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Where can I get a no-host bar? Relatively cheap, reputable

cdrisccdrisc
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in Texas-Austin

My FI and I are on a shoestring wedding budget after becoming victims to the recession and experiencing job loss.  We've gotten a little over a thousand dollars (this paid for my dress, the chapel, and the reception hall) from his parents, my mom and aunt, however we aren't anticipating any more financial assistance and are covering costs as best we can.

Recently my dad offered to pay $500 to pay for part of a no-host bar...after discussing it with him and expressing our gratitude, and explaining how it would mean so much if we could apply the $500 to, say the catering bill, the cake plus transportation, or something similar...he said he'd really like to provide alcohol (we're so strapped for cash that we really had no choice but to make it a dry wedding).

All of this to say:  does anyone know of any no-host bars in Austin or Round Rock(reception is at the Allen R. Baca Center in RR)?  So that it vibes with the rest of the wedding budget, I'm looking for a reasonably priced no-host bar:  top shelf liquor is not necessary.

I will email Eleventh Hour for a quote, but wanted to see if anyone knows of any other vendors for comparison?

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Re: Where can I get a no-host bar? Relatively cheap, reputable

  • chloetutorchloetutor
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Ditto to this question.  I quoted Lucky 13 for bartending, and just about choked when I saw the bottom line estimate.  I'd go for just a part-time bartender looking for some extra cash.
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  • heatherhall2391heatherhall2391 member
    10 Comments
    edited December 2011
    there is a student staffing catering company who probably could get you a bartender cheap. central market uses them to staff their events. i've never used them but i've seen them at parties and they were great. http://www.studentstaff.com/Events/Catering.asp

    if your venue doesn't have strict rules around bartending, you might consider asking a friend to bartend. it's one of the funnest places to be for a boisterous personality and at the wedding i went to where this was in effect it seemed to work pretty seamlessly.

    and there is always craigslist. in a college town, you can't throw a stick without hitting a p/t bartender. i'm sure you know some!

    good luck!
    h.
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  • kelseymwkelseymw
    500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Last week I got quotes from Wildwood Catering and Dagar's. Both were over $1k for two beers and margaritas for ~100 people. They also both included soda, water, cups, napkins, bartenders, setup/cleanup though.

    I haven't committed and am still considering the option of getting alcohol through a place like Spec's and hiring a bartender through Student Staffing.  It's just a matter of weighing the pros/cons- Hiring a full service bar caterer will bring everything you need, set it up, clean it up and take it all away.  The other way requires rounding up all the liquor, soft drinks/waters, cups, napkins, finding someone to staff it, cleaning up and returning whatever I need to after the wedding.
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  • kelseymwkelseymw
    500 Comments
    edited December 2011
    By the way, I just reviewed my quotes from the two above mentioned vendors a bit more closely and realized that Dagar's quotes price/person not price/drink. The rate they quoted me for beer and margaritas is $14.25/person, whether the person drinks one drink or five drinks. I don't find this to be the best fit for my event because I don't have a lot of heavy drinkers (most of my guests will just have one or two drinks), so I'd rather go with a vendor that quotes price/drink. I'm not sure how helpful that is specifically, but I thought it might just be another factor for you to consider when researching alcohol caterers. 
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  • may2005may2005 member
    Knottie Warrior 100 Comments Combo Breaker
    edited December 2011
    A+ Student Staffing is a great company -- the web address mentioned above is correct.  They are also reasonably priced.

    To save costs, we ended up providing our own alcohol and hiring a TABC-certified bartender (affiliated with the Caswell House).  Most venues require a certified bartender, rather than a family member/friend to tend bar.
     
    We gathered up a number of coolers, ice, beers & white wine and iced them down at the facility which was no big deal.
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  • chloetutorchloetutor
    100 Comments
    edited December 2011
    Thanks for the rec on student staffing. I'm all over it.
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