The Leonardo Museum

209 E 500 S, Salt Lake City, UT 84111, USA

Address:	209 E 500 S, Salt Lake City, UT 84111, USA
Phone:	+1 801-531-9800
Site:	theleonardo.org
Rating:	4.2
Working:	10AM–5PM 10AM–5PM 10AM–5PM 10AM–5PM 10AM–10PM 10AM–5PM 10AM–5PM

Location

Photos 100

Reviews 5

Jody Matsumori

This review is for an event at the Leonardo not the museum itself. We chose the Leonardo for my parents 50th Anniversary party because of the spectacular location and museum itself which provides entertainment for kids and other guests. Despite our event being during the SLC Arts Festival which caused a few minor inconveniences, it did not disappoint in that regard. However i would HIGHLY discourage anyone from holding an event there because the museums ability to actually host an event is way below mediocre. You are required to use the museums in-house catering service and it is as if they have no experience in the catering business. The biggest disappointment was very, very, very poor food quality. Not only was the quality itself below mediocre it was also not as described in the material given by the museum. For example, we paid $6/person for a bruschetta bar for the guests as we waited for the couple to arrive. It is described as a "Antipasti Bruschea Bar Assorted sliced breads topped withtomato Bruschea and local cured meats." That is a direct quote from their material. It was literally a dry wheat roll (not sliced bread), diced tomatoes (no balsamic vinegar or anything), and a small plate of ONE kind of salami. The food was put out in small quantities so people felt they could not eat it for fear there wouldnt be enough. Once the food was a few pieces i had to keep asking for more to be put out. This is just one small example of a night of very poor food and service. Each selected item on their menu was a total disappoint save the chocolate covered strawberries. The service and the food was awful and not worth the price you pay. Even the cake we brought in was cracked and smashed by the staff bringing it from the kitchen to the event room. They originally brought out paper plates and plastic napkins for an even that was costing thousands. Upon my request they fixed that but it just went on and on with inexperience or a lack of caring for quality service. I have waited to write this review to give the Leonardo staff a chance to professionally handle this but it is obvious the problem comes from the top. I have left multiple messages and email from the event coordinator on up. I did get a phone call from one of the executive staff who was not interested in the details of what went wrong and how they could improve. She apologized and said she would get back to me in the next couple of days with compensation for an awful experience. She admitted to that. That was two weeks ago. Save yourself a bad experience and chose another place to host your event!

A Private User

This museum comes across as a science museum designed by second-rate arts majors whose familiarity with science is what they learned in "physical sciences for poets" and "biological sciences for poets" classes they took to meet their colleges science course requirements. The underlying idea is excellent, the execution is not, and its exhibits fail in their effort to stimulate technological, innovative, or holistic thinking beyond the most superficial middle-school level. The one exhibit that is amply worthwhile is the excellent collection of black and white photos of the Civil Rights movement in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana in the early 1960s. I would highly recommend you instead spend your time visiting the new Utah Museum of Natural History, which magnificently succeeds with presenting material in an interesting, stimulating way that provokes thoughtful understanding at whatever depth the viewer is interested and capable of absorbing...whether its elementary age schoolchildren simply fascinated at the numerous fossil dinosaur skeleton exhibits or adults interested in exploring the depth of some of the Utah geological history exhibits. The interactive exhibits work far better for their intended purpose also, such as the one where visitors using blocks to build various building frames to test for how well they stand up to potential earthquakes. The other thing the Utah Museum of Natural History has in abundance that the Leonoardo has only in very sketchy and superficial form is...actual sound science, explained by scientists, but with the exhibits nonetheless presented with a well-informed, attractive artistic sense. In short: Leonoardo Museum in SLC: fail Utah Museum of Natural History (new one): big success

Tiffany F.

I just went on December 18 to see the Mummies of the World exhibit. It was the first time I had gotten up to the museum and was very excited. First off, the staff working that day was appallingly unfriendly and unprofessional. The person at the ticket counter just stared at me when I said I bought a ticket on will-call and gave me a look like I ran over her dog. The next was the staff to get into the exhibit. The ignored us as we stood in the roped line for 15 min before telling us that we needed to wait for a minute so they didnt flood the exhibit at once. (dont get the audio guide) It was horrible and didnt line up with the exhibit displays. It was far easier to read the descriptions at each piece. The exhibit itself was interesting except we had a very enthusiastic museum guy follow us into each room and to each piece explaining everything. It was so annoying I didnt really get to stop and appreciate the exhibits cause I wanted to just get away from him. For the cost of the exhibit, it is not large just a couple mummies and a couple artifacts. When we left the exhibit, the girl outside just stood there looking at her computer not acknowledging our exit and that we were standing right in front of her trying to turn in our audio devices. The museum should be listed as a childrens museum. The bulk is definitely to cater to kids. I didnt find any other exhibit very interesting and as others stated, its small. I can say this will prob be my first and only visit to this museum. Very disappointed in everything as a whole.

Mark Dickson

My daughter and I stopped in here on a long road trip. It was a nice break and there were many interesting things to see and do. I was pretty disappointed in the sheer number of "out of order" or simply broken or closed off exhibits. The kids "play area" was staffed by one person, who didnt seem to even acknowledge the presence of people in the area. The giant wall mounted marble run had 4 marbles. The human rights exhibit was a series of large posters you could color, while listening to a recording of human rights speeches. It was fun to color, but there wasnt much to see. The admission price was not bad, nor did it seem the membership price was either. I just wish there was more to see and do. While most of the reviews on here say that is it geared more towards children, I would question how many children will read multiple column long stories in plain text in the homeless exhibit, or how much children will get from the small room dedicated to building residences, this room in particular seemed like an afterthought or a way to randomly fill a room adjacent to the restrooms.

mee lee

This is a center for exploring, if you want passive displays you may be disappointed, be ready to make, build, play, challenge yourself and explore when you come. Here I learned graphene was discovered by 2 scientists, whos process of discovery included pulling graphite apart by tape, and won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2010. This museum was developed by Joseph Andrade PhD, a Professor in Engineering and Mario Capecchi PhD Nobel Laureate is an Advisor. I love The Leo, and have come to realize there that successful ideas come from the smallest doodle in a notebook. If you need to refresh, reset or recoup then spend the price of a movie or a lunch and come to The Leo for the general admission, relax, sit down and spend some time being creative, because that is what Leonardo Da Vinci would do. I have been a volunteer here, and staff, and the greatest compliment is when children say they dont want to leave....which is often.