Zilli Hospitality Group — Attraction in Waukesha

Such a devastating and sad experience... for our WEDDING! The domes closed down and we were notified of it three weeks before our wedding, after planning our wedding for a year. We were obviously very upset. We were going to cancel and have our wedding instead at the Milwaukee Art Museum. When we spoke with our wedding planner, she told us that she had been given the go-ahead to do whatever it takes to make us happy so that we would stay with them. She said we were very important to them, that she was just as devastated as we were over our event, and that Zilly would do anything to maintain us as customers. We agreed not to cancel because of a number of different things that were promised to us if we would stay. Not only were almost all of those promises broken, but we did not discover that they had no intention of actually honoring those promises until the day of our wedding! To name a FEW of our disappointments, there were food items that we were told we would have which were never provided, there was a Photo Booth promised which was never provided, and we were hounded for our checkbook starting off right before I walked down the aisle all the way through our dinner speeches. SO TACKY!!!!! This after being told not to worry about what our total was, even though I had inquired about what our final balance was multiple times prior to our big day in an attempt to pay it. Although I cannot blame Zilly for the domes closing down, as the city made that decision, I do blame the Zilli for taking away our right to choose what kind of wedding we wanted to have. A ONCE IN A LIFETIME EVENT!!! Had we known that they would not honor any of their promises, we would have canceled and changed our venue to the art museum. Instead, we were tricked into having a wedding that we never would have had... A wedding that was nothing but a huge disappointment. The only good thing about our day is that we were there together and loved each other enough to look past everything else. Zilly keeps pushing the blame on to the city. Do they not hold at least partial responsibility for making sure that the venues and places that they do business with are up keeping those venues, especially since they are selling these venues as part of their own business!? To be clear, the city at least did refund our rental fee in addition to a few other fees as they promised. They promised nothing more and nothing less, and delivered on exactly what they promised. Zilly, however, promised us the world and gave us not even half of what they said they would. I have no doubt that Zilli has successfully pulled off a number of weddings with minimal issue, however, I have absolutely no faith in Zilly's integrity/honesty, in their ability to adapt when something uncontrollable happens or in their willingness to make their own mistakes right. Heaven forbid something like this ever happen to anyone else. If you decide to give this company a shot, I would expect Zilly to do the very bare minimum in the face of trouble all while promising you that they are going to do all kinds of things that they have no intention of doing. This company is dishonest and exploited us rather than helping make things right. Their tone with us has completely changed since the wedding has passed now and they've already succeeded in getting us not to cancel... What can we do about it now seems to be their attitude. I find it interesting that they reply publicly to posts about their mistreatment of clients seeming to care and asking to call in and discuss things further. I can tell you now I have corresponded with upper management as well as other company employees and have not been met with any consideration at all. They will take absolutely no responsibility and are forcing us to fight them legally on this, which we will do! In the meantime, I want to make sure that any one looking into this company is aware of how little regard this company has for its clients happiness and for the...

Chicago folks planning your wedding in MKE, hire Zilli!

We had the absolute best experience with Zilli. When we started our caterer search, we were recommended to Zilli by our venue. There were a few other vendors we reached out to, but Zilli had a range of experiences, price ranges, offerings and ability to customize your day that the choice was obvious. What also sealed the deal was trying the food. Jessica is the best!! She set up a private tasting for myself, my husband and both sets of our parents and we had a day of tasting. The attention to detail was apparent from the start when we walked up to the door and saw our last names on the door "Fowell-Tomlin Tasting". We got to try 6 different appetizers, three salads, three entrees, a bunch of different sauces to pair with our entree, sides and desserts. We had such a nice time and it was great to be able to discuss the menu together and also things like linens and be able to physically see them.

Everything leading up to the wedding from Jessica and Krystal, (literal dream team!) was clear and concise. There was no question of what was due, when it was due, what info they needed from us. Their portal was easy to use and kept everything really organized. Jessica was so sweet and entertained all of my weird allergy restriction requests and phone calls to clarify things.

Now for the actual day. Haleigh was our day-of, on-site coordinator and she was awesome. They made sure that Tom and I were fed. They made sure to put aside one of each of our passed apps so we could eat when we got to our table because they knew we were mingling and taking pictures during cocktail hour.

Everyone raved about the food! I have some brutally honest family and their big thing is making sure food is hot. Food was hot!! I was offered an appetizer during cocktail hour and bit in and was shocked to see steam coming out. Potato and pea samosas were a HIT and everyone loved the chorizo croquettes. So many people asked me what the croquettes were post wedding. A real highlight. We had SO many allergies at our wedding. Zilli made sure there was no peanut contamination, all allergies (gluten, pecans, etc.) had meals that were wrapped and delivered to those folks ensuring no cross contamination. They were truly the best. One of our guests decided they no longer wanted the chicken.... and asked for beef instead and they accommodated her (which was above and beyond what they needed to do!!).

We did a dessert table and everyone LOVED the chocolate mousse and creme brûlée. They had everything with little signs and I actually got asked if someone could borrow my dessert stands because they loved them, but Zilli sourced all of that for us! We had late night pizza which everyone said was a hit as the...

From the beginning stages of planning our wedding, to the day we sat down at our reception and took the first bites of our wedding food, Zilli's made our entire experience flawless, easy, fluid, and personal.

For my wife & I, food is special to us. The art of plating visually appealing ingredients, the bright colors of a well plated dish, the emotion that food brings out in each us and creates a social environment that we as individuals connect around. Food is love. And food is what brings us together. So when we were trying caters, this was the standards that our cater needed to meet.

The first day we came in for a tasting, it was winter and we showed up to a very intimate & cozy dining room with only one table for us and our maid-of-honor/best man, with a rolling fireplace to keep us warm, in a dim lit room, while it snowed outside. It was a perfect, move-like, experience.

Zilli's gave us incredible wines to try, and presented us with some of the most beautifully plated options we've seen out of ANY cater or restaurant a-like.

After we committed to Zilli's, the following months leading up to our wedding, Jessica and Krystal were ON TOP of their game. Checking up with us regularly, responding to our emails and concerns timely, updating our customer account portal to ensure accuracy, and staying organized to make sure our day went off without a hitch.

The night came, and one of the employees, Virginia, was the highlight of our "day-of" experience with Zilli's. Virginia spent her entire afternoon & evening making sure my mother and mother-in-law were taken care of so they never had to stand in a long line waiting for a drink or take time away from visiting their loved ones to refill their glass, and she made sure my wife & I were happy and had everything we needed even if it wasn't related to the Zilli's catering services.

I had never had an experience where someone paid this much attention to our concerns, feelings, and making sure that we had a good night. I never had to ask anyone for anything, because as soon as I realized that I needed something throughout the night (no matter where I was), Virginia had already anticipated that I would need it and was standing there next to me with whatever I needed, waiting for me. She was like a ninja. Always everywhere. This was an incredible experience that made our wedding night even more special.

Our guests are still raving weeks later about how amazing our food was and how a lot of them hadn't had food this incredible in their lives, even at restaurants. (And our mothers are still raving that they need a "Virginia" in their lives, everyday.)

And that, that was the entire goal.

"Food is symbolic of love when words are in...