Wedding Bartenders in Los Angeles, with a Twist of Magic

A wedding bar service built around your timeline

Magic & Cocktails is a wedding bar team based in Los Angeles. We build the drinks list with the couple, size the staff to the guest count, and work close-up magic in between pours so the cocktail hour has something happening in it. Since 2018 we have covered 900+ events across Los Angeles County, for guest lists from twenty people to several hundred.

Our bartenders hold RBS certification and we carry general liability and liquor liability cover, so the certificate your venue asks for is ready before the walkthrough. If you also need a bar for the rehearsal dinner or the welcome party, that runs through our full bartending service in Los Angeles.

Wedding venues from Malibu to Pasadena

We are based in Los Angeles and travel to venues across the county. These are the areas we cover most often for weddings:

Malibu and the Pacific Palisades
Beverly Hills and Bel Air
Santa Monica and Venice
Calabasas and Hidden Hills
Pasadena and Glendale

West Hollywood and Hollywood
Downtown Los Angeles
Studio City and Sherman Oaks
Long Beach and the South Bay

Getting married outside the county? Send us the venue and we will quote it with travel included.

Why couples choose a magic bar over a standard one

Magic behind the bar, not a hired act: our bartenders are trained magicians, so waiting for a drink turns into close-up magic instead of a queue.
Two drinks that are actually yours: we build signature cocktails around what the two of you drink, name them for you, and finish them with edible toppers and garnishes matched to your palette. The signature cocktail menu is where most couples start.
Certified and covered: every bartender holds RBS certification and we carry general liability and liquor liability cover. The certificate reaches your venue before the walkthrough, not the week of the wedding.
The same faces on the day: the bartenders working your wedding are the ones on our team page, not agency staff assigned that morning.
900+ events and a client list you can check: since 2018 we have worked across Los Angeles County for Google, Nike, Samsung, Sony and CAA.
Planned with your planner: we agree the bar position, the load-in route and the service timings before the day, so nothing gets decided on the spot.

Wedding bar service, moment by moment

Most complaints about a wedding bar come down to timing, not taste. We plan service backwards from your run of show, so the queue never forms during the speeches and the bar is not still restocking when the first dance starts.

Cocktail hour

The busiest sixty minutes of the night. Guests arrive to a welcome drink poured ahead and passed on trays, then we staff the bar for peak demand with two signature drinks on the board and magic worked into the wait.

Reception and dinner service

Wine and water get topped up at the tables while the bar stays open for anyone who prefers to order. Staffing scales with the guest count and the seating plan.

Toasts and the champagne moment

Champagne is poured ahead and the tray service is timed to your planner’s cue, so every glass is full when the speeches begin. A spinning champagne tower or a wall champagne entrance is there if you want the moment to land harder.

After party

A shorter list, faster pours and a louder room. We restock, reset the back bar and can close with a flair or magic set if the dance floor is still full.

Everything that arrives with the bar

The bar arrives complete. Below is what we unload at the venue on the wedding day, from the ice count to the garnish tray, so you know exactly what you are booking.

Licensed & insured staff

RBS certified bartenders with general liability and liquor liability cover. Certificate sent straight to your venue.

Custom wedding menu

Two signature cocktails named for the couple, plus a zero-proof pour that stands on its own.

Full bar logistics

Bar, glass, ice, mixers, garnishes, setup and breakdown. Your planner chases nobody.

Close-up magic

Trained magicians pouring the drinks, so the bar entertains the line instead of creating one.

Inside the wedding bar kit

This is the detail most couples want to see before they sign anything. Everything below travels with the team on the day.

The bar and the glass: portable bar unit with styled back bar, or we work inside the venue's own bar. Full glassware set when the venue does not supply one.
Ice and bar tools: ice calculated at two pounds per guest in cube, crushed or dry form, plus shakers, strainers, jiggers, muddlers and pour spouts.
Mixers and garnishes: sodas, tonics and ginger beer, 100% juices, bitters, agave, grenadine and fresh lime, with citrus, berries, herbs, edible flowers and rimming sugars and salts.
The magic setup: Flavour Blaster, smoke machines, dry ice, levitation shaker, fire garnishes, neon signage and flair bottles.
Optional additions: spinning champagne tower, wall champagne entrance, custom ice luge, edible wafer paper printed with your names, cocktail tables, a ten-minute flair fire show, a fifteen-minute magic show, or a dedicated magician working the tables.

Couples on their wedding day

Wedding bar questions, answered

How many bartenders do you need for a 100-person wedding?

Two. Our rule is one bartender per 50 to 75 guests on a standard open bar, and one per 35 to 50 when the cocktail hour is short and the whole room orders at once. Add a champagne toast or tray service and we bring a barback as well, so the bar itself never goes unattended.

Do you have to hire a bartender for a wedding?

No rule forces you to, but most Los Angeles venues will not allow alcohol to be served by anyone who is not trained and insured, which rules out a self-serve table or a friend behind the bar. Hiring a certified team also shifts the liability away from the couple and their families for the night.

How much does a bartender get paid at a wedding?

It depends on the guest count, the hours, the venue and how much of the bar we build from scratch. We quote the event rather than the hour, so the number you approve is the number you pay. For the wider market picture, we set out the figures in our guide to what a wedding bartender costs.

What is the 3:2:1 rule in bartending?

It is a shorthand for balancing a sour: three parts base spirit, two parts sweet, one part citrus. It sits underneath drinks like the daiquiri and the margarita, and it is why a signature cocktail still tastes right after being batched for 150 glasses.

When should we lock in our wedding bartender?

Aim for two to three months out, and sooner if your date falls between May and October, when Saturdays in Los Angeles are the first to go. Shorter notice is worth asking about anyway, because dates move and teams free up.

Will you send our venue a certificate of insurance?

Yes, and we do it before the walkthrough rather than the week of the wedding. Every bartender is RBS certified and California compliant, and we hold general liability and liquor liability cover. Send us the venue contact and the paperwork goes straight to them.

Can you create signature cocktails for our wedding?

That is usually the first thing we work on. You get two drinks built around what you actually like, named for the two of you, finished with edible toppers and garnishes matched to your colors, and a zero-proof version that stands on its own. We taste them with you before the menu is signed off.

What if our venue already has a bar?

Then we work inside it and only bring what is missing, usually glassware, ice, mixers and garnishes. If there is no bar, or the built-in one sits in the wrong room, we set up our own portable bar wherever the flow of the evening needs it.

Do you cover Malibu, Beverly Hills and Santa Monica?

Yes, along with the rest of Los Angeles County: Pacific Palisades, Bel Air, Venice, West Hollywood, Pasadena, Downtown, Calabasas, the South Bay and everything between them. Venues beyond the county line are quoted with travel included.

What time will you get to the venue on the day?

Between an hour and an hour and a half before service starts, and up to two hours when there is a full bar build with glassware stations. We fix the exact slot with your planner so the load-in does not cross the ceremony or land in the middle of the photographer’s shot list.