Los Angeles Catering With Bartenders and Servers for Weddings
Platinum Bartenders staffs the food, the bar and the floor at the same wedding: on-site chefs, bartenders, servers and a banquet captain, booked together. Buffet dinner runs $155 to $210 per guest depending on guest count, with a 50 guest billing minimum, and bar and floor staff are billed by the hour.
Catering formats and prices
Four formats, priced per guest, with the price falling as the guest count rises.
Format50 to 99100 to 149150 to 199200 to 249250+Tray-passed canapes$195$160$150$145$140Buffet dinner$210$175$165$160$155Family style$250$215$205$200$195Five-course plated$350$315$305$300$295
The per guest price already includes the kitchen brigade, a dishwasher, plates, cutlery, linen, delivery, setup, removal and gratuity. Catering gratuity is included. For bar and floor staff it is optional: add $100 per staff member to the booking, paid in full to the team, and guests never see a tip jar.
When the venue has no kitchen
A private estate, a ranch or a garden marquee usually has no working kitchen. A portable kitchen is $2,550 per station, one station per 100 guests: propane ovens, heat lamps, work tables, speed racks, refuse handling and a fire extinguisher. Ask the venue what it has, because a domestic kitchen is not a catering kitchen.
The floor team
Servers, $79 per hour. Canapes at the reception, plates at dinner, clearing, water and wine on the table.
Banquet captain, $89 per hour. Runs the floor, holds the timeline, cues service against the toasts and the first dance.
Bartenders, $79 per hour, one per 50 guests. A mixologist is $89 per hour where the cocktails are the point.
Barbacks, $79 per hour. Ice, restocking and glass collection, so bartenders stay behind the bar.
Hosts, $79 per hour. Arrivals, the seating chart, moving guests from ceremony to reception.
All staff carry a 4 hour minimum. Travel is free in central Los Angeles and a flat fee per staff member beyond it, for example $30 for Pasadena or $90 for Orange County. The $100 gratuity per staff member is optional.
A 100 guest wedding, worked through
Buffet dinner, two bartenders, four servers and a captain, six hours on site.
Buffet dinner, 100 guests in the 100 to 149 band: 100 x $175 = $17,500
2 bartenders: 2 x 6 x $79 = $948
4 servers: 4 x 6 x $79 = $1,896
1 banquet captain: 1 x 6 x $89 = $534
Optional gratuity, 7 staff x $100 = $700
Staff total with the gratuity: $4,078
Food and staff together: $21,578
Drinks are separate unless you supply them: a full bar at medium consumption for 100 guests is 100 x $38 = $3,800. Add $2,550 if the venue needs a portable kitchen. Package prices are at book.platinumbartender.com.
Why one company for both
A wedding fails at the joins. One company means one timeline, so dinner service does not land in the middle of the toasts. One load-in, so the kitchen and the bar are not fighting over the same door and the same power. One point of contact on the day, and one certificate of insurance for the venue, since all staff are W-2 employees of Platinum Bartenders LLC.
Common questions
Is there a minimum guest count for catering?
Catering is billed for a minimum of 50 guests. A wedding of 30 is charged at 50, at the 50 to 99 band price.
Do we tip the catering staff?
Gratuity is included in the catering price. For bartenders, servers, barbacks and the captain it is optional: $100 per staff member on the booking, paid in full to them, or nothing at all.
Do servers replace bartenders?
No. Servers carry and clear, bartenders pour. Keep one bartender per 50 guests whatever the server count, and a second is recommended at medium or heavy consumption.
For an exact figure on your guest count and hours, build a quote at book.platinumbartender.com, call 310-985-3014, or email info@platinumbartender.com.
