My son and daughter in law got married there last August and everything was beautiful EXCEPT the mattresses. They were old and very uncomfortable. Fortunately we were only there one night. Maybe they have changed them out by now. read more

This review is my experience at the performance of Windy City Dueling Pianos on 8/19/16 held in the Rainbow Room at Hotel Baker in Geneva, IL. The cost was $30 per person cover which included 1.5 hours of hors d'oeuvres. When I called to make my reservation for 2 ($60), my credit card number was taken, so I assumed that was how I'd pay for the reservation. Upon arrival that evening, I was informed that taking the credit card just "held" the reservation, but that the payment had to be made in CASH. Really? Who carries cash these days? No such information was given in the email advertising this event. In addition, after we were seated, out waiter informed us that "management" had just then "OKed" credit card charges for the drinks. Hello - the expectation evidently was that all transactions were to be CASH, and this was't communicated in any way beforehand. Get real! The Rainbow Room is on two levels. Most of the tables for 4 and 6 people were on the second level, which encircled/rimmed the entire first floor of the room. The pianos were in the middle of the floor, with various size tables surrounding them. I could look down over the railing and see the entire first floor. Our waiter informed us that the cheese station was on the first floor, but that rounds with other appetizers would be made throughout the evening. The cheese station set up included a nice variety of cheeses, one type of cracker and several breads - none of which were cut up, so I had to put my plate down in order to use 2 hands. The entire set up was very cramped and not easy at all to navigate. The doors opened at 6PM, and the music was scheduled to begin at 7PM. I noticed the number of hors d'oeuvres platters being served on the first level, and yet NOT ONE ever circulated on the second level. The music began late at 7:20PM, and by 9PM, the second level STILL had NOT ONE specialty hors d'oeuvre served. I noticed an older gentleman with a name tag on, and approached him. I informed him that the evening was almost over and yet the second level guests were not receiving the service they were promised. (As I sat back down, a man at the table next to me gave me a "thumbs up" sign.) The older gentleman acted as if he really didn't want to talk to me, but had me point out where I was sitting. Soon, the waitstaff swooped down, and 4-5 different specialty appetizers were being served in about 7 minutes. It really would have been nice to have this service spread out throughout the evening, instead of all at once. Lastly, one server tried to leave an entire platter of 20+ hors d'oeuvres on my table for 2 - this was quite condescending, meant to embarrass me for speaking up and was NOT appreciated. The Windy City Dueling Pianos was very entertaining, and I would seek out another performance by them. However, on the second level of the Rainbow Room, any words they spoke into their microphone could not be understood. The sound system could be much better, whether it belongs to Windy City or Hotel Baker. read more

I was interested in having my private wedding here and received a call from a women who was rude right off the bat. Told her I was looking to have a traditional wedding just without the guests and she huffed and puffed literally right in my ear. Her response, we don't really cater to that sort of thing. I explained I WASN'T looking for a $500 wedding. I WANTED to spend anywhere from $5000-$7000 and she still said well how many guests and what date very rudely. I said, no guests, just the two of us. She then told me to just email her and she would get back to me when she could. I hung up and immediately said "b****" I was truly disappointed because I have already had a hard enough time with this and she just made me feel like I was worthless. Like my wedding wasn't worth the time of her day to even call me about. I guess she must have been to busy with Jenny McCarthy's wedding.... Stay clear from if your looking to get wedding info. read more

The hotel is nice but basic. It receives only one star because the staff is just awful. No respect our knowledge at all. Ten minutes after check in, we had a $133 charge to our debit card. The cost for the room was $265. So the next day upon check out, I asked about the charge. I thought maybe they charge half up front and the rest on departure. The woman behind the desk wouldn't and couldn't answer my simple question. I asked "do you normally charge half up front, and if so, that is applied towards the end balance?". She was very rude and couldn't explain how their billing works. I'm used to hotels that take a card, but charge at the end. After getting fed up, we left and I called later to speak to someone. I was hung up on THREE TIMES!!!! All by the same person!! I finally asked the person who answered, before being transferred to the same manager that was hanging up on me, how their billing worked. She informed me that they pre authorize the total amount and charged it at the end. I explained my situation and she told me a manager was looking into it and I would receive a call soon. That was 6 days ago. No call, no anything. 5 days after we checked out, another $132 was deducted from our account. I'm fine with paying the amount I owed, but am quite unhappy the "manager" couldn't answer simple question. I've tried calling back and no manager is ever available to talk to. I really expected more from this hotel. Don't waste your money, time or energy with this place. Geneva is a couple miles away and has much better value for your money.and people are much more respectful. read more

What are exhausting time trying to book a small gathering at this property. As many people know LadyIsabella Rosson birthday's coming up and we thought it would be nice to book a penthouse suite at this property and do some cake and merriment. The very first call went wonderful but the friendliest young man who told me all the things that I was looking for I would be able to do. Then I spoke to the front office manager who is incredibly rude and spoke down to me then I spoke to another manager who tried very hard to correct the situation by moving us into the baker sweet because the penthouse is a romantic room. Only to find out the next day that she was misinformed denied us the room and moved us back to the smaller penthouse now they want to charge me additionally to rent a space to have cake for My daughters birthday. At this point their customer service is an epic failure and between my friends and all of my travel clients would not be able to recommend this property. After multiple issues I asked what the property was going to do to make up for all of the problems and they said nothing so they don't have world class service they have no service. I guess after the 19th we will have to post how good or horrible the actual room and the remaining service is. read more

We held our wedding and reception at Hotel Baker in May 2016. Hotel Baker is a boutique hotel on the Fox River in St. Charles. It is a beautiful setting in a historic building. We planned our wedding from long distance and wasn't able to visit the venue before booking. We felt comfortable after Casey showed our cousins around the venue with us following along on Facetime. Casey is amazing. She is organized, knowledgeable, resourceful and that perfect balance of giving good suggestions and letting you make the wedding yours. We were hoping for an outdoor wedding, but the day before we decided the weather wasn't going to cooperate. As soon as we made the decision, the Hotel Baker staff made all the necessary arrangements. We never had to worry. The staff at Hotel Baker is very professional. All of our guests raved about the appetizers, the dinner, the late night snacks, the sweets table, etc. Great party with great people at a great venue. For any LGBT couples out there, Hotel Baker is an open and welcoming place. read more

We had our wedding at Hotel Baker on 9/1/12. Cai and Rowena were amazing to work with. They helped me decide on everything and had wonderful suggestions. They made the entire planning process so easy. Our wedding was better than we ever dreamed of. Everyone loved the venue and how unique it was. The food was AMAZING!! Everyone said how it was the best food they ever had at a wedding. The filets were cooked to perfection. The chicken and the vegetarian dishes were delicious. Every single person enjoyed the food. The staff and service were OUTSTANDING! The guest rooms were charming and beautiful. Mike, the banquet manager, also was wonderful. Everything was PERFECT! All day Cai was there to ask me if I needed anything, she had mints for everyone and kept getting us water, etc. She was so helpful and we had no stress on our wedding day because she took care of EVERYTHING. Cocktail hour was crazy with people wanting to talk to us and take pictures so we didn't get to try any of the hourdourves (sp?). When we got to our head table during the reception there was a platter of them for us to have some since they knew we probably get any during cocktail hour. It was a beautiful white platter with 2 love birds on it. With a note on it from the hotel thanking us for having our wedding there and it was a gift that we got to keep and take home! Then at the end of the night when we went to our room they had the platter in there with 2 pieces of cake a bunch of the pastries we had for the guests that we also didn't get to try with milk waiting for us. It was such a nice touch and so thoughtful of them. They definitely go above and beyond to make everything amazing! Thank you Hotel Baker!!! You made our wedding day amazing and everything we ever dreamed of and more!... read more

When my wife and I travel in the Midwest and South, we prefer to stay at the smaller boutique hotels, as they usually afford a much higher quality service and amenities... not so with the Hotel Baker. First, I must explain that I have a physical disability which prohibits extensive walking, etc. When making reservations, I questioned if a "bell captain" would be available to take care of our luggage...I was assured that this WAS the case. I also questioned if a valet is available or if parking was proximal to the hotel... I was assured that parking WAS proximal to the hotel. Upon our arrival, on Friday afternoon/evening, we were informed that NO "bell service" was available on Frudays....and that the "proximal" parking was 2 blocks away! We had reserved a "river view suite"...upon entering the room, we found that the door knob on the bathroom door was so loose, it fell off when attempting to open said door. Upon making our reservation I had requested that a shower chair be placed in the bathroom...upon arrival no such chair was present....one WAS brought to our suite the following day...at mid-morning. As I also have diabetes, availability of meals is imperative. On day 2 of our stay, due to the aforementioned disability, I called to have Room Service deliver a lunch to the room, only to be informed that Room Service is non-existent before 4 PM..... when I asked if any other restaurant near the hotel offered delivery, I was informed that hotel policy prohibited food to be brought into the Hotel. As has been noted in other reviews, the designated loading zone at the front of the Hotel is, at best inconvenient and potentially dangerous. While the staff seemed friendly, they offered NO alternatives to rectifying the identified challenges. In summation, our lodging experience at Hotel Baker was wholly disatisfying.... we will NOT return! read more

I signed up for Easter Brunch 2016 for three of us. It was the most expensive brunch out of all the choices I looked at, but I thought an old hotel along the river might be charming. I was wrong. 2:00 reservations. We arrived at 5 minutes to 2:00 to a very crowded lobby. We were told there was a wait. Not a big deal but they had a keyboard player there with an electronic keyboard turned up way too loud, and not a classical sound to be found. It was kitchy renditions of pop songs that were way too loud. We waited 25 minutes and were finally shown to our table. After waiting a while at the table we realized we were not going to get service for water, coffee or any drinks anytime soon. I had to go find someone. We then tried the fare. There was one spread in the main ballroom. There was to be Lamb and Ham. Unfortunately for us they were out of both, just a couple tough scraps. But they said more was coming. We then took our plates, left the ballroom and went up a level ( had to pass through the crowded lobby) to find the sea food and Cheese. No really. The cold shrimp was shell on, and the crab claws were so dried out and mealy I am surprised they served them. The cheese and bread were OK. We went back to our table. We finally found a waitress and ordered a mimosa, coffee and a white wine. We then heard there was Ham and Lamb so we went to get some. The server reluctantly sliced the lamb and asked if I minded rare...um' thats not rare, its RAW!.. Ok so they hurried the roast, obviously bad kitchen planning. Im not even going to mention dessert. Oh ok I will... up to the third floor for... pablum pastry. I found out when I got the bill that in addition to the $52.00 charge for brunch, there was an $11.00 charge for a glass of wine and an $8.00 charge for a mimosa. Listen, save your self some angst and embarrassment and pass on Hotel Baker for Easter brunch 2017. Your family will thank you for it! read more