Burntshirt Vineyards — Restaurant in Hendersonville

Inedible food and no communication I got married at Burntshirt June24 with 65 guests- we booked July of 23. Met with Taylor, the event manager. Husband and I discussed we would come back to the venue in November for a food tasting and to discuss details. End of Sept rolled around and we hadn’t heard from anyone. I reached out to Taylor (a few times before a response) only for her to say she’s not working there anymore. I got in touch with the restaurant and we set up a tasting. There was confusion as if they’d never done one before. I had to be forward and show them the options and prices that Taylor gave us (signed in contract). They did honor the original prices/ options. There was still no event manager at this time, no real point of contact. The food tasting was great! The food was so good and I raved about it. We decided on Cajun chicken with a pepper and sausage cream, salmon with dill sauce, roasted potatoes and risotto. We asked the chef if we needed to find out what guests wanted for food. He said it would be no problem at all with the small guests count we had (later at the wedding my parents were told we were the biggest event they’ve had there so that is contradictory). After a few months there was finally an event manager again (yes months of no one I could contact). Communication was spotty but things were fine. I did have to reach out multiple times with the same question before getting answers. Most of the time the answers were “I’ll look into that and get back with you” for things that as a wedding venue, should already be known. Two (of the three) larger issues with communication were that: a planner was required which I was never notified about (I thankfully had a day of) and getting married in the vineyard was an additional $900 when I was originally told everything was included. The cottage is included with the wedding venue for the night before and the night of the wedding. We were not able to view the inside, and I asked the event manager if she could give me any info. She mentioned I should receive an email the day before with info on getting in. We did not stay in the night before and I realized on Friday that we had not received any information. I reached out and an email came that was not readable (the format was weird and it was just symbols). I was texted the code to get inside, but I was not told the main gate was locked. So the morning of my wedding we went from gate to gate to get in. Took an extra 20 minutes, annoying but okay. We were able to get in the day before and set up (all they had to do was ice beer and set out tables and chairs). While setting up we took a look at the alcohol and realized they shorted us. It was so uncomfortable but my husband went to the restaurant and had the manager come over. They apologized and said they would get us the correct amount and promised some extra alcohol for free because of the issue. We didn’t get the extra free alcohol, but they at least gave us what we paid for. Thank goodness we checked. As for the wedding timeline I was adamant for a short 30 minute cocktail hour and then for food to be immediately served. My husband and I were then going to make our grand entrance, go right into our first dance, and then go immediately into reception music since everyone would be gathered outside on the dance floor. The food was over an hour late. We held off as long as we could but had to make our entrance INSIDE and dance while people were eating. Worse- the food wasn’t edible. risotto was over blasted and bland and the potatoes were not done. It was so bad we almost ordered pizza for the guests. Bc the food was late this meant the dj had to extend cocktail hour with songs I didn’t approve/weren’t the vibe, our timeline was messed up and took away an hour of our reception time. I didn’t hear from anyone after the wedding, so I reached out after 4 weeks only for the event manager to say she’s no longer working there and would forward the info. Never heard back. It’s beautiful but they are not equipped to...

As the bride and groom, we had very mixed feelings about working with BurntShirt Vineyards. Conveniently located in a perfect setting, this vineyard offers a healthy balance of nice but not hoity-toity.

We received many compliments about the food and drink and overall, our guests provided us with favorable feedback. However, there was a consistent theme of headaches and frustrations that occurred behind the scenes throughout our 15-month working relationship. First, they gave away our initial wedding date. Insert the first and only bridezilla moment here. Second (and most importantly to us), there was an extremely high turn-over rate amongst staff. We worked with five different event coordinators; each new hire was a surprise to us each time we visited the venue. While we understand that a reasonable number of staffing changes can be expected in any business, this was incredibly frustrating- as we were forced to repeat ourselves and reconsider countless “finalized” decisions. Our fourth coordinator blatantly lied to us and “promised” that he would be our last coordinator. In reality, we accidentally learned that his exit strategy was already in the works when we initially met him. Our fifth coordinator was as helpful as possible while being thrust into a new role. However, too many poor impressions had already been made by the time we met him (30 days before our wedding). In total, these multiple and significant staffing changes did not instill confidence that we would have a seamless wedding day experience. Third, we did not find out until after the wedding that we were entitled to an overnight stay in the vineyard’s cottage, located on site. We unknowingly paid for this accommodation, but it was never communicated (like so many things) that this was available to us. When we learned about this accommodation after the wedding, we respectfully requested an alternative date but this was not granted. Fourth, we paid a significant amount of money for a beverage package that allowed us to keep the leftover alcohol from our open bar; honoring this agreement was yet another struggle we had with staff. Ultimately, the terms were met after our multiple requests. Fifth, the sound system did not simultaneously play music indoors/ outdoors, as we were led to believe by all five event coordinators. This resulted in us paying the DJ an unplanned $400 for a speaker on our wedding day, so that he could bypass the vineyard’s incompatible sound system. Sixth, the venue’s large projector for our picture slideshow was not working. The venue erected a small monitor for our use. However, guests were not able to easily view this major feature we had prepared for them.

In the end, we are thankful that our guests enjoyed themselves and seemed oblivious to all of the snafus noted above; however, I would not choose to pay the same bill for the same headaches and...

I was apart of the 16 moms - all in our 30s - that recently visited Burntshirt. Our tasting appointment was running behind but we did not mind at all. We were polite about it and waited until they were ready for us. Wine tasting was fun because we were with each other (and without kids!). Yet after wine tasting - we went back to the bar area to buy the wine of our favorite tastings and support the business. I guess that was a mistake because we were told we were a liability. Well whoops - if you knew the caliber of the 16 women there - you would not understand that statement either, especially when we paid $800 for a bus so we could be responsible. I honestly think the staff was ready to close up shop at 6 but technically they stay open until 7 and we were at the mercy of our bus driver to pick us up. If they needed to close up shop earlier than advertised hours, there was a more polite way to do it or explain it. A customer not related to our group defended us as well inquiring why we could not be served. Being the one that planned the event, I was shocked at how they treated us. We went to so many wonderful establishments in Hendersonville and Flat Rock that were so accommodating and wonderful. 16 moms - a rare glorious 24 hour break away from kids - the logistics of leaving a total of 37 kids with husbands and grandparents - and the staff told US we were a liability. Working moms, lawyers, doctors, a 20 week pregnant mom, stay at home moms... We had arranged a bus and we were happy paying customers. We were asked to sit in an empty room (no atmosphere, no music, no wine) to wait on our bus. Who wants to do that? And when we questioned as to why, it was even more rude and unprofessional behavior from the staff. We are naturally fun women and for an establishment to make and create wine - something that should help others have fun and unwind - were some very grumpy people who seemed obviously annoyed by our group. If I had come with my husband to quietly sip wine in a corner maybe it would have been a more pleasant experience. If it wasn't pouring rain and we could have sipped wine outside as a group of 16 - maybe the servers wouldn't have been so annoyed. However, if you are planning a group event - girls weekends, bachelorette parties etc - I would encourage groups to stay away so your evening doesn't end as ours did. You can't control the weather and you can't control the bartenders there. I would hate for anyone else to be labeled a liability. Go somewhere else where they are happy that customers are happy...