Tag: Cadillac Margarita

Birthday Party Bartender, Fiesta Bartender, Mobile Bartenders, Party Bartenders

South El Monte Birthday Fiesta

shakennotstirredinla

Last night I was the bartender at a large birthday fiesta in South El Monte. There were over 100 people in attendance and we ran completely out of booze at 11pm, which was when I was scheduled to leave – so I guess that worked out well. There was still Bud Light left, so those people wishing for one last beverage were not disappointed. We went through all the Corona, Sol, Tecate, and Dos Equis. I was pretty busy the whole night.  This was a Mexican birthday party and I have been doing many of these. As I have said before I am right at home doing these parties, and my Mexican name is Roberto.  One of the Mexican waiters at a restaurant I used to bartend at called me El Pinche Perro, but that is another story.

I made several different cocktails including Cadillac Margaritas, Mai Tais, Sex on the Beach, blended Pina Coladas, Capes Cods, Bay Breeze, Sea Breeze, Malibu and pineapple, and Cuba Libre. If you don’t know what all of those are – look them up. The important thing is that I know what they are. Pineapple juice is a key ingredient in many of those drinks.

I had a special request from a Peruvian lady in attendance. She wanted me to make a batch of a Peruvian native drink, the Pisco Sour. I had never made the drink before, but was familiar with it because my ex wife was from Santiago, Chile and that drink is popular in Chile as well.  Pisco

Reaching for the tools of the trade with a boss watch on!
Reaching for the tools of the trade with a boss watch on!
My workstation gets messy when serving 100 people!
My workstation gets messy when serving 100 people!
DJ lighting setup
DJ lighting setup
Freaky!
Freaky!

is a clear grape liquor that is deadly and will sneak up on you if you are not careful. The Pisco Sour is made with fresh lemons, Pisco, and egg whites in a blender. In Chile, they use powdered sugar as well, but this lady had me use something different. I think she was happy with the drink and I didn’t sample it because I no longer drink. Anyway, I think the Pisco Sour is a great drink to serve and impress your guests. Most people in North America have never had it and don’t know what it is.

I just booked a wedding in Santa Barbara in July. I have at least one wedding booked every month until November. My goal is to book one party or event every weekend and so far I am doing that every month. This month I am on track to do seven events, which I think is my record for one month since I have been in business. I am very grateful to be getting so many events. I just bought a portable bar, so I can now offer that service as well.

Please call me if you have any questions about cocktails, venues, or anything else related to bartending and events. I will be happy to help you, and I have many shopping lists I have done for other parties with prices on them, so you can get an idea what to budget. I can estimate pretty close how much you will need for the time length and number of people at your event. My goal is to get you in under budget and keep all of your guests happy. That way everyone is happy! Buenos Dias!

Class Reunion Bartenders, Special Event Bartenders

Pasadena/Glendale Reunion Event

shakennotstirredinla

This weekend Shaken Not Stirred manned two events for the Area H alternative school 40th reunion. The first event on Friday night was a cocktail reception held at a hall in Pasadena. At least 100 guests attended the reception from 6 until 10 and munched on appetizers and partook in wine, beer, and soft drinks. The bar was a table with table cloth set up in front of an empty room that I worked out of and that worked fine.  Musician attendees provided the live entertainment. Corona, Sierra Nevada, and Amsdell Light were the beers of choice, and they went through several cases.

The second event was a sit down Mexican dinner held on Saturday night at a private club house in Glendale. I bartended and had Kristine assisting me. It got busy behind the bar (we had an actual bar) as we were serving Cadillac Margaritas, wine, beer, and soft drinks. There is a stage at the Club house and many of the guests joined in on a prolonged jam session, and there was a skit or two for the diner’s entertainment.

There were at least 140 guests and many of them were not drinking alcohol. Our non-alcoholic drink choices were limited to Coke, Diet Coke, Seven-up, Martinelli’s, and bottled water. I got the feeling that people were disappointed that there weren’t more choices for non drinkers. I somewhat blame myself, because when discussing the shopping list with the event planner, I did not think to stress the importance of non alcoholic drinks. Often we are so busy thinking about the alcoholic beverages we forget about the non-alcoholic selections. We did completely use up

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all of the beer, all of the white wine, and a good portion of the red wine.

The next time I discuss a shopping list with a client I am going to suggest a variety of non alcoholic drinks. Cranberry juice is popular, maybe mixed with a bit of club soda. There is an Italian soda made by the San Pelligrino company called Limonata which is very good and not so sweet. Sparkling water is also often requested and can be garnished with a lemon or lime. There is a variety of  Mexican soft drinks called Jarritos and are made from cane sugar that are also very good. It seems like the more parties that I work, the more non-drinkers there are.

Shaken Not Stirred serves the entire Southern California area from Ventura County, the Los Angeles Basin, the San Fernando Valley, the Inland Empire, Orange County, and even San Diego. We have had inquiries from Palm Springs and we will go there for the right event.  We have several events already scheduled for August, and are bidding on events all the way into October, so don’t wait to make your booking – call us at (310) 280-6103, or email us at shakennotstirred1@aol.com.

Party Bartenders

Los Angeles Bartending: Birthday Parties, Company Parties

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In Los Angeles, parties and events take place for all kinds of reasons and occasions: birthday parties, corporate events, sports parties, television viewing parties – the list goes on and on. I have done three events in the past two weeks. Two were 40th birthday parties hosted at private homes, and the other event was a client appreciation party held at a post production facility in Burbank.

40th birthday parties seem to be popular because turning the big four-o marks a milestone in one’s life. I bartended at a man’s 40th birthday party at his home inRedondo Beach. The hosts had found a tiki bar on Craigslist that somebody was giving away free. They fixed it up a little bit and it made a fantastic backyard bar – they just needed a bartender, and that’s where I came in. The forty or so guests were very impressed. The drink of the night was the Cadillac Margarita, and there were many beer drinkers in attendance.

I worked another 40th birthday party inWest Los Angeles. They set up a table in the backyard and it made a functional backyard bar. The host made a drink menu and the most popular drink seemed to be the Pomegranate Martini. We used plastic martini glasses and they worked very well. I took a server with me to pass out finger foods and act as a barback. Once again, the guests in attendance were impressed by the service, and the hosts were free to mingle and have a good time.

I assisted another event company with the corporate party inBurbank. It was a fairy large event with over 100 guests. I’m sure the cost of the party was money well spent because the guests seemed to be enjoying themselves. Customers always have choices when choosing a post production facility for instance, and a client appreciation party is a good way to create client loyalty.

The point I’m trying to make here is that you don’t have to be rich or have a fancy bar set up to hire a bartender for your next party. These backyard parties with Pandora going on the stereo and a table makeshift bar setup can be fantastic and memorable events. The weather is getting nice now in Los Angeles and it will be perfect for many backyard parties and events this summer.