How many glasses would I need for 150 people?

hordol

Hello! My FI and I are inviting approximately 150 people to our wedding. We have to either rent or buy our wine and water glasses as they are not provided by the venue or caterer. How many wine glasses do you think I will need for 150 people? A handful (5-8 or so) are underage, but most of the guests are 21+. I don't know how many wine drinkers we will have over beer drinkers, but I think a lot of people might have both. Our beer will be in can/bottles, as will the pop, so I'm not worried about that. If I get 150 glasses will that be enough? I saw on some other thread on weddingbee that they recommended 300 for a 150 person wedding because people might misplace their glass, etc, but that seems like an awful lot considering I don't think every single person will be drinking wine in the first place. Any advice?

Also, I will definitely have at least 150 water glasses (1 at each table spot) but how many extra should I have on hand?

MrsMack10612

Hey there -

Our caterer provided all of our glassware.  Our final headcount was 88 (including our vendors, who were welcome to whatever beverages they wanted.  We knew them all personally, so that's not the norm).

We had:

85 each of wine, glasses, water goblets and champagne glasses for the tables
150 wine glasses for the bar(s)
450 pint glasses (we are a beer heavy group, so that is probably way more than you might need)
100 old fashioned glasses (for sodas, mixed drinks)

I'm horrible at math and percentages, so I won't try to break that out for you, but it might help you to guestimate how many you might need.

Sue-n-Kevin

Your caterer should be able to give you assistance. You might also inquire into whether they will handle the cleaning & re-purposing of the glasses during the reception.

Honestly, I'd look into renting them. The price is close, but that way someone (the rental vendor, or caterer) can simply rinse them at the end of the night, and then someone picks them up.

I've never heard of a reception venue or caterer NOT supplying glassware. What about eating utensils & plates? I'm not being critical, it's just something I never heard of. Generally a caterer or venue is supplying the food chafing dishes, serving utensils, etc. It's not a very far leap from that to glasses.

Ask on your local board for appropriate vendors.  Also, google "wedding rentals" in your city. I found a lot of vendors that way that were not on any standard wedding vendor lists.

hordol

Thanks for the help! Our caterer provides flatware and "heavy duty" paper plates (real plates available for extra $) but that's it. I'm not surprised they don't offer cups because their prices are very cheap for being a fancier restaurant. They do provide chafing dishes and everything, I just need to figure out what to do for the cups.

I was shying away from renting because I didn't want to have the extra stress of cleaning/collecting/returning at the end of a long day....but do most come and collect them at the reception site?

Sue-n-Kevin

I can't answer for you whether they come and collect them, you'd have to call around and ask. Most rental companies will bring glasses in large plastic crates that keep them from breaking, and will pick up. You could ask your caterer or venue to make recommendations, or call around and simply ask.

Our caterer made the rental arrangements with companies they use, and rinsed them clean, but didn't fully wash them, the rental company did that after they picked them up.

To be honest, if you are using heavier duty paper plates, there's nothing wrong with "nicer" plastic cups. Check out www.smartyhadaparty.com. I ordered from them and used nicer plastic cups for my daughter's graduation party. They have different styles.

Gumby68

I was at a wedding where the wine glasses weren't provided by the caterer, so the bride and groom purchased enough for each person to use one, told everyone they could take them home at the end of the evening and to keep track of it because there were not extras. When I was about to leave, the bride begged me to take as many as I could because she would receive a cleaning charge from the venue if there were any left. I thought it was really weird, but I wound up with 20 free wine glasses. 

I asked why she didn't just rent them, and she said the price was the same so she figured she'd just buy them and gift everyone with a wine glass. She didn't realize so many people wouldn't want them, and she had no need for 100+ glasses. 

I definitely thought it would have been smarter to get disposables, and I wouldn't have thought it was weird at all. 

happywife2b

Assume each guest will have 3 drinks either alc or not (average), so thats 450 glasses. If you do a champagne toast, add 150 flutes to that. You could reduce the number of glasses if the caterer is providing a barback who is also responsible for washing glasses, but if they aren't providing glasses, then I doubt it. Def ask.

To reduce my headaches I am hiring a small staff from a local nighclub. They are bringing all the bar setup, glasses, etc. That way I don't have to worry about it with the caterer. It may be worth looking around at neighborhood bars and asking if they would do this for you guys at a resonable price. It could save you $ and frustrations in the long run.