Behind the Mirror: You need more glasses than you think.

Get extra, anyway.

I saw this yesterday, and it got me thinking. This week, I’m working on two rental invoices for two different weddings that I’m coordinating this summer. Both venues don’t have in-house catering, so that means that we have to supply all the tables, chairs, lines, plates, knives, etc., everything. But calculating how much you actually need can get complicated, especially when it comes to the glasses. How many should you actually get?
If you go to any restaurant or bar, whenever you get a new drink, you’re given a new glass. Your guests are going to expect that, so you have to plan accordingly.
Wedding rule #2 is that it’s always better to have more than you need than to need more than you have. Your guests are going to have at least one drink each during the cocktail hour, whether it’s alcoholic or not. Some will have two. And then at least another two or three during dinner, as well. Let your bartender be the final word on how many glasses they’re comfortable with, but for 100 guests, I’d recommend somewhere between 350-400 glasses, just to be safe. I know, that’s a lot. But if you can’t wash dishes on-site, you have to be prepared. If storage space or cost is a consideration, the idea in this picture is a good one – everyone gets one glass, and they are instructed to use that glass for the night. Someone, probably a few someones are going to either lose, drop, or break their glass. Store about 20 extra behind the bar. You can also go with plastic, which is much cheaper and recyclable. You can limit the kinds of drinks you are serving, which means you’ll need slightly less glasses. You can ask your bartender to fill up each glass a little more than they usually would, which might also help. But, again, find out what your bar staff would prefer.
Yeah, you’re also going to need more plates and silverware than you think, too, but that’s a different blog post….

See you at the end of the aisle,

Liz Coopersmith
Silver Charm Events
www.silvercharmevents.com
323-592-9318
liz@silvercharmevents.com