The default shower plan is somebody's living room. Thirty guests, one bathroom, a folding table of finger sandwiches, and the host spending the whole party in the kitchen instead of at the party.
There is a better version. Book a room, bring the food you want, and show up as a guest at the thing you are throwing.
Why a brewery works for a shower
- Nobody is cleaning their house before or after. Bag the trash and we take it from there
- Co-ed showers are now normal, and a taproom is a lot easier sell to the guys than a living room
- The guest of honor usually is not drinking, and that is fine. Drink tickets cover soft drinks, not just beer
- There is an arcade, so the kids who came along are handled
- Free onsite parking and one address everyone can find
What it costs
Typical shower, 35 guests, semi private space
- Space rental: $400 for 3 hours
- 2 drink package billed on 75% of your count: 26 guests x $15 = $390
- Running total: about $790 before tax and gratuity, roughly $23 a head
- Skip the drink package entirely and let people buy their own, and you are out the $400 plus whatever you spend on food
Deposit is $100. Cash, check or ACH costs nothing extra. Credit cards add 3% on the rental. Sales tax is 6% on drink packages.
No cleaning fee. No booking fee. No drink minimum.
Pick your time, not just your date
Sunday afternoons and weekday afternoons are the easiest dates to get and the cheapest. Saturday evenings book out first and cost the most. If the shower does not have to be Saturday night, do not make it Saturday night.
We can often hold a date with about one week's notice if the space is open. For a weekend date, give yourself more runway.
Food and cake
Bring any licensed and insured caterer you like, or bring the cake yourself. The caterer or whoever buys the food handles plates, napkins, cutlery and food ice.
A grazing table beats a seated meal every time at a shower. People get up, move around, and talk to somebody other than the person stuck next to them.
No outside alcohol, ever. That one is not flexible.
The two hour shape that actually works
- First 30 minutes. Arrival, drinks, food out, nothing scheduled. Let people say hello
- Next 30 minutes. One game. One. Not four. Pick the one your group will actually play and skip the rest
- Next 30 minutes. Gifts, if you are doing gifts. Put one person on writing down who gave what so the thank you notes are not a research project
- The rest. Back to open. Cake comes out somewhere in here
Three hours is the standard booking. Most showers use two and a half and nobody feels rushed. Extra time on a semi private is $75 an hour if you want the cushion.
Decor and the small stuff
- Signs, balloons, banners and table decor are all welcome. No glitter or confetti
- Everything comes down at the end of your rental time
- We have a full AV setup with multiple displays if you want a photo slideshow running
- Kids are welcome and need to be supervised. Guests must be 21 to drink
- Want a tap renamed for the day in honor of the couple or the baby's last name? We can do that as an add-on
Six week checklist
- 6 weeks out. Lock the date and the space. Send the invite with the address and a parking note
- 4 weeks out. Decide food. Caterer, or you and two helpers bringing trays
- 2 weeks out. Confirm your headcount range with us. Buy decor and the one game
- 3 days out. Final count. Assign the gift list writer and the photo person so you are not doing both
- Day of. Arrive 30 minutes early. That is enough