Testimonials

"I just wanted to again thank you so much for spending some time with us on Friday, and sharing with us the beautiful oasis that is the San Francisco Zoo. Having attended a wedding there already, I had some idea of what to expect, but you showed us even more things to fall in love with! The event space is really incredible…and there are so many hidden treasures…it was an absolute treat to have you show us around! It’s definitely clear that you are all passionate about what you do, and that just made the experience even better for us as guests. We look forward to working closely with you in the future!"

- from Becky, San Francisco Travel

"Just wanted to drop you a short note to thank you for the excellent service at our holiday party on December 14th. Everyone had a great time, they loved the decorated Great Hall that we were seated in and I got lots of great compliments on the food, even from my pickiest of eaters!

The staff was very professional and accommodating, and did everything they could to help out with anything that came up.

Thank you again and I will certainly recommend the zoo as a great location for an offsite event to the rest of the Admin Team I work with"

- from Genentech

"I am writing to express my gratitude and praise for the efforts made by your event manager and the entire staff in providing a very enjoyable event, for our daughter's wedding last Saturday, under extremely challenging conditions. My wife, Dana, and I were truly impressed with their ability to set up for the ceremony, inside instead of outside as originally planned, and then convert quickly to a dining room for the reception. The food was very good and the beef, my favorite, was simply fantastic. I received many favorable comments about the food from our guests. And allowing us to use the Carousel under less than ideal conditions was very much appreciated. I had no idea how popular it would be with our guests but it was definitely a big hit.

I also want to commend Carol and her staff for dealing with the weather and the Fire Department while remaining calm and collected. I'm sure this was a first for Carol and the fact that she managed to find a way for us to enter the Zoo, after the Fire Department had closed the parking lot including the public entrance, was, indeed, laudable.

Please pass on our gratitude to all those involved and know that we will definitely recommend the Zoo to anyone we encounter that is looking for an outdoor or indoor venue for their event."

- from Doug (father of the bride)

""I just wanted to drop you a note to say how wonderful our event was.  The venue surpassed not only my own, but every guest's expectations. The cocktail party was perfect.  It was impeccably clean (I had initially been a little nervous because it was outdoors). Everybody LOVED the Carousel as a cocktail hour space and the operator was very friendly.  The bartender was awesome and very personable as well.

Your staff were generally so professional and on point.  So many people commented to me about how nice they were, each and every one of them. They made certain that we were well cared for.  Even sometimes when I asked the same question 5 times, they handled me so professionally and never showed an ounce of irritation (even though they probably were J).

Also, thank you for accommodating our DJ and all his offerings.  His arrival, set up and break down went off without a hitch.

And please thank your chef.  The food surpassed everyone’s expectations, and I mean everyone!   I always look around to see how many clean plates there are in order to tell how much people enjoyed their meal, and there were lots of clean plates.  And those plates had been piled high!  The food was so plentiful and beautifully presented. We had a number of guests who are very particular about their food and they were all well pleased with the presentation and the quality.  Your team also made certain that the buffet was watched and impeccably maintained.

And finally thank you for making the process so easy leading up to the day of the event. Thank you from one hundred satisfied guests!!!!!"

- from Stacey

"Emily, Adam and Carol - thank you again for such a wonderful party. IT WAS A HIT!! The question of the party was; 'I didn't know you can have parties here?'. The two biggest hits of the party were the giraffe costume character and the live baby alligator. There was always entertainment! Your face painter was fabulous and your bartender so professional. I would definitely do parties at SF Zoo in the future and also recommend your venue "

- from Michelle (birthday mom)

"Thank you! It was a pleasure working with Carol and Adam. Everyone had a great time and I received many comments on how good the food was! Separately, I enjoyed the tour of the Great Hall and have been telling others to keep it in mind for their next offsite. "

- from Genentech

"I wanted to thank you all for helping us throw an amazing 'offsite' for our team. Everyone had a great time and the Lion House venue space was a huge hit! Thank you for all of the time and effort each of you put into our event going off without a hitch. We will definitely recommend SF Zoo to all of our Facebook event bookers for their groups. "

- from Facebook

"Thank you so much! It was an absolutely perfect event, everyone had a great time and the food and execution was amazing. I seriously believe it was the smoothest event I have ever planned in SF! I will definitely be filling out a Yelp review today and I know many of my employees were on social media tweeting/instagram/facebooking the event. I think this will become an annual event for AppDynamics and I will be singing your praises to everyone I know! "

- from AppDynamics

"Can’t thank you enough for today’s event. Everyone had a GREAT time! So fun, great weather, awesome food. It was perfect! My boss also loved it. We will definitely be back to the zoo soon!

- from Salesforce.com

"I wanted to let you know that we had great time on Saturday. All of our employees enjoyed the Zoo, the staff were very helpful and the BBQ was great. So many of our vegetarian employees said it was the best burger that they ever tasted!"

- from iTradeNetwork

"Thanks again for all your help coordinating down to the last minute! I’m so impressed with your staff’s professionalism and care and I will recommend an event at the zoo to all my colleagues.

- Elainea from StubHub

"I just wanted to say thank you for all the work that you did for us. Andy, his friends and family all had a great time! The San Francisco Zoo knows how to throw a children's birthday party! Everyone loved the animals that visited the party, the face painters and the group train ride after the party. The food and cake were excellent. Really, every detail exceeded my expectations. Thank you so much!

- Arlene

"We just wanted to thank you for organizing a wonderful wedding! We really appreciated your organization, professionalism, and helpful suggestions throughout the process. We both had a great time and several guests complemented us on how smoothly everything went and how wonderful the food was. Thank you for all of your hard work in making that happen! "

- Jen and Josh

"Who knew that an event at the San Francisco Zoo could be host to a fantastic party! We had a school function in the Lemur Room over the past weekend. We had 47 adults for an amazing experience. It overlooked the primate area where we watched the monkey read the newspaper! The staff was very accommodating. The beverages and snacks were presented well and very tasty. We ended our event with an animal encounter where two zoo keepers brought in a baby alligator and a hedgehog. The zoo keepers were so knowledgeable about their animals. We all left feeling quite impressed with the San Francisco Zoo. If you want to host a unique experience, I highly recommend this venue for your next event! Don't forget to visit the little puffer train. The conductor is a blast to talk to!"

- Karen (review taken from Yelp)

"We're writing to you from our honeymoon!

You and your team were the absolute best! EVERYONE was raving about the food. The tenderloin especially was melt-in-your-mouth delicious! Our foodie friends were crazy about your food! And one of my sisters (who has been at as many weddings as God seemingly) has said that ours was the most beautiful ever! People wanted to know how we ever knew of the Great Hall at the Zoo as a venue because they were so impressed. Your marketing department can get us to endorse your venue and catering department's fabulousness in as many words and photos as you want us to! We are delighted to be references for anyone who is looking to hold their wedding with you - we can't say enough about how great you were!

P.S We inadvertently made off with your full-length mirror from the bride's changing room and will return it soon as we get back from Yosemite"

- Callista & Scott

"We want to thank you for the superb service that the zoo staff provided to HSA for our Foster Parent & Children Holiday Event. You all did a BEAUTIFUL job & Carol you took care of every detail & we appreciate it! It was a pleasure working with you from the beginning to the end! You were so helpful & generous and we cannot thank you enough! Your generosity was felt on Saturday, evident by the look on the children's faces. The foster parents & children were very happy and enjoyed every minute of their experience at the zoo. We will definitely use your facility for future events & look forward to working with you again soon. We will also recommend your facility to our partners!"

- Kimberlee from HSA

"Dear SF Zoo team,
'The best holiday party in years!' - Our office manager
'This was the most creative and amazing party I’ve ever been to!' - One of our top sales people
'I’ve never seen such a lively company party, everyone was having a great time!' - Our photographer
'I had such a great time! This was so much fun!' - ...The other 100 people that came!
Thank you so much for helping us put on a such a successful event. We will be telling all of our friends and family about it!" - Loma from Fact Set

"This is a much overdue note to inform you of the wonderful efforts made by your staff, and especially Carol, to make our Rehearsal Dinner such a perfect evening. Our guests are still raving about all aspects of the party......from the cocktails in the African Savanna...to the giraffe feeding.... and to the delicious meal in the Great Hall. The weather was absolutely glorious that evening and even the zebra seemed to run bye as if on cue! My husband and I were concerned about the difficulties of planning a party of this size in San Francisco from Ohio. We looked at several venues but it only took one brief tour and meeting to establish that we had found the place to host a unique and memorable event. Carol made great suggestions as to the menu, bar set-up, and service. We were able to handle most of the planning through email communication in which Carol always responding quickly. The San Francisco Zoo will always be special to the Noonan and Hellmuth families and we look forward to visiting it again in the future....maybe returning with grandchildren in a few years!"

- Peggy Noonan