Cash bar vs open bar

I agree with your FH. Open bar is appropriate, it's not your job to facilitate adults decisions.

Cash bars are tacky, you won’t get too many on here arguing against that. Just offer beer and wine, people prone to getting sloppy from drinking too much will probably get sloppy regardless of whether you’re paying or not

Open bar. Don't micromanage adults. A bartender will know when to cut them off.

Cash bars are extremely tacky.

FFS let your guests be adults.

Cash bar= bad.

‘Is this a troll post, or just the weekly "can I get away with a cash bar" post’

At least she hasn’t yet used the, ‘but some of our guests are recovering alcoholics’ excuse.

Listen to your FH. Your guests are adults, trust them to behave appropriately. It would be rude to ask them to pay

Just wonder....is it really that hard to read previous threads?

Jj j. The problem is that most of the threads get hidden.

Cash bars are tacky. The reason to have an open bar and experienced bartenders is that they will know when to cut off guests who are starting to get drunk.

Your FH has the right idea here. It's rude to ask your guests to pay for something at your reception. You're hosting them as a thank you for attending your wedding, which means they should not pay for any part of it.

Trust your licensed bartenders to do their job and cut off any guests who have had enough. Bartenders have a responsibility to make sure no one is over served.

Unless you charge your family for drinks at your house, you should not charge them for drinks at a party thrown for their benefit. Don't ask people to open their wallets at your reception

The way I look at it, is like this.... people are paying hundreds, if not thousands of dollars to attend a wedding. It's pretty rude and quite frankly, cheap, of the hosts, not to supply an open bar to their guests to thank them for not only witnessing their marriage, but taking the time, money and effort to attend.

Professional bar tenders will know when to shut people off. If you do decide to have a cash bar, which I will highly suggest against, be prepared for your night to end early and people to leave after dinner.

Never a cash bar....would you want to go to the trouble of attending someone's wedding and have to pay to get a drink?

Op - how do you have 3 stars and still ask this question?

I wasn't even on WW when I knew open bars were the right thing to do (ew, cash bar?!) do yourself a favor and host your guests properly.

You need to pay for all of your guests' drinks.

Your FH is right. Cash bars are tacky because your guests should never have to pay for anything at the wedding, especially after spending their time and money on travel, gifts, etc. It's the host's job to pay for everything just like you would at a dinner party. Just let the bartenders know about the problem with your family, and I'm sure they'll cut them off when they've had enough.

Your FH is 100% correct - cash bars are tacky. Smart guy! You're lucky to have him steer you in the right direction and prevent you from an embarrassing etiquette flop. Stop fighting him on this.

Why is this still a topic? Your FH is absolutely correct. If you're that worried about your sloppy family, don't be. You'll have a bartender who can cut people off because that's part of his or her job.

Is complimentary beer and wine, but no mixers considered open bar or cash bar?