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I originally planned to buy the booze for our wedding and then just hire bartenders to serve our wine, beer and one, sad little cocktail. That was BEFORE we found out about Cali Craft Cocktails. THANK GOD. Everyone told us it was the best wedding they've ever been to! |
"can we provide the alcohol?"
SHORT ANSWER: No, sorry :(
LONG ANSWER: Before I get stuck into the long answer; the alcohol is the least of my pricing concerns in any single job, so you're not saving money or doing me any favors by providing this yourself. My main outgoings are my awesome staff who bust their asses at every event and I refuse the pay them less than they deserve. Shout out guys! :D
THIS FAILS 100% OF THE TIME. We have tried it in the past where clients have brought half, or all of the ingredients we need, but it simply does not work and is much more stressful for everyone. There are items missing, things switched, not enough of something, endless emails/texts/phone calls and picture messages from the aisles of Costco making sure the right thing is purchased. PLEASE for the love of cocktails, just let us do our thing! We know exactly to the ¼ ounce how much we need of everything and it is much safer for us to be responsible for EVERYTHING bar related. If one little thing is missing, it can throw off an entire menu, make us look incompetent and jeopardize the integrity of our entire company and your event. Yes, just one little thing like forgetting limes can potentially ruin our business! :O (THIS HAPPENED!!!)
A lot of clients think that by providing their own alcohol, they will be saving boatloads of money. This is not the case. Because our prices are all-inclusive, you will find that once you have shopped around, forgotten straws, realized that Bevmo doesn't have what you're looking for, run out of ice on the night, you will just wish you'd left it to us in the first place!
REMEMBER THIS: If something goes wrong on the day, people won't be blaming you, they'll be blaming us!
LONG ANSWER: Before I get stuck into the long answer; the alcohol is the least of my pricing concerns in any single job, so you're not saving money or doing me any favors by providing this yourself. My main outgoings are my awesome staff who bust their asses at every event and I refuse the pay them less than they deserve. Shout out guys! :D
THIS FAILS 100% OF THE TIME. We have tried it in the past where clients have brought half, or all of the ingredients we need, but it simply does not work and is much more stressful for everyone. There are items missing, things switched, not enough of something, endless emails/texts/phone calls and picture messages from the aisles of Costco making sure the right thing is purchased. PLEASE for the love of cocktails, just let us do our thing! We know exactly to the ¼ ounce how much we need of everything and it is much safer for us to be responsible for EVERYTHING bar related. If one little thing is missing, it can throw off an entire menu, make us look incompetent and jeopardize the integrity of our entire company and your event. Yes, just one little thing like forgetting limes can potentially ruin our business! :O (THIS HAPPENED!!!)
A lot of clients think that by providing their own alcohol, they will be saving boatloads of money. This is not the case. Because our prices are all-inclusive, you will find that once you have shopped around, forgotten straws, realized that Bevmo doesn't have what you're looking for, run out of ice on the night, you will just wish you'd left it to us in the first place!
REMEMBER THIS: If something goes wrong on the day, people won't be blaming you, they'll be blaming us!
"Only half the people attending my event will be drinking, so just charge me half."
SHORT ANSWER: We need to charge for everyone over the age of 21. (However, we will ALSO need a count on those people, to ensure we bring enough soda etc.)
LONG ANSWER: This is a very difficult thing for either party to prove. Obviously some people have genuine concerns about paying for guests who don't drink due to personal or religious reasons. Then on the other hand, you have people who are dishonest in order to get a cheaper quote. Of course this does not reflect the norm, but you can bet your bottom dollar that 99% of your guests will drink. (If you tell us there will be 150 guests at a 250 person wedding, then we will be under prepared and understaffed and it comprimises the integrity of our company.) Short of providing people with tacky looking wrist bands, to be able to distinguish who is drinking and who is not, there is no way to have this option run smoothly.
The reason we charge for everyone is twofold: 1.) Even though you think that your Uncle Steve won't be drinking, you will soon find he changes his mind pretty quickly when he sees an entirely FREE and UNLIMITED craft cocktail bar on offer. Something which would normally range between $13 - $17 PER DRINK. 2.) These people who are not drinking will still have access to water, lemonade, Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, ginger ale, ginger beer (in some cases), club soda, tonic and of course, mocktails!! We will still be using all of our delicious fresh ingredients and syrups in these drinks and garnishing with fresh fruit, just minus the alcohol.
For weddings or events that are entirely non-drinking, we have a separate fee, please contact sarah@calicraftocktails.com for more information.
***Also remember our prices are all inclusive, so the price also includes cups, napkins, ice, straws, garnishes - all that good stuff!
LONG ANSWER: This is a very difficult thing for either party to prove. Obviously some people have genuine concerns about paying for guests who don't drink due to personal or religious reasons. Then on the other hand, you have people who are dishonest in order to get a cheaper quote. Of course this does not reflect the norm, but you can bet your bottom dollar that 99% of your guests will drink. (If you tell us there will be 150 guests at a 250 person wedding, then we will be under prepared and understaffed and it comprimises the integrity of our company.) Short of providing people with tacky looking wrist bands, to be able to distinguish who is drinking and who is not, there is no way to have this option run smoothly.
The reason we charge for everyone is twofold: 1.) Even though you think that your Uncle Steve won't be drinking, you will soon find he changes his mind pretty quickly when he sees an entirely FREE and UNLIMITED craft cocktail bar on offer. Something which would normally range between $13 - $17 PER DRINK. 2.) These people who are not drinking will still have access to water, lemonade, Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite, ginger ale, ginger beer (in some cases), club soda, tonic and of course, mocktails!! We will still be using all of our delicious fresh ingredients and syrups in these drinks and garnishing with fresh fruit, just minus the alcohol.
For weddings or events that are entirely non-drinking, we have a separate fee, please contact sarah@calicraftocktails.com for more information.
***Also remember our prices are all inclusive, so the price also includes cups, napkins, ice, straws, garnishes - all that good stuff!
"we don't want full bar; does that change the price?"
SHORT ANSWER: No. (If you are looking for something a little cheaper, why not try our themed bars here.)
LONG ANSWER: You are more than welcome to provide additional beer/wine/spirits where you see fit, but this does not change the price.
Part 1.) Our prices are a package deal and everything is included in this price. Once people try to take one thing off, then we find ourselves in a tug of war between every single little detail, like ice, sodas or even garnishes.
LONG ANSWER: You are more than welcome to provide additional beer/wine/spirits where you see fit, but this does not change the price.
Part 1.) Our prices are a package deal and everything is included in this price. Once people try to take one thing off, then we find ourselves in a tug of war between every single little detail, like ice, sodas or even garnishes.
"We only need a bartender for a few hours to pour beer and wine / make simple mixed drinks, how much?"
We don't do events that are beer and wine only, (see above), or events that purely need staff where everything is already purchased. We are a full service company which means we do EVERYTHING. If you want a staffing company, I can recommend one for you. For a full list of what we bring, please see our pricing page.
"We have two separate bar areas, can we split them up and have one out the front and one out the back?"
SHORT ANSWER: We can, but wouldn't recommend it.
LONG ANSWER: We find that more often than not when we split up bar spaces, one of the bars will be the popular one and will get hit hard, while the other bar will have no one at it. This is not an efficient use of the bartenders and will anger guests who are waiting in lines. It is much better to have one designated bar space and a solid bar foundation with four bartenders all in a row, all making drinks. If you want to split the bars up then we also need separate bar backs for each bar etc, extra back bars etc etc. It takes us around 4 hours to set up a single bar, so having multiple bar set ups also costs extra.
If you are having two separate bar spaces - perhaps one for cocktail hour and one for the reception, this makes more sense, but there is an extra charge of $450 for the extra set up. However, if you're just having a welcome drink, both of these fees are usually waived. Please contact sarah@calicraftcocktails.com for more information.
LONG ANSWER: We find that more often than not when we split up bar spaces, one of the bars will be the popular one and will get hit hard, while the other bar will have no one at it. This is not an efficient use of the bartenders and will anger guests who are waiting in lines. It is much better to have one designated bar space and a solid bar foundation with four bartenders all in a row, all making drinks. If you want to split the bars up then we also need separate bar backs for each bar etc, extra back bars etc etc. It takes us around 4 hours to set up a single bar, so having multiple bar set ups also costs extra.
If you are having two separate bar spaces - perhaps one for cocktail hour and one for the reception, this makes more sense, but there is an extra charge of $450 for the extra set up. However, if you're just having a welcome drink, both of these fees are usually waived. Please contact sarah@calicraftcocktails.com for more information.
"I have a flat table space for you to set up on, will that be ok?
SHORT ANSWER: No. Never ever. Ever.
LONG ANSWER: Our bars are custom built for bartending craft cocktails. They are equipped with draining ice wells, rinse tubs, drip trays, speed racks etc. Once you see our set up and the amount of stuff we bring, you will understand completely. If we have everything laying on the same surface, it is very dangerous as things can and will, get knocked over, smash, break and spill.
We are no longer able to accept jobs where our bars cannot be utilized.
Bar rentals are included in our pricing so there shouldn't be a worry.
ALSO, our bars and are magnificent! Why wouldn't you want them?!
LONG ANSWER: Our bars are custom built for bartending craft cocktails. They are equipped with draining ice wells, rinse tubs, drip trays, speed racks etc. Once you see our set up and the amount of stuff we bring, you will understand completely. If we have everything laying on the same surface, it is very dangerous as things can and will, get knocked over, smash, break and spill.
We are no longer able to accept jobs where our bars cannot be utilized.
Bar rentals are included in our pricing so there shouldn't be a worry.
ALSO, our bars and are magnificent! Why wouldn't you want them?!
How long does setup take?
Around 2-5 hours depending on the size of the event.
What kind of cups do you provide?
We provide hard, clear, plastic cups. Not the flimsy, white, paper cups you get in the doctors office! Please check out our photos and you will see.
Can you provide glassware?
We actually scrapped using glassware after we got stuck with a $300 bill for broken or missing glasses at the end of an event. Glassware is an entirely different beast. You are more than welcome to handle it entirely yourself, but please note that you will need to factor in the following:
1.) The extra cost of glasses;
2.) The extra cost of delivery from the rental company;
3.) Potential overtime charges for 24 hours pickups - ask your venue if you can do Sunday pickups, sometimes you can't, so the rental companies need to come at 2am, which is hundreds of extra dollars;
4.) Additional space to store all of the 3'x3' boxes the glasses come in;
5.) Additional back bar space to display the glasses;
6.) Additional staff to buss glasses / wash glasses / reset glasses etc.
7.) Any additional fees tacked on by the rental company for missing or broken glasses at the end of the night.
1.) The extra cost of glasses;
2.) The extra cost of delivery from the rental company;
3.) Potential overtime charges for 24 hours pickups - ask your venue if you can do Sunday pickups, sometimes you can't, so the rental companies need to come at 2am, which is hundreds of extra dollars;
4.) Additional space to store all of the 3'x3' boxes the glasses come in;
5.) Additional back bar space to display the glasses;
6.) Additional staff to buss glasses / wash glasses / reset glasses etc.
7.) Any additional fees tacked on by the rental company for missing or broken glasses at the end of the night.
Can I change the drink names?
You can, but its unadvisable. People tend to gravitate toward what they know, especially in an unfamiliar private party event. They will be glad to have something that they recognize immediately and feel comfortable ordering. If you DO want to have different names, try not to name them something unpronounceable; it's awkward for everyone. ALSO if they can somehow loosely relate to the drink itself that would be amazing - otherwise we don't know what they are! Eg. "Stan's Margarita", or "From Russia With Love" for a Moscow Mule.
Do you provide Champagne for a toast?
Champagne is actually so unpopular that we took it off our full bar set and no longer bring any to events. After 100 weddings and ONE glass poured, we decided enough was enough. Now for the toast: We do not recommend doing a Champagne Toast. People prefer to toast with whatever they are already drinking, rather than forcing Champagne upon them. It is an unnecessary expense and we end up pouring it down the drain every. single. time. It's very sad for us to waste that much alcohol. :(
Should you choose to ignore us in our infinite wisdom, we charge $2.40 per person for Champagne and flutes (hard plastic).
Should you choose to ignore us in our infinite wisdom, we charge $2.40 per person for Champagne and flutes (hard plastic).
What is your uniform?
We wear button up shirts with sleeves & aprons.
How long does the bar stay open for?
Generally a standard event goes for 5 hours, but you can of course extend this.
Do you include gratuity in the price?
We do not include gratuity in the price. We put tip jars out as standard, if you do not want this we charge 15% of the total pp.
How far do you travel?
Wherever you want! We charge 51c/mile for any locations that are 20 miles outside of the Central Los Angeles area (as per the IRS' 2011 Standard Rates & Milage Report). We've gone up to San Francisco and down to San Diego before!
Do we get to keep the alcohol?
Because our cocktails and spirits are unlimited, we obviously cannot leave you those as the amount is infinite! :O
I ONLY WANT THE BAR OPEN FOR 3 HOURS, DOES THAT CHANGE THE PRICE?
No. The actual serving behind the bar is a breeze compared to our set up / breakdown and prep for your event. We spend around 30 hours to prep for your event, we pack the exact same amount of stuff, it takes us the same amount of time to set up, the same amount of time to breakdown and the same amount of time to reset everything the day after. The open bar part is the easiest! :)
WE DON'T NEED OPEN BAR, JUST THE ALCOHOL FOR THE COCKTAILS.
The spirits that are in the cocktails are going to be the ones that are consumed the most anyway, so it doesn't matter if we don't bring that extra bottle of gin. When we say "Open Bar", we mean we bring the couple of spirits (usually gin & scotch) that are not contained in the cocktails. These always remain unopened. The price remains the same.
CANCELLATIONS
If you cancel your event within 6 months, you are not liable for any refund. If you cancel your event after 6 months, you're liable for a 50% refund.
my crowd only drinks beer / WINE
This is a three part question:
1.) We are Cali Craft Cocktails, not Cali Craft Beer & Wine ;) The LAST thing people want to do when they approach our bar is order a beer or wine. There are fresh ingredients on the bar, including fruit, vegetables, spices and home-made syrups. There are bartenders shaking tins, measuring things, cracking eggs (and jokes!) and a fully customized menu staring at them. We very rarely even open a bottle of wine, or serve a couple of beers.
2.) We have had this concern brought up many times whereby people say that their crowd "only" drinks beer, or Uncle Steve (see above) ONLY drinks wine. One time the Bride's Signature Drink was a beer and we opened a grand total of four all night for a crowd of over 250 - not even the bride had one!! Please trust us on this.
3.) If your crowd only drinks beer, then...........................................
1.) We are Cali Craft Cocktails, not Cali Craft Beer & Wine ;) The LAST thing people want to do when they approach our bar is order a beer or wine. There are fresh ingredients on the bar, including fruit, vegetables, spices and home-made syrups. There are bartenders shaking tins, measuring things, cracking eggs (and jokes!) and a fully customized menu staring at them. We very rarely even open a bottle of wine, or serve a couple of beers.
2.) We have had this concern brought up many times whereby people say that their crowd "only" drinks beer, or Uncle Steve (see above) ONLY drinks wine. One time the Bride's Signature Drink was a beer and we opened a grand total of four all night for a crowd of over 250 - not even the bride had one!! Please trust us on this.
3.) If your crowd only drinks beer, then...........................................