Partial cash bar for rehearsal dinner???

Just do the full bar. The rehearsal is a thank you for your VVIPs: wedding party and parents. These are the last people you would want to screw over.

So just clarifying, really no sarcasm here, just providing wine at a rehearsal dinner is screwing people over?

I think if there is a bar people will want more options than just wine, maybe add beer to the choices?

Not everyone drinks wine, so yeah it's like you are providing free drinks to some people but not to others.

The rule of thumb is if you intend on covering wine and beer, ONLY have wine and beer. Don't offer any other type of alcohol if guests will have to pay.

OK so maybe we will do beer and wine then. We can't really do anything about the fact that there is a permanent bar at the restaurant. We can tell them not to have a bartender there I guess.

Can you put a couple of white sheets over it?

I think if you add beer too it would be fine

@MiniMe yes you're right about the beer, we will add that.

@Karen great idea I'll ask the venue if they can do something like that or if they'll let us do that.

My friend did this at her rehearsal dinner. The restaurant allowed her to bring in her own wine (I think with a minimal corking fee), and she just made sure there were several bottles of wine on each table. The servers did not take any orders (drink or otherwise) since the food (Chinese restaurant) had been preordered and was served family style. People served themselves from the wine on the tables. Personally, I didn't notice it was not a full bar. It was only when I had the same dilemma you are having and I talked to her (three years later) about what she did that I even realized it was not a full bar.

We did not have the option to put bottles on the table at the restaurant where we had our rehearsal dinner, and we really wanted to have a full open bar for our VIPs at the rehearsal dinner because our wedding venue only allowed beer and wine. To keep costs in check, we picked a select group of wines that our guests could choose from (three or four because we didn't want anyone ordering $60 bottles of wine). We also picked a signature drink for our dinner. People could still order any liquor drink they wanted, but most people stuck to our signature drink, beer, and wine. I was actually surprised that there were only one or two non-signature drinks ordered for the night.

As long as he host are paying for whatever alcohol they are providing, you are good to go. There is never an obligation to provide a full selection of all types of alcohol. Think of a similar situation with an at home dinner party. You provide what you can afford

If someone is not satisfied with what you are offering and goes to the bar, that is fine. Just make sure the venue and the bartender know that it is not to be put on your tab.

Wine and beer are the minimum. Not just one or the other.

But seriously, how much can it possibly cost to cover a couple of hours worth of drinks for your wedding party, your parents, and maybe siblings if you are close? You might as well just let them drink what they want. The rehearsal (and therefore the dinner) are totally optional anyway.

Personally, knowing that you are providing beer and wine but being a picky B, I would want the option to be able to buy my own liquor. Especially if there is a full bar just sitting right there (please please please do not just throw some sheets over it).

If I am in a wedding the next day, I don't want to be drinking beer that will bloat me and the type of wine I like is usually not offered so I almost always want to just be able to pay for my own vodka or whiskey. And I won't judge the couple as being cheap or not hosting well, because they are, just not to my taste.

I do not think it is tacky nor do I think you need to go as far as covering the bar with a sheet, because that will draw more attention to it. I am not really a wine drinker but I wouldn't mind paying for a drink because it is just the rehearsal dinner.

We are not serving alcohol at the rehearsal dinner. Close family members are in recovery and we want to be respectful since they are hosting the dinner. There will be a cash bar. We are serving beer and wine at the wedding at no cost to the guests.

I'm not serving any alcohol for our RD. They are getting full open bar the next day and who needs to be hung over on wedding day anyway!

No one fusses about buying their own alcoholic drinks at the RD. You'll be fine. You don't want hung over people anyway.

We are doing Wine and Beer for our rehearsal and full open bar for our wedding.

I see no issue with what you're offering so long as it's communicated clearly and courteously. Do not cover the bar. You're hosting what you can afford to host from the sounds of it.

Depending on the restaurant and how you've set up dinner, adding the option for guests to have beer could inflate costs significantly. By having a set number of bottles of wine available, you know your alcohol costs. You can't possibly know what the addition of beer would cost until the tab comes.