Open House at the Boerner Botanical Gardens

This June, we threw an open house event at the Boerner Botanical Gardens. The responses are in…it was a hit!

“The presentation was AWESOME and the taste very good!”
-Laura M.
Rogers Memorial Hospital Foundation

“Hats off to Zilli once more for the incredible evening at the Boerner Botanical Gardens! Zilli certainly created major points for, as they say on Food Network’s Chopped, taste, presentation, and creativity!”
-Sharon K.
Midland Plastics, Inc.

“The food was wonderful, the venue was spectacular, and the Zilli’s staff were very friendly and helpful. It was very nice to meet all the Zilli family members!”
-Mary K.
Zoological Society of Milwaukee

“Your event was fabulous and we really enjoyed it! It was a great way to see what other options are available for our event.”
-Dana F.
Wheaton Franciscan Home Health & Hospice

Here’s a short recap of the wonderful evening:

Guests began to arrive at 5:00pm and immediately explored the grounds before gathering for a welcome reception. An hour into the night, we treated guests to a liquid nitrogen cooking demonstration, followed by a meet-and-greet with our Kosher partner, Sharon Siegel Langer.

We turned things up a notch not long after that with a flaming doughnuts demonstration.

Throughout all of the activity, guests dined on traditional and non-traditional menus, washing it all down with a rejuvenating drink or cocktail.

The menu featured very diverse options. Here are a few of the favorites.

Hand-passed appetizers:

Mini short rib tacos
La Clare Farms goat cheese tarts
Caramelized onion puffs
Sweet piquante filled with clock shadow sun-dried tomato quark and crispy buttermilk leeks
Ahi tuna wonton crisps
Lemon-poached lobster crostini

Appetizers featured in the gazebo area:

Smoking goose, clock shadow, house veggie charcuterie plates
Craft cocktail and microbrew to be paired with a meat & cheese board served on cedar planks
Smoked cobb salads