want a classy (and worry free) wedding in a tranquil setting fit for royalty... Bartolotta catering at the Boerner Botanical gardens is the place to go!
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![Hana]()
Hana Sent on 10/25/2011Bartolotta Catering did a fabulous job on our wedding! The food and service were outstanding. They were flexible with our vision for the menu and even let us create our own dishes. -
![User921529]()
User921529 Sent on 09/04/2012Was given an idea of complete service and that didn't happen quite as described. Would recommend venue but must get your own day of coordinator too Forgot to set head table as discussed and shown on map. This was upsetting Beautiful ceremony amazing food -
![Rachael]()
Rachael Sent on 08/17/2017Absolutely GORGEOUS venue! We received compliments all night about how beautiful the flowers were and the rooms; it was absolutely stunning for an August wedding. Our photographers were over the moon! Our catering and contact was through Zilli Hosptilality, so we really only utilized Boerner for the space. A+ -
![Devan]()
Devan Sent on 07/09/2021Please stay away
Please. Stay. Away.
Horrible communication. The county does not even control what the Botanical Gardens does. Plus, Zilli works the weddings, but even they don't control what the Gardens does. There is apparently a board of people who make the decisions for the park, but do not take into consideration what the park is used for the most - weddings. By the time of our wedding, when the mask mandate was lifted, they wanted all guests to remain seated the ENTIRE time during the reception. They wanted all guests 6 feet apart on the dance floor with masks on. Seated guests from separate households needed to be 8 feet apart. And the wedding couple could only dance without masks for their first dance. OH! And they had a 2 drink max per guest for a while.... just wow.
It was an absolute headache with them. They didn't care about my wedding and did the bare minimum to satisfy us. They also locked up the building during our ceremony with all of our belongings in there without telling us and caused undue stress on us. OH! AND we also had our rehearsal scheduled the day before our wedding and the park decided to schedule a wedding at the same exact time. Without informing Zilli or us. Needless to say, we ended up switching venues.
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