Ohana Rehersal Dinner Question

[jmmastra]

Hi,
I am considering having our rehersal dinner at Ohana. My FMIL and FFIL are paying for this. I think $25.99 pp is a great price but I know that our guests really enjoy their alcohol and I am a little worried about what the final tab will be. Has anyone had their dinner there and paid for their guests drinks? Or can a wine and beer option be added? And if so how much is that? Is it rude to make them pay for their own drinks? Mickey's backyard BBQ would be ideal but it is not open on Sunday and Monday so that is out. Any help would be much appreciated.

 

[dznystar]

I agree about the price of dinner for the food you get. We went to Ohana's for our engagement party and it was fantastic. Our server took great care of us. Our bill turned out pretty hefty with the drinks. Their cocktails are very expensive. I think mine was $13 because it came in a pineapple. But most of the rest run about $10. If you do decide to go, ask your server to bring some pineapple for dessert. They used to do this as their dessert but if you request it, they'll bring some to your table. They bring a large bowl of fresh pineapple with the best caramel sauce for dipping. It's fantastic!

 

[nemmie]

I don't think it's rude at all. Just make sure your guests are aware before hand. You could phrase it something like ''All soft drinks are included and unlimited. Should you wish to, alcohol can be purchase at the bar.'' Just an idea

 

[wendy46001]

Making everyone pay for liquor is how we went. I guess it depends a lot on the number of people and how much they drink (drinks at Ohanas range from 8 to 15 dollars each, beer is 5 to 6 dollar each).....In a setting like Ohana's its easy to have your guest pay for their own drinks...just make sure the wait-staff knows and they will start a tab for the guest just like a normal bar....We actually did this because it was a large “party” group (50adults) and i didn’t want to dish out for ten dollar drinks all night when the following night it would be an open bar (also didn’t want a bunch of hung-over people the next am)....We included the info in our news letters and reminded them when we got there...(it worked out great...and no one in our group minded)...I guess it depends a lot on the number of people and how much they drink

 

[happylalagirl]

Hi,
I am considering having our rehersal dinner at Ohana. My FMIL and FFIL are paying for this. I think $25.99 pp is a great price but I know that our guests really enjoy their alcohol and I am a little worried about what the final tab will be. Has anyone had their dinner there and paid for their guests drinks? Or can a wine and beer option be added? And if so how much is that? Is it rude to make them pay for their own drinks? Mickey's backyard BBQ would be ideal but it is not open on Sunday and Monday so that is out. Any help would be much appreciated.

HI there jmmastra!! We are having our rehearsal dinner at O'Hana's also. AND it's on a Sunday too!!! My FMIL and FFIL are paying for the dinner as well and to be honest, I never even gave any thought to the whole drinking thing... We are having some ridiculous issues with them right now and at this point in time, I feel like they should just pay for whatever the guests want... I know that's obnoxious, but they have been extremely rude this past week and said some things to us AND our 10 year old daughter that were inappropriate. So, I guess if things change for the better, which we hope they do before the wedding, I might actually bring the alcohol issue up to them and see if they want to tell the guests to pay for their own... OK, I"m done venting. Sorry.

 

[karentan]

just wanted to say to happylalagirl, you dont look old enough to have a 10 year old daughter!

 

[jmmastra]

I don't think it's rude at all. Just make sure your guests are aware before hand. You could phrase it something like ''All soft drinks are included and unlimited. Should you wish to, alcohol can be purchase at the bar.'' Just an idea

That is a good idea. I should probably consult with my FMIL first about if she wants to pay for alcohol. Some of her comments make me think she wants to keep this as cheap as possible. She only wants to invite the wedding party and immediate family...and her sisters. So that means we do not invite 6 people from my side and 8 people from DF's. I say invite them all!!! I also do not think she realizes that the spouses of those who are in the wedding party are also invited. I did email my wedding planner to see if a wine and beer package can be added.

 

[jmmastra]

HI there jmmastra!! We are having our rehearsal dinner at O'Hana's also. AND it's on a Sunday too!!! My FMIL and FFIL are paying for the dinner as well and to be honest, I never even gave any thought to the whole drinking thing... We are having some ridiculous issues with them right now and at this point in time, I feel like they should just pay for whatever the guests want... I know that's obnoxious, but they have been extremely rude this past week and said some things to us AND our 10 year old daughter that were inappropriate. So, I guess if things change for the better, which we hope they do before the wedding, I might actually bring the alcohol issue up to them and see if they want to tell the guests to pay for their own... OK, I"m done venting. Sorry.

Vent away I hope things get better. And if not...make them pay for the alcohol!

 

[JJClemson]

Jmmastra & happylalagirl- I am having my rehearsal dinner at 'Ohana on a Sunday too

My future inlaws are paying for all of our guests, 60-70, and we also will not be paying for alcohol. Thanks for bringing up this question jmmastra. This is one of the many things I had not thought about

 

[Laurafoster]

Hey! Im having my rehearsal dinner at Ohana's (also on a sunday lol). I have put a little menu in the welcome bags and told evryone that we are paying for the meal which includes soft drinks but if they want any alcoholic beverages they will need to go to the bar and pay for them themselves! I asked Ohana's about this and they said if the guests go to the bar they can pay there for the drinks - saving hassle at the end with working out who had what etc!

 

[jmmastra]

Thanks Laurafoster...that is good to know. FMIL may want to pay, but if not I now have options and know what other people have done. Thanks everyone!

 

[happylalagirl]

just wanted to say to happylalagirl, you dont look old enough to have a 10 year old daughter!

Awwww... thanks. We were young when we had her... I was 19 (almost 20). I'm the big 3-0 now and loving every minute of it. We want to continue our family soon after the big day!!!

 

[happylalagirl]

Vent away I hope things get better. And if not...make them pay for the alcohol!

LOL!!!! I just might do that!!!

 

[pixie08]

We are doing our rd at O'Hana (not on a sunday- hey I feel left out )as well but only having like 25 (we are having the welcome party after) and I was wondering this also. I am still not sure what to do though

 

[Melitious]

We had our rehearsal dinner at O'Hana and we paid for it. We did not pay for anyone's drinks and no one had a problem paying for their own. I don't think as many people expect for people to foot the bill for them to drink as much as they used. It wasn't a problem for anyone, since we had people spread the word that we couldn't afford to pay for everyone's drinks.

I recommend the O'Hana rehearsal dinner, but prepare to be embarrassed, if they find out it is your rehearsal. We were called out SEVERAL times and were asked to lead the moraca (sp?) conga line, and hold the limbo pole.

 

[tesseract]

Please let me know if you receive a response from the planner about adding a wine/beverage package?

We are also having our rehearsal there (on a Wednesday) but had assumed we would just pay for everyone's drinks.

With 25 guests we were expecting a bill of around $2k or so but we can limit it with a wine/beverage package that would be fantastic! Please keep us posted!!

Our other idea was to just order a bunch of bottles of wine to keep people occupied and avoid the pricier drinks

 

[jmmastra]

Please let me know if you receive a response from the planner about adding a wine/beverage package?

We are also having our rehearsal there (on a Wednesday) but had assumed we would just pay for everyone's drinks.

With 25 guests we were expecting a bill of around $2k or so but we can limit it with a wine/beverage package that would be fantastic! Please keep us posted!!

Our other idea was to just order a bunch of bottles of wine to keep people occupied and avoid the pricier drinks

I just got a reply today. They do not have a wine and beer package. The only ones that include wine and beer are Spirit of Aloha, Hoop Dee-Doo, and Mickey's Backyard BBQ. She did mention that they could help with other venus that have a more private location and then we could include beer and wine. She said Ohana did not have a private area for rehersal dinners.

 

[Melitious]

Without paying for anyone's drinks and having about 30 people there, it only ran us about $900, with gratuity included. So, if you pay for everyone's drinks, it may still not be insanely pricey. They do not have a private area, but they did seat us away from the main dining area, in the section right as you are walking around to go past the grill area. It felt private to us. But, if you want to be able to give speeches and all that, O'Hana is not the place to go.