G&G Cocktails

G&G Cocktails is a mobile cocktail bar service based in Germany: its German-language site says the head office is in Freiburg im Breisgau and that its core area is southern Germany. Its .ch site offers the bar in Basel and throughout Switzerland, with a page for Lucerne among the Swiss cities it names, and it lists weddings first among the private celebrations it serves. It supplies the bar, trained bartenders, the drinks and the equipment, and it also runs a mobile coffee bar, a cocktail truck and whiskey and gin tastings. Its tagline is "Professionelles Barkeeping der besonderen Art" (professional bartending of a special kind).

Track record and staff

The site's headline claim is experience. It says that after more than 2500 reference events in 15 years it has not received a single bad review, has never had to cancel an event, and has so far managed to fulfill every special request: "konnten bisher jeden Sonderwunsch zufriedenstellend umsetzen" (have so far been able to carry out every special wish to satisfaction). Customer reviews are shown through the review platform Ausgezeichnet.org.

The bartenders are trained in the company's own bar school, which the site says follows the highest quality standards of the service industry. On request, couples can book one of its show bartenders, the site giving the example of one with a German master title, for a show and entertainment at the bar. The Lucerne page mentions the show-mixing skills of the bar staff, and says drinks are made in front of the guests so there is always something to watch.

Speed is a selling point. The homepage says its bartenders serve 5 drinks per minute, with cocktails and alcohol-free drinks alike, so guests do not wait long at the bar.

What the full package includes

The homepage calls its main offer a complete solution, and lists what it covers:

• professionally trained staff from the in-house bar school
• an individual drinks menu, put together with the client from a selection of over 1200 proven classics and new drinks, or the client's own creation
• all drinks made fresh on site in front of the guests, using only high-quality ingredients and brand products; the site adds that its cocktails are cheaper than in a bar
• a mobile cocktail bar whose look can be adapted to the event, for example with the client's own logo
• a show bartender on request
• everything from setup to takedown

The Lucerne page adds that the service can include alcoholic and alcohol-free drinks and various coffee specialties, which covers the whole evening from aperitif to the coffee after dinner.

For couples who do not need the complete package, the site says it can also supply just reliable staff or professional equipment. A couple whose venue already has a bar, or whose caterer handles the drinks, could book bartenders only.

How the site frames the bar

The pitch on the homepage is practical rather than decorative. It tells hosts to avoid long waiting times and thirsty or irritated guests, and to take time for their guests while the bar adds an extravagant, individual touch. The Lucerne page makes the social case: the mobile bar is a place where guests meet, order their favorite cocktail and chat. It also promises advice at any time on how best to plan the event, after which the bar is rented to the host's own specifications.

For a wedding, that combination of speed and advice matters most during the aperitif, when a large group arrives at once and the bar sets the pace. The site also has sections for cocktail recipes, partners and job openings, the last of which fits with a business that trains its own bartenders.

Booking and short notice

The site invites couples to get in touch for a non-binding conversation about the details of the event, their questions and tips for carrying it out, and says it can prepare a non-binding offer from the inquiry, including for very short-notice requests such as an event the next day. Contact is by phone on 061-511 88 47 or by email at hallo@gug-cocktails.ch.

Where it works

The business is not Swiss. Its German site, mobile-cocktailbar.com, gives Freiburg im Breisgau as the location of its head office, calls southern Germany its core area, and says clients book it from across Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The Swiss homepage speaks of its mobile cocktail bar in Basel and throughout Switzerland, and it names Basel, Bern, Biel, Luzern, St. Gallen, Schaffhausen and Zürich as cities where it can be booked. The cocktail truck is advertised as available near Basel. For a Swiss wedding that means the team travels in from across the border, so the venue address belongs in the first inquiry. The Lucerne page describes renting the mobile bar there, with the bartenders on hand for guests to meet, order their favorite cocktails and talk.

Other events and extras

The site lists a long range of business events, from trade fairs and galas to roadshows, company parties, conferences and team-building activities, and private events including weddings, birthdays, barbecues, summer parties, christenings and the Polterabend, the German-speaking tradition of a pre-wedding party. The whiskey and gin tastings could fit a groom's or a group's evening before the wedding. The menu also lists a mobile coffee bar and the cocktail truck as separate products, though the pages linked here do not describe them in detail.

What the site does not settle

The site publishes no prices. The German site says it caters events of 30 to 3,000 guests, with larger events possible on request and with enough lead time. It says its cocktails cost less than in a bar, but it gives no figure to compare. It does not say how many bartenders it sends for a wedding of a given size, how long a standard service runs, or whether travel is charged for venues far from its base in Freiburg.

The site is published in German, and it does not say whether its bartenders or its planning contact work in English. A couple arranging the bar from abroad should ask about that when they request the quote. The cocktail truck and the coffee bar are named in the menu but not described on these pages, so their availability for a wedding outside the Basel area is also a question to ask.

Who it suits

G&G Cocktails suits couples who want a fast, professional cocktail bar with a large menu to choose from and the option of a show bartender, and who value a supplier with a long record behind it. The bartenders-only option makes it flexible for venues that have their own bar, and quotes even for next-day events help couples who are still putting their plans together. The named cities cover much of German-speaking Switzerland.

The caveats are the missing price guide and the unanswered language question. Couples who want a quiet bar without entertainment can simply leave out the show bartender, since the site offers the show as an option rather than a standard part of the service.