Open bar, cash bar, buffet, or plated meals

Cash bars are rude and best to avoid them! Guests should never have to open their wallets at a wedding. A compromise that would be cost effective would be to only offer wine & beer. I agree that plated meals are much safer than buffets right now due to Covid.

Are you saying a cash bar will be more cost effective ?


Did you ask your venue if they can offer only wines and beers for a discounted rate.
Plates meals would be best but if you can save with having a buffet ask the venue to offer servers to keep the spread of germs to a minimum.

Guests should never have to pull out their wallet during a wedding, so a cash bar is a big no no. If you're looking to cut costs, I would look into just serving beer and wine instead of a full bar. Plated vs buffet is up to you. With buffet, guests get to choose what goes on their plates and how much of it, and people do appreciate that. With covid, most places require an attendant to serve food at buffets instead of self serve, but you're right, plated is the safer option. Plated is more formal and normally looks more "fancy".

Hi Amanda, I agree with you! A plated dinner is a blessing during covid times as many guests asked us our precautions and it further put their minds to ease. I also agree a cash bar is not ideal. Many weddings I have gone to have beer and wine and it was wonderful! Perhaps beer and wine would be more cost effective than an open bar if that’s a concern. Good luck ❤️

A plated meal over buffet is perfectly fine

Never ask your guests to open their wallets

I would do an open bar, like others said, maybe consider only offering beer and wine? I don’t know a lot of people that prepare for/expect to have to purchase drinks at a wedding (I’ve read this can sometimes be more regional, but I’ve never been to a cash bar wedding).


For dinner, if plates meals are within budget I think they would be best, but from what I’ve seen personally I think plated meals are way more expensive. We’re having a buffet style dinner but have people mask up before getting food and we’re having servers so guests aren’t touching serving spoons/tongs.

Hello! Open bar or open bar with wine/beer only (like others have said). It is in bad taste for guests to pay for something at your wedding. I think buffets if done as safe as possible is awesome! With buffets your guests get to try everything and eat what they want/how much they want. The safe compromise would be to have a service/attendant buffet so food is served by staff and only staff are handling the serving utensils. I looooove buffets! lol I’m biased!

I agree with everyone that cash bar isn’t ideal. Beer and wine is a great alternative. Another alternative is having an open bar for a limited amount of time. I’ve been to a couple of weddings that were open bar until a certain time and then turned into a cash bar. It can be a bit weird when you’ve been drinking for free all night then suddenly you go the bar and the drinks cost money, but it’s another option.

Not doing a cash bar. But beer, wine and two or so signature drinks. Doing plated. Part because of covid and part because I wanted it that way. I don't much care for buffets.

No way! Open bar and Buffet all the way

View Quoted Comment Bingo! It’s very tasteless

I would strongly advise against a cash bar. You've invited guetss to a party and they probably got you a gift, you shouldn't ask them to spend money there.


Also buffet during covid is okay if you have staff serving. I find that it goes much faster than plated and you can offer guests more options for their plate

I think this is a know-your-crowd & know-your-area situation. My mother was horrified we wanted an open bar—cash bars are the norm among her generation, & most weddings I’ve been to have been cash bar or limited bar. We ultimately are having an open bar, because our venue is client-provides-alcohol, which in my state (& I think federally) means we pay for & supply all alcohol & hire bartenders. But when we were considering venues that offered open bar or cash bar with their own bartenders, we were leaning beer & wine only but open bar.


At the weddings I’ve been to or heard about:- Open bar for cocktail hour, cash bar after (I’ve been to two of these, & my parents have been to many)- Beer & wine only, cash bar; two house beers, one house red, & one house white were free until they ran out (& they ran out quickly!)- Limited bar where beer, wine, & one cocktail were free, other cocktails or alcohol were cash bar- Open bar where all alcohol was provided by the couple, so options are limited to what was purchased (this is what mine will be like; one I attended offered an “open bar” with four beers, two wines, & two cocktails)
As for dinner, I personally think it depends on the vibe. We want a more formal feel, so we’re doing plated.

Our venue switched from buffet to plated because of covid. We went back and forth on the bar but now we don't have but 30 people coming and we are just serving beer and soda at the bar, I don't see why we need a cash bar anymore. Might as well be open now. There's so much to think about.

We are doing beer and wine only. It’s SO much more affordable! That way we are still offering our guests alcohol options without us breaking the bank, or expecting our guests to pay for their own drinks. Fortunately our venue is in a old historic ballroom that has a taverne/restaurant on the main level... if our guests REALLY insist on having liquor they can always go downstairs to buy their own mixed drink. Good luck to you both!

We always planned on having a plated dinner even when we started planning pre covid-I think guests hate waiting in line for food and at our venue it was surprisingly cheaper. As for the bar, you are inviting them to a party, they never pay.

Open bar and plated. No bueno to have your guests pay for drinks after they spent money for a gift and maybe attending your wedding.

We just talked about the same thing. We are doing cash bar to save for other things we want. Just a thought.

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Are there any things you can cut so that guests don't have to pay? Skip favors/programs/signs, etc. Have a minimum number of bridesmaids/groomsmen. Dj instead of a band. Grocery cake and flowers instead of expensive vendors. Renting items instead of purchasing/diy.