A line item that swings by thousands depending on a pricing model most couples never get to choose deliberately.
What a full open bar adds per person on top of food. Beer and wine only runs $15 to $40, and the gap is the easiest saving in the category.
Guests average about two drinks in the first hour and one an hour after, so a five-hour reception lands near six drinks each. At $10 a drink that is $60 a head, which is why per-person and consumption pricing can land far apart depending on your crowd.
A flat charge for unlimited drinks over a set window. Predictable, and the model most venues push. A full open bar runs $30 to $75 per person for the event; beer and wine only is $15 to $40.
You pay for what is actually poured. Cocktails run $9 to $15 and beer or wine $7 to $11. Better value for a light-drinking crowd, riskier for a heavy one, and worth capping with an agreed ceiling.
You buy the alcohol wholesale and pay the bar service for staff and equipment. Where the venue allows it, this is the biggest saving available, often $800 to $1,500 at a hundred guests even after corkage. Ask whether unopened bottles can be returned.
Cheapest, and most guests read it poorly at an otherwise hosted event. If the budget genuinely demands it, a hosted beer and wine bar with guests paying for spirits lands better than a fully cash bar.
The working estimate is two drinks in the first hour and about one an hour after, so a five-hour reception is roughly six drinks a head. At $10 a drink that is $60 per guest, which is why the per-person and consumption models can land far apart depending on your crowd.
What is permitted
The service
Almost every decision here is set by the venue, so start there.
Some venues hold the liquor license and will not let anyone else pour. Some permit an outside bar service from a preferred list. Some allow full BYO. This single answer determines whether you have a decision to make at all, and it should come before you price anything.
Beer, wine and two signature cocktails instead of a full spirits rail takes 25 to 40 percent off a per-head package and almost nobody notices. Closing the bar during dinner and for the last half hour saves more. Guests notice a short bar list far less than they notice a closed bar at nine in the evening.
One bartender per 75 to 100 guests keeps a line moving. Fewer than that and your cocktail hour becomes a queue. If the bar is a single station for 200 people, ask about a second one.
Ask whether the bar service carries liquor liability, whether your venue requires you to carry event insurance, and who is responsible for cutting off a guest. These are unglamorous questions with real consequences, and a professional will answer them without hesitating.
We are building this market by market, and a city page goes live only once it holds enough real bar services to be worth your time. Two listings is not a directory, so until it is useful it stays closed.
A full open bar adds $30 to $75 per person on top of food. Beer and wine only runs $15 to $40. At 100 guests that is roughly $3,000 to $7,500 for full service.
Plan for about two in the first hour and one an hour after. A five-hour reception is roughly six drinks a head.
Most guests read it poorly at an otherwise hosted event. A middle option is to host beer and wine and let guests buy spirits, which lands better than a fully cash bar.
Only if the venue allows it, and many do not because they hold the liquor license. Where it is permitted it is the biggest saving available, often $800 to $1,500 at 100 guests even after corkage.
Roughly one per 75 to 100 guests. Fewer than that and the cocktail hour turns into a queue.
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