Late-night wedding and liquor question

We had to end our wedding at midnight for the exact same reasons you stated. We'll just move the party somewhere else and have alcohol available there.

Ours goes till midnight and we're closing the bar at 11

We have to have all music off at our venue by 11pm and be out by 12. On one hand I'm bummed it will be ending after only 5 hours, on the other hand I'm sure I'll be ready to go to bed. We will probably be doing last call at 10, cutting off at 10:15. We are doing our exit at 11, then people can slowly file out as they please after that.

Reception ends at midnight, last call is at 1145.

Kris when does the liquor have to stop flowing?

Last call at my events are usally 30 mintues before we end the night, people will start to trickle out after that. i have had couples who will also have an after party onc the reception is over.

Our wedding is on a Friday and is set to end at midnight. We're debating back and forth between 11:30 and 11:45. We didn't want to cut the alcohol too soon and disappoint but we want everyone to start thinking about getting it together and taking the shuttle back to their hotels. Typically a half hour to fifteen mintues before the end of your event.

Our wedding is technically in the US and going until 1am with an open bar until the last person leaves. The Best Man has already told me we'd be during shot getting in the elevator. Our venue did not have a problem with this during our walk through and explanation of time frame.

Try offering liability insurance to the next vendor you speak to. If they know they are liable for any shenanigans that happen after the wedding; they may be more likely to book you.

Ours ended at 11. We didn't have a last call and I think we still had another round or 2 of shots after the last song was played It was probably 11:30-11:45 by the time we all cleared out.

I also arranged with a club to have our afterparty -- we didn't host it, but I set it up. Of our 64 person wedding attendance, I think about 25 people went to the club.

Our reception can go until 1:30 a.m. if we'd like. We are planning on cutting it off around midnight though. Last call will be about 11:45. Most weddings I grew up going to ended around midnight or so. It was only until I moved to St. Louis, that a lot of weddings started wrapping it up at 9-10! It's usually because most places charge a ridiculous amount to go beyond a 4-hour reception.

Meka that's a good suggestion. Although these companies have worked in our venue before and they know the venue requires couples to purchase an event policy. Also they have to have $2M liability policies per venue rules.

It's not about "drinking" exactly, it's a cultural thing about hosting people. FH's family is Polish, their weddings go on for days until the vodka's gone. FSIL's wedding went til 5am and there were open bottles of vodka and cognac on the tables. Nobody drove drunk and there were no problems. Unfortunately her venue was too small for us.

We rented our venue until 4am and communicated clearly with them about what we wanted. They didn't mention any issues. Unfortunately, I misread the liquor clause and all the insured bartenders we found to serve until 2:30 or 3 don't meet venue requirements. The vendors with the right license will only serve until 1 or 2 at latest, and we have the space rented til 4. I don't know what to do. .....

Also the company that will serve until 2 has been pretty rude to us, they've sent some rude emails to the venue and our DOC, they're demanding we hire security, and I'm afraid they're going to be rude to our guests.

I wouldn't care if the bar closed at 2, but they want to walk around pulling drinks - FFIL would FLIP OUT. He would feel like that's so rude and he would make a scene.

I feel so bad b/c 4am was FH's ONE REQUEST when it came to our wedding. But I wonder if we should wrap at 2:30 or 3. He's going to be so disappointed. I just feel like it will be strange to have a party continue for 2 hours and not host our guests appropriately.

I told the bartenders we could shut down the bar during dinner - we could pull the hard liquor earlier if we could at least serve beer and wine a little later, and I'm not getting anywhere.

I hope you can get this worked out Kris.

Kris, Jetblue is having a special and I am booking my ticket to your wedding NOW. Drinking till the Vodkas gone is my type of event. " Wedding Crasher Over Here"

...have glass will travel

Everything has to cleaned and people out by midnight. But last call is at 11 ans last dance at 11:30.

You can crash mine if I can crash yours! lol.

Anyway - it would be my kind of event too. I'm not sure if it's going to happen though. You might have to tuck some vodka in your purse. And seriously - this is 95% of the reason for us getting married in Chicago, which is an expensive city where we do not live, and if we've done all this OOT planning for what seems like no reason I feel like I might go 'zilla, juuuuust for a minute. Mostly on myself - I'm so mad at myself that I could have made this kind of oversight. I've been a case manager for over ten years. I'm an OCD details person. I don't miss stuff like this. Ugh.

Thank you Lindy.

I'm just trying to figure out our plan A, B, C scenarios to make the party seem like it makes sense. To me, it doesn't really make sense to pull drinks at 2 but keep the music going until 4. Does that make sense to anyone else?

Aaargh so frustating. They are acting like the mob is going to show up.

I have found not being born here that there is generally a puritanical attitude whenever alcohol is involved. I know it's not about the drinking, it's about the celebration.

You need to talk to the venue again. I'm telling you there is a solution to this problem, it just involves money.

Are you guys having anything planned at the end of the night? That takes time to put together and the party will most likely start to wind down at three anyway. Is he dead set on having alcohol available until the end?

Kris- If I were at your wedding, I would dance from 2-4 in order to burn off all the calories I just drank, I think it is acceptable. I don't think it's acceptable to pull drinks from the tables. What's the difference between 2 and 4 anyway? If you're drunk by two, then you're drunk by 4.

Reception ends at 11pm and after party until 4am~

Kris, should I put you down for a plus 1?

Are you having an open bar? I believe they have to stop selling at a certain time but if you bar is open then they cannot turn "the ugly lights" on and start taking glasses out of your guest's hands.

Labake, that's exactly it.

And FH agrees with you that there must be a financial solution to this problem. We already paid the venue extra for these overtime hours (although we negotiated a bit so what we really paid was just list price for their normal hours). I'm so not good at that kind of negotiating though. How would you approach that?

There's nothing planned at the end of the evening really - we just have alternating sets of FFIL's polka band (yes I said polka band) with sets of DJ dance music. We had originally discussed shutting 'er down at 1am and booking an afterparty but FH was dead set against that. Did you mean after the party ends or just during the last few hours of the party?

I agree things will be winding down earlier. I'm just not sure if we should let this company pull the booze at 2 and then see how it goes, or what.