Average cost of consumption based open bar

jesibel14

Hi Ladies-

FI and I are having a hard time figuring out what type of bar we will be able to host for our upcoming August wedding, for budgetary reasons.  We're having approximately 180 guests (about 160 actual drinkers).  Our venue offers consumption based bar only.  At this point we are thinking of having open beer and wine (and possibly 1 signature drink) but I'm curious as to what the difference is if we just do complete open bar.

I know it's hard to get true numbers since every wedding is different for a variety of reasons (guest totals, bar prices, type of crowd, etc) however I'm hoping that by hearing your costs it will at least give me a starting point.

So if you don't mind sharing - If you had a consumption based open bar, how much did it cost?

TIA!

Goldlie11

This is probably better suited for your local board.  Liquor prices vary greatly.

opalsky007

A good rule of thumb is to budget one drink per person per hour. Then, by multiplying on the average cost of a drink, you'll be able to guesstimate your bar tab. The average cost of a drink will of course depend on your venue's prices and on what you're offering.

TurtlesAllTheWayDown

Can your venue give you an estimate based on their previous parties?

Lyss5782

My venue estimates $25 per person

ootmother2

wedding on Cape Cod so probably about the same as Boston prices

venue said to estimate $29 per person and it came it almost double that

Kristin&eric

I was just looking up something and they said rule of thumb was 3 drinks the first hour 2 drinks the second, then taper off of that. so i dont know?

jesibel14

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_average-cost-of-consumption-based-open-bar?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:f5998970-562d-464c-a791-982ee2b8fd8fPost:92421395-f8e1-49c5-ab2e-bd8dc2b72ccd">Re: Average cost of consumption based open bar</a>:
[QUOTE]Can your venue give you an estimate based on their previous parties?
Posted by msmerymac[/QUOTE]

Thats a good point, I never thought of that.  I'll ask them.

$25-$30 is a bit more than I was thinking, and my venue is just north of Boston, so this is a good wake up call.

Thanks girls.

Kristin&eric

our venue said that if you put a number on the bar like $500 for open bar. they would come and let you know that you are getting close to that number then from there you can decide if you want beer and wine only, or make it a cash bar, or keep it open, myabe your venue could do something similar like that i dont know

tidetravel

Keep in mind that if you can only afford to host beer and wine, then that's ok, too.  Don't feel pressured to host something that you can't afford.  But, I agree that you should check with your venue and with your local.

jesibel14

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_average-cost-of-consumption-based-open-bar?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:f5998970-562d-464c-a791-982ee2b8fd8fPost:b0a32031-acbf-4823-b152-9bec1473e91f">Re: Average cost of consumption based open bar</a>:
[QUOTE]wedding on Cape Cod so probably about the same as Boston prices venue said to estimate $29 per person and it came it almost double that :(
Posted by ootmother2[/QUOTE]

Good Lord!

Beer and Wine it is :)

Celles

Our package bar will be $33pp with house brand liquor or $28pp without (i.e., just beer and wine).  We also have the option of paying for drinks on consumption, but I like the idea of a set price per person.  The last thing I want to be doing all night is counting the number of drinks my sister has ordered and adding them up in my head (I work in corporate accounting, so it's a compulsion!).

TurtlesAllTheWayDown

I have a flat rate bar, but FWIW, I think it's around $35/pp for 5 hours of beer, wine and house liquor.

If beer and wine are cheaper per drink than mixed drinks (and they probably are), go with that!

Krysti21

I've been wondering about this too. My FMIL told me that at her wedding to FI's stepfather, they had an open bar for 2 hours for about 150 guests and it cost them $6000. Hooooly shiit. That's about $40pp. For two hours! That helped me decide to do open beer and wine and maybe a signature drink. I live in Wisconsin though...drinking is ridiculously overdone here.

ohwhynot

Yeah, that's exactly why we're doing beer, wine, and soda only.  I really wish we could swing a full bar, but it's not happening.  As it is, the estimate for the beer, wine, and soda is between $800 to $1300 - that's a pretty big range to try to budget! 

Oh, and I said I felt bad about it, but you know what?  Every single person I've consulted has said that I shouldn't - that beer and wine are fine and that my guests won't feel upset or cheaped out.  So, how about we both let ourselves off the hook and happily host what we can afford?  :-)

Goldlie11

I'm doing beer, wine, and soda too.  It's included in the overall price, but it's about $25 pp.  We are expecting 50 people.  So, that's around $1,250 before taxes and tip.  Anyway, I really don't think that helps too much because we're paying a flat fee.  Definitely ask your venue.  I personally would do flat fee for an evening wedding and consumption for a early wedding (since people will most likely drink less).  GL!

jesibel14

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_average-cost-of-consumption-based-open-bar?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:f5998970-562d-464c-a791-982ee2b8fd8fPost:2bee7d70-6d97-4a21-8549-c731342778e8">Re: Average cost of consumption based open bar</a>:
[QUOTE]Yeah, that's exactly why we're doing beer, wine, and soda only.  I really wish we could swing a full bar, but it's not happening.  As it is, the estimate for the beer, wine, and soda is between $800 to $1300 - that's a pretty big range to try to budget!  Oh, and I said I felt bad about it, but you know what?  Every single person I've consulted has said that I shouldn't - that beer and wine are fine and that my guests won't feel upset or cheaped out.  So, how about we both let ourselves off the hook and happily host what we can afford?  :-)
Posted by ohwhynot[/QUOTE]

Sold!! :)  Can I ask how many people you are having?

All these comments made me not only reallize that we really can't afford a complete open bar, but also made me feel a lot better about just hosting beer and wine.  It's settled then, YAY!

ohwhynot

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_average-cost-of-consumption-based-open-bar?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:f5998970-562d-464c-a791-982ee2b8fd8fPost:e4c1d878-68c8-44c4-bd7a-bd8e19243a8e">Re: Average cost of consumption based open bar</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Average cost of consumption based open bar : Sold!! :)  Can I ask how many people you are having? All these comments made me not only reallize that we really can't afford a complete open bar, but also made me feel a lot better about just hosting beer and wine.  It's settled then, YAY!
Posted by jesibel14[/QUOTE]

I think that quote was based on 125 people.  We're probably going to have about 135 people, though. 

MeaghanandMichael

I usually don't do this, but I think it will be helpful. At the venue I work at, we usually see about 7-8k bar bills for a party of that size for 5 hours with beer/wine/sig cocktail. Of course this is going to depend on the level of wine you offer and the level of booze in the cocktail. This estimate is for house wine and call level liquor (think Absolute, not Grey Goose).

yuengling58

My venue includes a 5hr open bar (beer, wine, liquor, pop, etc.) and it's included in our $35/pp price. This also includes a 4 course buffet (we've eaten their food - it's very good), centerpieces, cake, decorations, etc. Obviously this varies widely by area.

thesuninherhead

We had 69 people and had a restricted bar (beer, wine, softdrinks etc) all night, which cost us about $2000 overall.. so just under $30 pp.

jesibel14

Thanks Meaghan and sunshine - good to know.

Robyn - I'm so incredibly jealous of your per person costs! Lucky girl.

jesibel14

Errr I mean Thesuninherhead, not sunshine - Brain read your SN a bit too quickly. My bad.

squirrly

The best rule for counting drinks is one per hour, plus an extra every 4 hours.  And, when you do the math, you need to count all your guests - the non-drinkers balance out the super heavy drinkers. 

We did a consumption bar.  Premium mixed drinks were only $4 each, though.  And we still spent $26/person.  Now, it was within what we budgeted, but had we had a normal priced bar, it would have been a disaster.

parker624

is there anyway your venue will allow you to supply the alcohol yourself?  We are getting a great deal by purchasing ourselves, and in our state, we are able to return any unopened bottles of liquor for a refund.

and we ordered amazing wines for like $8/bottle online.