TL;DR: Do not trust this agency with your event! They sent the wrong type of staff—servers instead of bartenders for a cocktail party—and have yet to make the situation right. You don’t deserve this experience!
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I hired Julia Valler to provide 2 bartenders and 1 hospitality staff member for an office launch cocktail party with employees, their families, customers, and investors. The staff arrived at 4:30 PM, an hour and a half before the event, and the problem was immediately obvious—my first question was, “Who are the bartenders?” That’s when we learned they had sent 2 servers with no bartending experience.

I called our contact, Davit Kovtaradze (he also goes by David Kovta), to explain the situation. He promised to send the correct staff—spoiler: he didn’t. He also assured me he wouldn’t leave the office until the matter was resolved, which felt like a bizarre thing to say—this was a major event, a huge mistake, high stakes… of course you’re not clocking out early! And yet, spoiler again: he soon went home for the evening, leaving us in the hands of an equally unhelpful colleague.

With 30 minutes to go before the event, Davit admitted he might not be able to provide the bartenders. I was beyond overwhelmed, but thankfully, my colleague sprang into action and found two bartenders on TaskRabbit who could arrive by 7:00 PM. A New York City party staffing agency couldn’t find two bartenders in an hour—but we did in ten minutes. And we could have done it even faster if we hadn’t trusted Julia Valler to fix their mistake.

That left us with an hour-long gap at a cocktail party without a bartender. One of the servers had some barbacking experience and kindly offered to help. With no other option, we accepted. But when he reached for the rum while trying to make an espresso martini, I knew we were in trouble. I genuinely appreciate his willingness to step up, and his company should be proud of the way he handled the situation. That said, it was clear to everyone that he wasn’t a trained bartender. Some of our earliest guests were investors—having unprepared staff was a real embarrassment. I’m not trying to be harsh, but I did see him struggle with a gin and tonic. Feedback was not positive. Again, he was doing the best he could. I even found myself working behind the bar for most of that first hour when I should have been welcoming guests. (In case you were wondering, I also don’t have bartending experience LOL.)

When comparing different agencies, Julia Valler was one of the more expensive options. I chose them thinking it would buy peace of mind. In the end, they were completely outclassed by TaskRabbit. The first thing our Taskers said was, “Don’t worry, we’ve got you.” I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy to see someone walk through the door.

As soon as the bartenders arrived, we released the servers. We only kept them as an emergency stopgap because of the situation Julia Valler created. If we aren’t refunded for this, I’ll call it what it is: profiteering. The servers absolutely deserve to be paid and tipped by their company—but we shouldn’t be footing the bill for Julia Valler’s mistakes.

This event was important to me and my company, the culmination of weeks of work and planning. And while this was “just” an office party, I can’t stop thinking—if this had been a wedding, it would have been devastating. No one should have to endure that kind of stress on their special day. It’s been over 24 hours, and my blood pressure is still elevated.

Suffice it to say, we won’t be using their services again.