Each week on “Jacksonville Buzz,” our host sits down with some of the brightest and most entertaining guests you can find on the First Coast to discuss what’s buzzing in the Bold City. Our host, Adrienne Houghton, is a delight to watch, treating viewers to fascinating guests, laugh-till-you-cry moments and insider tips on enhancing every aspect of your life on the First Coast. Today, Adrienne talks with Audrey Ancelin from Regard Libations, LLC.
Regard Libations is a full-service event bartending company. Audrey specializes in weddings, corporate events, and birthdays. She also offers cocktail classes and distilled spirits tastings.
To learn more, visit https://www.regardlibations.com.
Short Company Description: Regard Libations is a full-service event bartending company. While we specialize in weddings, corporate events, and birthdays, we also offer cocktail classes, distilled-spirits tastings, and “stock the bar” services. Cocktail classes range from basic bartending skills to step-by-step craft cocktail experiences, and clients can pick from a vodka, rum, scotch, or bourbon/whiskey distilled-spirits tasting package, with each tasting including four handpicked varieties tested by our spirits experts. Best of all, both cocktail classes and distilled-spirits tastings can be conducted virtually and in person. Our clients leave the shopping to us with our “stock the bar” services – we will go shopping for everything your event or home bar requires, including, but not limited to, liquor, wine, beer, mixers, garnishes, and ice. Whether your event bar requires beer and wine only, a mocktail menu, or a one-of-a-kind craft cocktail menu with a full bar, we hold all of your bar needs in the highest regard.
How did you get into the hospitality industry? During my first career as a professional ballet dancer, I started bartending to make ends meet. I quickly recognized the art of hospitality. Creating a mood through drinks and atmosphere is synonymous with creating an experience at the ballet – it’s a total sensory experience. Those two in combination confirmed this was the industry for me.
How did you come to love hospitality? I grew up in an Italian household, so naturally, we had people over constantly. It did not matter if it was someone’s birthday or just a random Tuesday, our door was always open. My mom is a born “hostess with the mostest”, and I am continually inspired by the way her gracious hospitality lights up a room. I only hope to make my clients feel as welcome and loved as my mom does for every person who steps her front door.
Why did you name your business Regard Libations? The word Regard alludes to bringing attention or concern to something in a specified way. Then, the word Libations refers to a drink offered in celebration. Combined, I want our clients to know that all of Regard’s drinks and services are executed with the utmost attention, concern, and consideration of our client and event’s guests. We care about every last detail while celebrating with you, and that is what makes Regard exceptional.
How has the COVID 19 pandemic affected your business? The COVID-19 pandemic brought unprecedented challenges to the forefront of Regard’s business. However, similar to many other small businesses, we have learned to be resilient and adapt. That is why we started doing virtual cocktail classes and spirits tastings, and they have been a hit!
What makes your company unique?: Regard Libations will always go the extra mile for our clients. Not only will we come to you as a mobile service, but our team’s combined experience in fine dining, event planning, mixology, and hospitality management guarantees a remarkable bar experience. We strive to have you and your event’s guests feel like a “regular” at a Regard event bar.
How do you define success?: In my opinion, there is nothing more rewarding than putting a smile on someone’s face. The act of elevating one’s day and bringing a bit of respite from the stress of life is so fulfilling, and bartending just happens to be my way of doing so. Therefore, I define success as the smile on my client’s face – when I look around an event and know that everyone in the room is enjoying themselves to the fullest, and I had a hand in it.
What’s your favorite way to get involved in the community?: My second passion is environmental sustainability, specifically through composting and community gardening. I currently have a compost project in the works, where I take others’ biodegradable food scraps and turn them into fertile soil, and I love to tend to the community garden a couple of blocks from my home in Riverside. I hope to start a community vegetable and herb garden in my own front yard, and the resulting food will be donated to food-insecure families around Jacksonville.
