BAR OR BREW

from September 2023

SL 6 Questions About

It’s now officially the ‘ber months. I am a huge fan of fall and all the chances to entertain. It fills my heart with joy to set out huge spreads that are sprinkled with decorations, and invite friends and family to gather around grazing and catching up. However, there is one small part of hosting that I don’t enjoy—the drink situation. It’s always an afterthought for me when really, it should be a co-star to the food. So, I was over the moon when I met Kaitlyn Hickey at a networking last year. She owns mobile bartending service Bar or Brew. A connoisseur of all things beverage related—from mocktails to cocktails to juice boxes and hot cocoa—Kaitlyn can completely take the planning and serving aspect off your plate. Thus, giving you more time to enjoy being at your own party. I recently spoke with Kaitlyn, hot off the heels of wedding season, to learn more about her business and how to prepare for holiday hosting.

What was your inspiration? Being a guest at quite a few weddings in the fall of 2018 and currently a full-time bartender, I realized very quickly that the bar should be a separate vendor at events—and not just a part of the staffing or catering company. When the most traffic at private events happens at the bar, why wouldn’t you want speed, knowledge, and creativity just like you would get at a bar in downtown? When I launched my business in 2019, I promised myself to only use bartenders who have true experience or possess the right personality and work ethic to become some of the very best event bartenders. Almost five years later and I have not broken that vow!

Most memorable event and/or theme? In September of 2021, the Dallas Margarita Society had a huge gala at the Frontier Flight Museum, 007 themed. This is memorable for a couple reasons! Bill and Johnnie, the owners of Frankie’s in Dallas (where I used to work as a full-time bartender) were the planners for this event—and it meant a lot to me that they trusted us with such a big event for them! But also, my due date was the same day as the event, so I spent hours and hours on phone calls, meetings, and making event sheets for my bartenders to make sure not a thing was missed. I ended up having my baby boy a week early, so at one-week postpartum, I couldn't help myself and asked my parents to come watch the kids while I went for a couple hours to make sure everything was going as smoothly as possible. Of course, the event was beautiful, my bartenders killed it, and I was happy to see it all come together!

When should we start planning for holiday parties? It’s never too soon—at least for picking out a date and location. Other details can be finalized a little later as time gets closer (about a month out), but getting on the calendar is number one! Fall is also a crazy time for vendors as it is peak season for our industry, so don’t be hesitant to follow-up a few times.

Whether you’re celebrating holidays at your home, hosting a Halloween party, bridal shower, 1st birthday or 100th birthday... let Bar or Brew do the mixing, so you can do more of the mingling!