Hotels · Tithe barns · Branded drinks
Porta Bar
- Modular, typically 2–6 metres
- Custom branding available
- Indoor or outdoor
Wedding Bar Hire
Wedding Bar Hire
A proper pub-quality bar at your wedding
Draught Guinness, lager and cider, properly chilled and poured through commercial dispense equipment — alongside wines, spirits, cocktails and soft drinks. We can provide everything from a simple dry-hire bar to a fully staffed and stocked wedding service.
What wedding bar hire actually is
It is a delivered, set-up bar for the reception. Marquees, tipis, village halls and hotel venues are all routine. The drinks list is yours to decide: draught on commercial kit, a back bar of wines and spirits, cocktails, or a simple cash bar where guests pay as they go.
We are a bar operator, not a styling company. The job is cold beer, a working tap, enough staff, the right glass, and a clear answer on who holds the licence. For the portable unit itself, see mobile bar hire. This page is the wedding service built around it.
How the bar is run
Four operating models. Pick one, then we spec the unit and the kit. You get a written quote, not a named package.
Dry hire
Bar and equipment
We deliver and install the bar, draught kit, gas and cooling. You supply the drinks and whoever serves them. No corkage. Any Temporary Event Notice the venue needs is yours.
Your drinks, our staff
You buy the alcohol
You supply the agreed drinks. We provide the bar, staff hours, glass hire and equipment, and we serve. No corkage. The venue TEN is still yours.
Fully stocked cash bar
Guests pay
We supply the drinks, equipment and staff. Guests pay by card or cash. Where we run a paid bar, we operate under our personal licence and arrange the TEN, subject to venue restrictions. One published option is a staffed cash bar from £150 for 80 adults or more in England and Wales.
Hosted / prepaid bar
You set the budget
We supply the drinks, equipment and staff. You set a cap or a prepaid allowance; we run the service to it. Where we run a paid bar, we operate under our personal licence and arrange the TEN, subject to venue restrictions. The quote states the budget, the drinks list and the staff hours.
Choose a bar for the wedding
Units we actually send out. Dry hire or staffed. The quote matches the venue, not a theme name.
Marquees · Tipis · Barns
Rustic timber bar
- Timber-look unit
- Typically 2.5–5 metres
- Most of the wedding jobs on this page
Village halls · Cash bars
Pallet-wood front
- Used at Leigh Sinton Memorial Hall
- Draught taps and handpull
- Indoor halls and similar rooms
Large receptions · Open rooms
Circular bar
- 360° service
- Typically 2–4 metre diameter
- More than one pour point
Recent wedding setups
Real hires we have delivered, not stock photos.
Village hall wedding, Leigh Sinton — near Malvern
Staffed cash bar with a pallet-wood front, four draught taps, Butty Bach from Wye Valley Brewery on handpull and a Guinness surger.
Wedding marquee, Warwick
Guinness Extra Cold and Asahi Super Dry on chrome taps on a portable bar in a wedding marquee.
8-tap wedding rig, in the unit
Rustic wooden bars with flash cooler, pythons and gas fitted in the unit before going out to a wedding.
August wedding, Surrey — near Bolney
Rustic wooden bar under a marquee. Guinness on a full keg, with a MicroDraught unit for alcohol-free Guinness 0.0 alongside.
See Guinness keg hire, Guinness MicroDraught hire, or bar hire in Surrey.
Wedding bar near Hereford
Rustic wooden bar in a conservatory, with an HPA hand-pull, chrome taps, spirits on the back bar and champagne flutes on the counter.
See HPA keg hire, bar equipment hire or bar hire in Herefordshire.
Arrival drinks, Clifford Manor
Arrival drinks at a private garden event at Clifford Manor, Stratford-upon-Avon: martini glasses and highballs on a round table.
Cash bar with card payments
A rustic gazebo bar with a card reader and till on the bar. Guests pay as they go.
Marquee wedding, Leicestershire
A rustic wooden bar unit in a wedding marquee.
What’s included
A typical staffed wedding bar includes the unit, commercial draught dispense, glassware for the bar, bartenders, delivery, setup and collection. Dry hire is the kit without staff or stock.
- Mobile bar unit suited to the venue
- Commercial draught equipment: cooler, gas, lines and taps
- Delivery, setup and collection
- Staffed options: bartenders and bar glassware
- Stocked options: drinks, ice and mixers as quoted
Optional add-ons
Add only what the day needs. These are the usual extras alongside a wedding bar:
- Keg hire and Guinness keg hire — draught through the same commercial kit
- Glass hire — extra wine glasses, champagne flutes, pints and cocktail glasses
- Cocktail bar hire — a staffed cocktail list for arrival drinks or the evening
- Staff hire — bartenders if you already have a bar
- Draught system hire — extra taps, coolers and dispense kit
How it works
Enquiry, quote, confirm, then we set up, serve and collect.
1
Enquiry
Date, venue, guest count, and how you want the bar run: dry hire, your drinks with our staff, a cash bar, or a hosted tab.
2
Quote
We spec the unit, taps, staff hours, glassware and licence. You get a written quote, not a package name.
3
Setup
We typically arrive 2–3 hours before the ceremony so the bar is ready before guests arrive.
4
Service and collection
We run the bar to the agreed hours, then pack down after the last guest. We aim to clear within two hours.
Coverage and logistics
We are Midlands-based and cover most of England and Wales. We do not claim nationwide coverage. Send the venue postcode with your enquiry and we will confirm.
Marquees, village halls and hotel function rooms are the usual wedding sites. Outdoor bars need level ground and a 13-amp supply within reach. For hot marquees we can fit an actively cooled keg jacket on the cooler so the keg stays cold, not only the beer in the python.
Key areas for wedding bar hire:
Planning tools
- Drinks calculator — a starting point for quantities
- Keg size guide — 30L and 50L volumes
- Guides hub — pressure, couplers and more
- All services
Questions couples actually ask
Own alcohol, who pays, Guinness, the TEN, staff numbers, setup and glasses.
Yes. On dry hire you supply the drinks and whoever serves them. On staff-only hire you supply the agreed drinks and we provide the bar, staff, glassware and equipment. There is no corkage on either option.
Yes. When we supply and run the bar, guests can pay by card or cash. One published option is a staffed cash bar for £150, for 80 adults or more in England and Wales, with no minimum spend.
Yes. When we supply and run the bar, drinks can be a capped host tab or a prepaid allowance, as well as guests paying as they go. Tell us which you want when you enquire.
Yes. Draught Guinness is poured through commercial dispense equipment — the right coupler, 70/30 gas and cooling. We have done this at weddings, including Guinness Extra Cold in a Warwick marquee and a full keg plus alcohol-free Guinness 0.0 MicroDraught at a Surrey wedding. See Guinness keg hire and Guinness MicroDraught hire.
If you supply the alcohol on dry hire or staff-only hire, you are responsible for any Temporary Event Notice the venue needs. Where we provide a cash or card bar, we operate under our own personal licence and arrange the TEN, subject to venue restrictions. See our terms for the full wording.
For around 120 guests we usually put two bartenders on. We work on one bartender per 50–75 guests for standard service, or one per 40–50 if you want a faster queue. Three staff is more typical if you also want a cocktail list or a second pour point. The quote will confirm the number for your venue and drinks list.
We typically arrive 2–3 hours before the ceremony so the bar is ready before guests arrive. Collection starts after the last guest leaves; we aim to clear within two hours. Exact times depend on venue access.
Staffed wedding bars include glassware for the bar. If you need extra glasses for tables, toast wine or a larger guest count, add glass hire — wine glasses, champagne flutes, pints and cocktail glasses, delivered and collected. Dry hire can add glass hire too.
Yes. A staffed wedding bar can cover welcome drinks, the evening bar and toast wine. We have served arrival drinks at Clifford Manor. For a dedicated cocktail list see cocktail bar hire. Flutes for a toast are available through glass hire.
The python cooler chills the beer on its way to the tap. For hot marquees, we can fit an actively cooled keg jacket connected to the cooler, so the whole keg stays cold. Ask about this option when you get a quote.
All services
The services hub
Mobile Bar Hire
Staffed cash bar or dry hire
Keg Hire
Draught beer and cider
Glass Hire
Flutes, wine glasses and pints
Check Availability
Tell us the date, venue, guest count and how you want the bar run. We will send a written quote.