For a private event at an elegant restaurant, bar, or hotel should it clearly state what the total liquor minimum cost will be after taxes and gratuities before a patron agrees to a certain amount? I have run into this issue quite a bit at work. Just a little background on where I work, I am currently employed at the Maxwell Mansion in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. It was the first mansion built in Lake Geneva by Dr. Maxwell. It is a beautiful old, Victorian mansion that was built back in 1856. The upstairs has been converted into a swanky, Victorian hotel with six rooms. The Lower level was converted in a bar and lounge area. The basement, way back in the 1920?s, was a speakeasy. A few years ago, the basement was converted back into a speakeasy …show more content…
How many people are attending that will be drinking? How much are they going to spend on alcohol? Is it a cash bar or a hosted bar? All of these questions are answered well before the event is scheduled to occur. One of the items that is negotiated with the event coordinator is the bar minimum. The bar minimum is a guaranteed amount of money that will be spent on alcohol and other beverages during the event. For example, if the patron knows that their group is going to drink a lot that night the customer will set their bar minimum to be higher than someone who thinks their group will not be imbibing a lot. For example, say the bar minimum for an event is one thousand five hundred dollars. The patron would then be asked to pay that before the event as a deposit and guarantee that amount will be spent at the bar. If that specific amount is not met, then the customer will have to pay the difference. However, most people forget to add the sales taxes and service charge to the bar minimum when negotiating the total amount. If the consumer with the bar minimum of one thousand five hundred dollars reaches that, they will actually be spending around two thousand dollars because of those added fees. That is over five hundred dollars more than they were anticipating! If they had not budgeted for this extra amount, they still would have to pay it. This brings me to my initial question: Should a bar minimum include service taxes and …show more content…
The cocktails are complex, innovative and a little more on the expensive side. The bartenders are constantly creating new drinks and thinking of new ways to show off their mixing talents. Recently they have started using a smoking gun on certain cocktails. This brings out the smoky flavor of bourbon and other rye based liquors. The drinks that are created are not your average, run of the mill rail mixed drinks that you would find at any local bar. At these events, there is no discount on these kinds of drinks. There can be a specialty drink made in honor of the event which is usually a sangria of some sort. The specialty drinks are usually cheaper than a regular cocktail at the bar. Bottom-line, if you are hosting a private event there, such as a wedding, it should come as no surprise that there is a service charge added to the final bill. The atmosphere, the bar and the mansions itself is a unique place to have your special day. It is an expensive place to rent out with an entire full house buyout priced at eight thousand dollars. The Bar is advertised as not only as a bar, but as an