Bar announcement for reception

View Quoted Comment Those free options aren’t adequate in my opinion. I don’t know anyone who drinks coffee with dinner and honey ginger lemonade would appeal to a limited crowd. People can’t even get a coke?

View Quoted Comment Exactly. Sounds like a frat party more than a wedding. My adult guests managed to not black out even with free alcohol.

I would put cash bar on the website and then a more specific price list at the bar the day of, frankly I think it's more awkward and embarrassing to have to ask how much cocktails are, especially if there's a line of people behind you, then to have it written and allow people to plan accordingly. There's nothing fun about getting a drink receipt and realizing it was more than you thought. I think the more info included the better

I just went to a cash bar wedding over the weekend. I knew it was cash bar through word of mouth, however someone told me a few hours before that it was a literal CASH bar - as in, no debit cards. I almost never carry cash, so I was happy for the heads up so I could swing by an ATM.

I’m glad to hear yours at least takes cards!

I would maybe include this info on a details card with your invite, and on your website if you have one.

I’d also strongly encourage at least hosting cocktail hour if you can. Most people aren’t going to slam a ton of drinks at cocktail hour, and if you can afford it I think it’s a nice thing to do for your guests.

Wow I went to a glass fusing class and came back to a war zone 😂


I like the idea of a details card since I have to include the website URL somehow anyway, sounds perfect. I won’t list prices on the website, but I will list them in a big(ish) sign on the bar itself.


I’m glad people get the gist that the venue will likely take cards. I’m so glad they do, it would suck if they didn’t- cash only would be difficult since the venue isn’t close to anywhere that would have an ATM!

Thank you all! 😊

I'm not a fan of cash bars, but if you have one don't get upset if some or many guests leave shortly after dinner. That just goes with the territory.

View Quoted Comment I get that, I do. I won’t argue that it may make people leave early. But since it’s a small group of almost entirely immediate family, if they leave early, that’s fine by me. I don’t want my close family members to stay the whole time if they want to leave because the alcohol isn’t flowing freely. We only have the venue for a short time after dinner as it is (less than 2hrs), so no skin off my back.

View Quoted Comment I think this comment is harsh. Your friends and family shouldn’t only be going because you’re proving free and alcohol. They should be attending because they want to celebrate your marriage. My friends and family know how expensive it is to host an open bar and understand I can’t swing it. If they don’t, they shouldn’t let the door hit them in the a$$.

To start, I think good for you for sticking to your plan and not letting others influence your choice to do cash bar! There's several reasons why people might make this choice and you don't owe an explanation to anyone! (Especially on a WEBSITE!)

I agree with a few PP's that maybe listing it in your FAQ section of the website, but I don't think you need to go into great detail about it. I've been to weddings that are cash only or cash and card. I always come prepared and would just be pleasantly surprised if there's an open bar.

We're still trying to figure out what we're doing bar-wise...stresses me out thinking about all the options.

Good Luck!

I would like to know when I am walking into a wedding, if I need to pay for anything once I get to the reception, because usually when I am invited somewhere I don't bring cash. Having said that, I would not put those prices on my website, $5 for a beer at a wedding is a little high, I would just put that you are having the cash bar on both invite (details card) & website.

View Quoted Comment This is perfect. I hate not knowing beforehand!!

Every cash bar wedding I went to, I found out when I ordered a drink and had to awkwardly walk away to get my purse or FH wallet to pay.

The only cash bar wedding I have ever been to they let us know ahead of time. Which was good for us to know since we were traveling 15 hours to the wedding and needed to budget. Would much rather be told then be surprised and annoyed after we paid gas, tolls, gift and hotel room to attend the wedding, and was also good because my dad also saw the cash bar note and had the forethought to bring a flask and share.

I'll never understand why someone wouldn't budget their funds to be able to cover the entire costs of the event. Would you charge guest who come to your home for a beer or glass of wine? It's the same thing, just on a different scale.

On your invites you can say something like,
'Dinner will be served at 5 ' o'clock, adult beverages are available for purchase.'

Personally, I wouldn't really feel the need to know how much the drinks are ahead of time but I absolutely have to know that there is a cash bar. As a guest, I hate showing up to a wedding with a cash bar and had no idea so I didn't stop for cash.

View Quoted Comment One or two guests sure. You'd supply the alcohol.
But have you ever hosted or gone to a celebration that is BYOB?
Alcohol is expensive and some can't afford it. You don't get married to start off in complete debt. You get married to celebrate your love and share the moment with family and friends.
If you can afford to foot the bill then go for it. But open bar is an extravagant not a necessity.
We are having an outdoor wedding at a private property so we are supplying beer and wine only because we can afford it. If someone would like to bring hard liquor they are welcome, but we don't want people getting too drunk either.

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I'll never understand why someone would think that an open bar is an absolute necessity. In our circle, it's not a big deal. We don't think budgeting it in is necessary- it's pretty simple. In our minds, we are covering the event- food and nonalcoholic drinks. You can't ask people why they hold a certain opinion- many times there may not be reasoning behind it, it's just how we feel about the situation. For us, it doesn't make sense to increase the cost by 50-70% just for free alcohol.

It's nothing close to having someone come over in my opinion- two different worlds. However if you want to compare the two, if I'm having a party at my place, It's going to be BYOB. So that logic doesn't apply to me here.

View Quoted Comment I makes my heart sad that people don't want to host their guests well.

A BYOB is fine for an event that doesn't really have a singular host, but rather someone offering their home for everyone to pull funds, or in other words a "hey let's hang out for the game/this weekend/grilling some steaks or whatever".

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It's only right as a host to provide food and drinks to your guests. Most of our at home parties and events are also BYOB bu FH and I still provide basic wine and beer as a courtesy.

Also an informal BBQ or game night is a lot different than a party where you are asking people to travel, bring a gift, and get dressed up. It's not really equal to say because you do one it makes the other okay.