How To Set Up A Bar Cart For A Party

How to Prepare-up a Bar for a Party (Without Going Crazy)

| April 25, 2022

Our Standard Portable Bar, fully stocked and ready to roll!

Do you lot always find yourself 2d guessing whether y'all've prepare everything up properly before an outcome? I'm constantly second guessing myself just walking out of my flat in the morning. This morning I got half way to piece of work before I realized I left my laptop at home! Short of my own noggin, there's not much else more useful for really getting work washed!

Events and parties are infinitely more difficult to plan than my stroll to work. And then it'southward now surprising almost everyone I know that works in events uses checklists like crazy.

Whether you're a caterer, issue planner, or mobile bartender, you've had the experience of trying to decide how to handle bar service at an effect. Should I use a total bar? Or just vino and beer? Wait, what most a specialty potable? Greenbacks bar or hosted bar? How much liquor should I purchase? Wait. Are we serving liquor?

Yea. At that place's a LOT of questions you demand to sort out when you lot're figuring out how to set-up a bar for a political party or other special outcome.

We've tried to make a niggling bit simpler for y'all with a pace-by-pace process for how to handle it.

Footstep one: Deciding on Bar Service

The very starting time affair yous'll exist asking nigh when deciding how to set-upwardly a bar for your next role is is "what kind of bar service?" In that location's substantially two basic options that most event or political party confined autumn into…

Standard Wine and Beer Bar

Probably the about mutual pick is a wine and beer merely bar. By not having liquor, information technology's typically much more than affordable if the host is picking up the tab, and from the perspective of the bar, it'southward a lot easier to stock since in that location aren't then many choices.

The standard vino and beer bar will demand at to the lowest degree 3 popular types of beer (keg beer can be a fun choice, although information technology doesn't suit all occasions), a dry white wine, a semi-sweet, a full-bodied red and some sparkling wine. I'll go into detail below and mixers are listed separately, under the section on computing, but remember that designated drivers and non-drinkers will need a generous option of non-alcoholic choices.

Total Bar – Wine, Beer and Spirits

When budget isn't a trouble, the full bar – wine, beer and spirits – covers all tastes. This is likely appropriate for events like corporate parties and galas where it makes a real departure to the class of the event to accept a wide offering.

A simpler version of this, often used at weddings, is the wine, beer, and speciality drink bar – a themed cocktail, for case –
which has serious advantages for the host – information technology is easier to buy stock, simpler for bar staff, and if the
host is picking up the whole tab, having a single, or very limited, choice of spirits is a lot cheaper than
a total bar.

Cull the bar type that works all-time for your invitee list and fits into the agreed upon budget.

Stride 2: Bar Pricing

Everyone knows – guests as well as anyone – that liquor costs a lot of coin and at some parties a cash bar is becoming the standard. Many wedding ceremony receptions, for instance, have a cash bar.

The main differences are that guests order more drinks at a hosted bar (also known every bit a banquet bar), will attempt more variety, and won't hunt down a lost drinkable, just replace it. Parties with host bars are happy parties, merely can exist very expensive for the host. Ane advantage – the range of drinks can be more limited since guests aren't going to exist too picky if they aren't the ones picking up the tab. Accept plenty of stock – need will exist high.

Cash confined should be well stocked. Guests will paying and so are going to wait a full range along with good prices and skilful service.

There's also the option to do some combination of the two. This tin include offer vino and beer every bit part of a hosted bar and liquor on a cash basis or using a time limit before switching from a hosted to cash bar. I won't delve also much into the different combination bar options every bit they were covered in detail hither.

As a general dominion, the two main criteria to look at are budget and the type of event. If the budget won't allow for a hosted bar, the decision becomes a little easier. If it does, this post on event bar pricing and options should help you clarify exactly how to set up it up.

Step 3: Calculating what people drink

Trying to figure out how much and what people are going to drink is perchance the trickiest part of setting up a bar for a party. With so many options available and so many factors that influence how much and what your guests will be drinking, it can go tricky.

This particular judge assumes that the party is on a Friday evening in warm weather condition, the bar is fully hosted, there are bar snacks (not a meal) and that the l guests are mainly thirty-somethings and live locally. That gives us a generalized starting signal to work from and is probably a reasonable assumption for what events ordinarily look like.

Expect your guests to want three drinks each in the beginning 2 hours, and an boosted drinkable per hour after that.

This is the generally accustomed "best practice," though your personal experience with similar parties will e'er be a better indicator.

Wine and Beer Bar

When you a vino and beer bar, permit up to three beers, 2 mixers and 2 spectacles of wine per head.

For a party of 50 guests, that translates to between 12 and thirteen dozen beers, 9 dozen mixers and twenty bottles of wine. Yous tin add together two bottles of cordial (orange and lime are generally the most popular), a bottle of bitters, and some fruit juice options to diversify the choices without adding likewise much stock.

Which beers? 6-vii dozen of the nigh popular brand, 3-four dozen of the second well-nigh pop, and the last ii to 3 dozen would be a mixture of light alcohol options, an imported choice, and/or cider.

Which mixers / sodas? Your soft drinks or mixers would be adequately evenly carve up – three dozen cola, 3 dozen lemonade or ginger ale, 2 dozen club sodas (for spritzers and the cordials) and 1 dozen fizzy fruit-flavoured options.

Which wines? If the atmospheric condition is colder, people won't drink quite every bit much – allow two beers instead of iii (9 dozen) and buy more than reds for the vino. Otherwise your wine could be 6 bottles of dry white, 6 bottles of a fruitier white, four bottles of sparkling wine and four bottles of a eye-of-the-road respectable carmine.

A commemoration with lots of toasts, or a lunchtime event, would need more sparkling vino or champagne and less cherry. Cocktails such as Bucks Fizz, Mimosa and Kir Royale are fun for a vino and beer bar.

If you lot are having food and want some guidance on the wine, this chart from winefolly.com is a prissy, quick reference.

Full Bar

If you're offer a full bar, the calculation becomes 2 cocktails, two beers, 2 mixers and a glass of wine. You accept to purchase a reasonable range of spirits – unless you went the recommended route of one signature drink.

You lot must go a good idea from the host which spirits to stock – no good bringing iv bottles of vodka for a whisky crowd, or running out of vermouth after two hours. Wherever possible avoid a range of shots or shooters at a full bar, considering they're expensive for the host and can throw planning completely out the window.

If in that location's a spontaneous and unexpected tequila run, when you expected vodka shots – problem. An open up bar with superlative-shelf liquor is extremely costly. A more pop alternative is to limit the options to a specialty drink, especially if it can be themed to the upshot.

For a general total bar, you should look at buying half dozen x 750ml bottles for fifty guests – that will mix up 100 cocktails. If you have a speciality drink, or know what the guests like best, excellent. If not, a fairly safe listing is:

2 ten vodka,
ane x gin (brand it two in summer for gin and tonics),
one x whisky (1 10 Scotch and 1 x Bourbon in winter),
1 10 rum (light rather than night) and
1 x tequila or similar for shots (straight) or shooters (mixed)

Suit the list to the guests. A martini oversupply would need more gin than vodka, and a bottle of vermouth.

The mixers won't alter much from the wine and beer bar, unless you need to include more or extra
stock for a cocktail mix. Cadet'due south Fizz will demand lots of fresh orangish juice, for case, while a Mimosa
is heavier on champagne than on orange juice. Kir Royale needs crème de cassis.

A Give-and-take on Buying Alcohol

If you go through a wholesaler, you lot may non exist able to return leftover stock so the price advantage is
lost. However, if you can store the alcohol and aren't worried about greenbacks-flow issues (wouldn't it be nice if that was e'er really the example…), wholesalers are a good option.

If you go through a liquor shop, the higher cost is usually largely offset by beingness able to return sealed
unused stock, professional help with deciding your quantities, and a glasses service.

Considerations

Remember that mid-calendar week, mid-mean solar day, mid-winter, mid-life and long drives for the departing guests
would all be factors that affect how to fix a bar for a party! Older guests tend more than towards spirits
and white wine. Younger groups will be heavier on beer and cocktails. Anybody drinks less when
there's a repast provided.

A full list of potential considerations is available in the alcohol department of our bar catering guide.

Garnishes

Lemons (with a proficient knife and a chopping board) are basic. Salt and limes, if you bought tequila.

Other generally useful garnishes include

Almond Cocktail garnished with fennel

limes
olives
cocktail onions
maraschino cherries

Yous can dress up drinks with herbs, like a feathery frond of fennel.

If you're offering cocktails, cheque the recipe for each and make sure you stock the relevant garnishes. If yous need sugar or table salt for the rim of a drinking glass, don't forget to supply a container big enough for the drinking glass's rim.

Prep Garnishes in Advance

Lemons, limes, pineapple, and cucumber can be pre-sliced, arranged on a serving plate, wrapped in cling-film and kept refrigerated until needed.

Ice isn't actually a garnish merely whether information technology is crushed, cubed, bagged or creating a handy cooler, y'all will need a dandy deal of it! If you have no other refrigeration, allow up to a pound of ice per guest to keep your stock chilled – nobody wants warm beer or Scotch with no rocks.

Staff

Whatever kind of party it is, including totally private ones, it is always a practiced idea to accept at least one
professional bartender who volition know how to prepare a bar for a party (ideally, one bartender / helper
per 50 guests) and book them to come early enough to set upwards. It is as well a good thought to have a couple
of helpers for busy times. Unless you have a limitless supply of glasses, the helpers will too have to
collect and wash spectacles constantly, haul away empties, and top upward snacks.

Equipment

A purpose-congenital bar, a portable bar designed for the purpose – make sure, if yous utilize a tabular array, that it is sturdy plenty to non collapse and smash all your bottles and glasses when someone pushes it accidentally! Because they volition!

Chillers : In order of preference, a chest fridge, or a portable dorsum bar, or a zinc bath, to keep backup supplies chilled and on hand. Single cans volition chill faster in an water ice-bath which has common salt added, and the ice volition last longer. Remember that in one case a six-pack is opened or damaged by salt information technology tin't be taken back, so whatsoever back-up chiller large enough to concord six-packs is saving the host money.

Bar equipment

The Basics

Bottle openers – one for every assistant, and a couple extra won't hurt, especially if your bar
staff need to be able to draw corks, flip off bottle tops and, if you don't take cans with pull tabs, puncture cans.
Pocket-sized sharp paring pocketknife and cutting board.
Ice bucket(s) and tongs.
Tot measures / jiggers
Towels (several) and aprons for bar staff
Trash can(s) and plenty of liners

For Cocktails

Our Standard Portable Bar, fully stocked and prepare to roll!

Tall cocktail spoon and swizzle sticks
Cocktail shaker with strainer
Vegetable peeler for making twists
Cocktail straws
Muddler or other specific equipment depending on the cocktails planned
Pitchers for cocktails that tin can be pre-mixed
Ice crusher, or a supply of crushed ice

Glassware

Assume guests will look a fresh drinking glass every time they come back for a drink. If you haven't organized a helper to collect and wash glasses all evening, go back to your adding to order your glasses. For a beer and wine bar, each guest will demand iii beer glasses, 2 vino spectacles (one medium-sized all-purpose wineglass is the easiest) and ii glasses suitable for soft drinks or ciders. A medium-sized all-purpose long glass is the easiest for beer, ciders and not-alcoholic drinks.

If you accept champagne or sparkling vino, peculiarly if there volition be toasts, permit 1 flute per guest. For
champagne cocktails, become for 2 flutes per guest, and adjust your long glass order.

For a full bar, including general cocktails, allow for two old-fashioned glasses, 1 martini glass, I highball,
2 beer glasses, 1 shot glass and ii wine glasses.

If you have a bar dorsum and tin handle doing dishes mid-outcome, you lot can reduce all these numbers significantly. Nevertheless, it's all-time to overestimate in regards to glassware equally running out of glasses will put a major paring in the perception of the bar.

Due to extremely high order volume and freight carrier delays, please await longer than normal lead times.
Call us at 877-958-7901 if you need your bar by a specific date. We recommend placing your orders early to build in the delays. Dismiss

Source: https://theportablebarcompany.com/How-to-Set-up-Bar-Party/