vendors – Shaken Not Stirred in LA

Mobile Bartenders, Uncategorized, Wedding Bartender

La Chureya Estate Wedding

April 11, 2019April 11, 2019 shakennotstirredinla

Last Saturday Shaken Not Stirred provided bartending service for the first time at the beautiful and historic La Chureya Estate close to downtown Palm Springs. Palm Springs is becoming one of the hottest places for destination weddings. For this particular wedding most of the guests traveled thousands of miles from Australia to be there.

I have worked at many fabulous venues throughout Southern California, and I must say La Chureya Estate is one of the most beautiful. The buildings are classic Spanish architecture and the grounds are immaculately groomed and landscaped. The bar area is next to the olympic sized pool, and that is where we pored drinks all night.

The wedding ceremony took place out on the lawn, which is was a perfect backdrop for great photography. We set up a champagne and water stand for the guests as they were arriving. We finished serving all of the arrivals and then moved back to the bar, when the ceremony ended quickly and we were hit with a big line. We served spicy jalapeno margaritas, Moscow Mules, and a variety of other drinks.

La Chureya Estate Venue

Beautiful historic buildings and landscaping
Private location
Close to downtown Palm Springs
Ample space for vendors
Views of the mountains from grounds

Most of the guests at this wedding traveled all of the way from Australia and it was fun serving them. They were all dressed to the nines and I’m sure the photographer (also from Australia got some great pictures. There were 75 guests in attendance, and they kept my other bartender and I pretty busy. We completely served out of tequila and most of the vodka.

I will return to Palm Springs tomorrow to do a 200 guest corporate event. The Coachella Music Festival is going on this weekend and next and we have a few events going connected to that. I also have a “Leaving California,” party to do Saturday night in Corona on Saturday night. You may no how I feel about that – “You can check out, but you can never leave…” Please follow us on Instagram.

Mexican Wedding, Uncategorized, Wedding Bartender

December Backyard Wedding Party in Northridge

December 20, 2016 shakennotstirredinla

Saturday, Shaken Not Stirred provided bar catering service for a backyard wedding party in Northridge. This was my only December wedding this year. It is of course, risky to have a backyard party in December in Los Angeles, because there is always a chance of rain, but luckily that didn’t happen this time. On the same day, there was a terrible freak accident at an outdoor wedding in Whittier – the mother of the bride was killed when a tree fell over and a toddler was severely injured. You just don’t know what is going to happen when you wake up in the morning.

The Northridge wedding party went off very well. I served Palomas, margaritas, and a few other simple drinks. Cafe N’ Stuff Catering provided the food, and they had some very good beef and mushroom chicken. The DJ was a family friend and he spun some really good old school and latin favorites. The only problem I saw all night was that one of the patio heaters didn’t work. There is always one of those that cause problems.

nr2 — Backyard wedding party in Northridge

Backyard Wedding Party Advantages

Save lot’s of money
Avoid insurance, security and related costs
Create an interesting space
More intimate setting
Hire your own vendors

It was kind of nice to bartend a wedding right in the middle of Christmas party season. I did many holiday parties this season, and will be bartending at a company holiday party in La Canada tomorrow. Then I have a New Year’s Eve party in downtown Los Angeles, and a New Year’s day party in Manhattan Beach scheduled.

Next month is looking kind of light for the bar catering business, and it usually is. I will probably bartend a few birthday parties and a corporate event or two. It has been awhile since I have been out to Palm Springs, so I will probably try to get some parties out there. Please follow us on Facebook if you haven’t done so already.

Mobile Bartenders, Uncategorized, Wedding Bartender

La Quinta Backyard Wedding

April 11, 2016April 11, 2016 shakennotstirredinla

stardust4 — A threat of rain for a backyard wedding

Saturday, Shaken Not Stirred was in La Quinta to provide bartending service for a backyard wedding and reception. The whole Coachella Valley is full of rental houses that are perfect for doing these kinds of events. This particular property where the wedding was held is called the Mountain View Retreat, and it was perfect for a wedding of this size. The ceremony was held in one section of the backyard, and the dinner and reception was held on another part of the property.

I worked with the bride through emails planning the drink menu and shopping list. We came up with one drink, which we called the “Ziggy Stardust”, that had mescal, fresh grapefruit juice, and simple syrup. I also did the Sazerac cocktail, which we called the “Major Tom”. A third cocktail was champagne with St. Germain. Approximately 50 guests enjoyed the wedding and reception at the Mountain View retreat. Once again, there was a threat of rain, which would have really caused problems, but it didn’t materialize.

stardust2 — Bar menu for backyard wedding

F10 Catering of Palm Springs provided the catering for the backyard wedding. They served a gourmet 4 course meal to the guests who were seated at tables on the lawn. F10 Catering is connected to the restaurant, Cheeky’s in Palm Springs. If you have not eaten at Cheeky’s I urge you to try it – it is that restaurant on Palm Canyon where you always see a line of people standing on the sidewalk, waiting to get in. One indication of how good the food was. Kris Holmes provided DJ Service, and I must say he had a unique playlist, which was very good, and he didn’t play the standard clichés that all Dj’s insist on playing.

stardust3 — Absinthe for Sazerac Cocktail

Backyard Wedding Advantages

Save money compared to a hotel
Hire your own vendors
Provide your own alcohol and supplies
More privacy and freedom
Unique settings
The bride and friends

Next weekend I will stay in the Los Angeles area for two birthday parties. On Friday I will return to the South Bay to bartend a birthday party in Torrance, and then on Saturday I will bartend a Southern themed party in Encino. I just booked an art fair in Venice later this month, and will return to Eagle Rock for a repeat client party.