Cocktail party or seated dinner? Costs compared
The format decides the rental list more than the guest count does. A seated dinner needs a full setting for every guest; a cocktail party needs surfaces and glasses. Here is the same sixty-guest party priced both ways.
What each format asks of the evening
A seated dinner keeps guests in one place for a long, slow meal, with toasts and speeches that everyone hears. A cocktail party keeps people moving, mixes teams that never sit together, and suits a shorter evening or a venue without room for tables for everyone.
Neither is cheaper by default. A seated dinner spends on place settings and tablecloths; a cocktail party spends on glassware and food service, and needs fewer pieces from us.
Sixty guests, seated
Eight tables of up to eight, set with The Winter Social, our moss green Christmas setting at $12.25 a guest, and a White Poli Table Linen on each table at $18:
| Line | Count | Price | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Winter Social place setting | 60 | $12.25 | $735 |
| White Poli Table Linen, 120-inch round | 8 | $18 | $144 |
| Total | $879 |
Sixty guests, standing
Plan one and a half glasses per guest for the evening, a coupe each for the toast, a small plate or two if food is passed, and a cocktail table for every six to eight guests:
| Line | Count | Price | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revolution wine glass | 90 | $1.50 | $135 |
| Melodia Coupe for the toast | 60 | $1.50 | $90 |
| White Mercer Salad Plate, for passed food | 120 | $1.25 | $150 |
| Cocktail table | 8 | $15 | $120 |
| Large Champagne Bucket | 2 | $20 | $40 |
| Total | $535 |
Or do a little of both
Many holiday parties start standing and end seated, or seat half the room at long tables and keep cocktail tables around the bar. Tell us the shape of the evening and we will count it with you. The pieces for either format are in The Holiday Table, and the cocktail tables are $15 each.
For counts per guest, see how much to rent per guest; for the glasses themselves, holiday cocktail glassware.
