A Cozy Colleague Christmas Party! 12/16/2016

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🎅  Well, once again we were privileged to be part of another great celebration!  The hosts Amy and Roc threw a beautiful intimate gathering for their colleagues.  It was a smaller party than most of the events that we do, about 20-30 people.   It was a nice change of pace that allowed us to get to know the guests and be able to give more concentrated individual service, which is what we truly enjoy doing the most.  The bigger parties are great fun, and while we are always committed to building the highest quality cocktails no matter how long the line gets, when it gets busy we're just pumping out cocktails all night long.   Our passion is not only crafting great drinks but also getting to interact with our guests.  It truly is the all the amazing people we get to meet that makes doing what we do worthwhile.

🎅  Amy and Roc could not have been friendlier or more accommodating.  All of the people we've done events for have been amazing but at this particular event the hosts extended probably the most thoughtful gesture that's come our way yet....A SPACE HEATER!!!  That's right, it's still December and just like at the Casino Night party we were set up outside...and It. Was. Cold!  Let me tell you we had that thing cranked up to the max heat possible.  Ahhh...it was balmy and tropical!  Well, not quite, but it sure helped to keep us defrosted!  We have done parties where it was so cold we could hardly function.  One party in Huntington Beach, CA always comes to mind, it was brutal!  It ended up being a great source of amusement for the guests to come out and see Bartender Vince and I crammed together in one spot at the end of the bar when they found out it was because we were huddled over the heater!  Needless to say we were so grateful and really blown away by Amy and Roc's incredible thoughtfulness.

🎅  The hosts chose to go with a very simple drink menu.  The selection was limited to beer, wine, and vodka cocktails only.  And you know, of course, that means Bartender Vince's very own ever famous Berry Cocktail made it to the menu.  And...as always was the hit of the night.  Everyone LOVED it, even the men put down their beers to partake of the fruity pink deliciousness!  What makes this cocktail so special is the fresh ingredients that go into it.  We puree fresh raspberries, make our own simple syrup, and fresh squeeze the lemon juice the day of the event to ensure the absolute highest quality and best flavor possible.  We don't go near store bought cocktail mixes.  No way!  Not us!


🎅  A great way for hosts to wow their guests is to serve drinks in one our favorite products called Tossware.   These give hosts a more elegant option with the convenience of being disposable, recyclable, and really great looking!  They are very sturdy as opposed to some of the other plasticware out there that cracks and breaks way too easily.  I can't tell you how many times I've opened a package of cups to find at least the first half dozen unusable.  Tossware is pricier for sure, but for your more upscale events like weddings, formal cocktail parties, or intimate gatherings like Amy and Roc's, these are definitely worth the investment.

                                                            Tossware.com

🎅  The party was a huge success and everyone was having a blast.  Amy and Roc had everyone bring gifts for a White Elephant gift exchange.  Those are always a riot, and there is always the guest that will bring that "tongue-in-cheek" gift that ends up being the hot ticket item!  From where we were we could hear the hoots and hollers and hysterical laughter.  No one wanted the party to end so Roc asked us to stay for an extra hour.  We were having such a great time ourselves and of course we were more than happy to oblige.  Being the ever gracious hosts, when it was time to take care of the bill Roc tacked on a very generous tip as they had requested there be no tip jar put out.  What an honor to have the pleasure of serving people with such true class.

🎅  Once again a successful event under our belt.  As always it is our mission to keep you informed of any new challenges we face or tricks of the trade we use to help you in your endeavors and keep you at the top of your game!   We welcome any suggestions on anything you might see that we can improve on or any comments on insights we've provided that have helped you be as successful as you can be.  See you next time!  Cheers!

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Casino Night 40th Birthday Party

It's party season here in Phoenix!  Bartender Angila and I are staying incredibly busy.  This past weekend we worked a Casino night themed 40th birthday party.  We arrived decked out in our finest dealer garb including black vests, bow ties and red garters on our arm.

 

We always arrive at least 2 hours early to ensure there is plenty of time for set up and cooling down anything that should be served chilled.  It's helpful if the host has that part taken care of ahead of time but that's rarely the case.  Most of the time it's just due to lack of cooling space.  Also, we like to give ourselves enough time to correct any errors or retreive any forgotten items.

The hosts Rosa and Manny were awesome!  They were very accommodating and made sure we had everything we needed for a smooth night.  All of the guests were friendly and fun!

Rosa and Manny had Vegas style card tables set up in their home.  It was incredibly authentic down to the hired professional card dealers!  The DJ they hired rocked!   He played a great mix of 70's, 80's and current popular music which was great for the 40 and older crowd, but most of what we listened to was Latin music so of course Angila and I had to get out on the dance floor a couple of times and show off our Salsa moves!  Too fun!

The night went off without a hitch and the cocktails were a hit.  Once we had consulted with Rosa and Manny and got an idea of what cocktails they had in mind and what they thought their guests would enjoy we created a menu based around the theme of the night.  The menu consisted of mostly mainstream drinks but we gave them clever Casino related names.  It was great watching the guests discover the fun new name for their favorite drink!

We were set up outside where there was guest seating beautifully decorated with deep purple linens and candelabra under a large canopy.  Keep in mind it's now the middle of December, and while yes...we do live in the desert it still gets pretty darn cold at night. The cold did lend itself to a few hiccups, such as shakers that got away from us due to cold/sticky/slippery fingers.  It's difficult to pour and shake drinks when your fingers are frozen, and shaking a metal cocktail shaker only makes it colder.  One thing we thought of to correct this problem is to purchase some pocket hand warmers to help keep us defrosted between customers.  But what if there is a line of people and we don't have time to warm up between drinks?  One thing we thought we might try is to attach grips on the shakers (think...grips on a football), just some kind of raised surface to give our fingers something to hold on to.   We're mulling over few ideas, we'll definitely keep you posted as to whether they work and which ones work the best!  

Now to address the slick/sticky/slippery fingers.  Because our bar is portable and breaks down into basically a suitcase-like package, we do not have running water.  How do we keep our hands and tools clean between drinks?  Well...be less messy!!  YES!  That's certainly one way, and clearly every effort is made toward perfection, but let's get real...with all the delicious ingredients that go into a great cocktail....slick happens!  I know, horrible pun, but "stick" with me here (make it stop!)!  So, we have used two different methods to clean shakers and jiggers.  One way we do it is to pour club soda into the shaker and swirl back and forth between shaker and glass then dunking the jiggers in the shaker to give them a good rinse.  Works great!  Another effective method was to fill a container with club soda deep enough to submerge the shaker and glass sideways and give them a few spins, and a few swishes with the jigger and everything is clean!  We found that neither way is better or gets tools cleaner, we just use whatever method is our personal preference.  As for our hands, without running water we've found that simple hand wipes are awesome!

At every event we encounter something new and different.  Whether it's issues due to things like lack of space, weather conditions, or service challenges or on the opposite side of the coin, even ideas we've put into motion that worked exactly the way we imagined you can be sure we'll keep you up to date and share our experiences to help you with yours!  Please share any suggestions, improvements, or comments  you have in regards to anything we've shared with you, we love hearing new ideas!