The Ultimate Mimosa Bar

Guests love building their own mimosas at a Mimosa Bar! Stocked with various juices, garnishes and champagne, a mimosa bar is a hands-off and fun way to serve drinks to a crowd.

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The ultimate mimosa bar

What’s not to love about a mimosa? Juice and champagne are a winning duo in my book.

Mimosas are an easy cocktail to serve at a small or large gathering because you can get several drinks out of one bottle of champagne.

The mimosa is an easy two-ingredient recipe (well, sometimes three!) that anyone can pour for themselves.

A mimosa bar is a great way to serve even more drinks and give guests some options when making their mimosa. Let them choose between a few different juices and some garnishes to create their ultimate mimosa.

And if someone doesn’t love a mimosa? Well, they can just pour themself some champagne on its own. Not a bad compromise!

Mimosa bars are perfect for all kinds of gatherings, whether it’s your next brunch, a holiday party or a special occasion like a baby shower or bridal shower. They are an easy way to serve drinks to a crowd.

Set up a full bar for your party for less than $100.

What is a mimosa?

Mimosa is the name for a cocktail that’s traditionally made with orange juice and champagne. Mimosas are similar to bellinis, made with peach purée and champagne.

Sometimes mimosas have an additional ingredient — triple sec or orange liqueur, like Grand Marnier or Cointreau.

Vodka, whiskey or rum are sometimes added, too. (The Seelbach is one of my favorite champagne cocktails with bourbon, though it’s not a mimosa.)

Traditionally served at breakfast or brunch, the mimosa is bubbly and zesty. When you switch up the classic OJ to other types of juices and purées, the mimosa gets even more fun.

Setting up a DIY mimosa bar

When you’re planning a mimosa bar for a party or brunch, it’s essential to set aside a designated area.

It could be a separate table or a bit of counter space. You can even use a rolling bar cart. People will stand there fixing their drinks for a while, so make sure they won’t be in the way.

You will need the following equipment for your mimosa bar:

• vessels for the juices — I love these carafes
• champagne flutes (plastic cups are fine, too!)
• a cooler or ice bucket to keep the champagne cold
• a kitchen towel for spills

If you wind up with leftover champagne, I love these champagne stoppers which help your champagne last a day or two longer.

Ingredients

For a mimosa, you need three main ingredients. Let’s talk through them and what you will need to pick up at the grocery store.

Juices for a mimosa bar

A classic mimosa requires orange juice, but a mimosa bar lets guests (and you, the host!) get creative with options.

Aim for a variety of juices. I like to give 2-4 options for guests, depending on how big the party is. If there are similar colors of juice, you may want to label them with table cards or these hanging labels.

Here are some juice options to consider:

• pomegranate juice
• cranberry juice
• grapefruit juice
• mango juice
• pineapple juice
• apple juice or cider
• peach juice (peach nectar)
• watermelon puree
• guava juice
• lemonade

See the section below called holiday mimosa bar ideas for seasonal combinations.

Get the best quality juices you can. If serving options for classic mimosas, make sure your orange juice is pulp-free. If you are making any fruit puree, make sure to strain out the solids.

Best champagne for a mimosa bar

You will need to grab some of your favorite bubbly for your mimosa bar. Depending on the size of your party, you probably won’t need more than a few champagne bottles — however, see the section below on how much champagne to buy for more about this.

My go-to bottle for parties is Freixenet which is in the $12-15 range. It’s of good quality and doesn’t break the bank.

It’s technically a cava, which brings me to another point. You don’t have to use champagne. It can be pricy, so you can use prosecco, cava or another type of sparkling wine instead.

Check out this guide to champagne for tips on which bottle to buy.

Plus, a non-alcoholic option

I also recommend picking up a non-alcoholic option for kids and non-drinkers to make a perfect virgin mimosa.

Sparkling apple cider, ginger ale or sparkling lemonade will be on the sweeter side. Seltzer or club soda will be a little dryer. I’d offer one of each, sweet and dry.

Triple sec

For top-shelf mimosas, guests can add 1 ounce of Grand Marnier, Cointreau or triple sec to their glass for some extra orange flavor.

But if you want to keep things simple (and less expensive), feel free to skip this step.

Garnishes

Letting guests spice up their own drinks with garnishes will take the drinks to the next level. Guests will instantly feel like they’re at a fancy party. A selection of fresh fruit and herbs definitely ups the game!

Try a few of these options:

• fresh berries
• lemon and orange slices
• slices or apples or peaches
• fresh mint, rosemary or thyme
• sugar or cinnamon sugar for the rim

Set them out in small bowls on your mimosa bar. A pair of tongs is ideal for sanitation so people don’t have their hands in the bowls of fruit.

Don’t forget to set out some bamboo skewers to spear garnishes so they don’t get lost in the drink.

Glassware for a mimosa bar

For a fancier event, you can use glass champagne flutes. However, I find stemless flutes to be just as elegant and a little sturdier.

But if your event is more casual, I’d stay away from the delicate glassware. I am all for plastic cups! These plastic champagne flutes are reusable.

You can also use disposable champagne flutes, but I find they tend to topple over so if you need to go the disposable route, I would stick to regular plastic cups.

How to set up a mimosa bar

You will need to clear off an area for your mimosa bar, as it will take up a bit of space and people will need room to pour their drinks.

1. Fill your pitchers with fruit juices. Keep them in the fridge until your party.
2. Chill your champagne. Set up a bucket with ice or wine chiller for the open bottle. Keep backups in the fridge or in a cooler filled with ice.
3. Set out any garnishes, triple sec (if using) and glassware.

How to make a mimosa

To make a mimosa, you’ll want to add the orange juice first. If you’re using triple sec, add that next. Then, slowly, top with champagne.

When you add the champagne last, you are better able to control how quickly it will bubble up.

You may want to put up a little tabletop sign on the table to help people craft their mimosa. Here are the simple steps to include:

1. Add 2 ounces of juice to a glass.
2. Add 1 ounce of triple sec (optional).
3. Top with something bubbly.
4. Garnish with herbs or fresh fruits.
5. Enjoy!

How much champagne for mimosas

One 750mL bottle of champagne will make 6-8 mimosas. You know your guests and how much they drink, but keep in mind most guests will enjoy 1-3 mimosas.

Another rule of thumb is 1 bottle for every 3 guests.

For example, for 10 guests, you’d need enough champagne for about 18 drinks, which would be 3 bottles. I usually buy 1 extra, just in case, but I’ll enjoy it long after.

Having a non-alcoholic option like ginger beer or sparkling cider is always a good idea too.

Holiday mimosa bar ideas

You can set up a mimosa bar for just about any holiday throughout the year. Here are a few ideas:

Mardi Gras: Yellow, green and purple are the colors of Mardi Gras. Try serving pineapple juice, a green-colored juice like herbal limeade and a purple-ish juice like red grape juice.

St. Patrick’s Day: Orange and green are key colors. Serve classic orange juice mimosas or add blue curaçao to turn them green.

Easter: This holiday calls for light, pastel-colored juices. Try lemonade, orange juice and strawberry mimosas.

Red, white and blue: For patriotic holidays, let champagne be the “white” option, strawberry lemonade or watermelon juice for red mimosas and a splash of blue curaçao (with little to no OJ) for blue mimosas.

Thanksgiving: Mimosas are fun for Turkey Day too, especially if it’s a lunchtime meal. Serve apple cider mimosas, caramel apple mimosas and pumpkin pie mimosas.

Christmas: Christmas morning will be better with mimosas. Serve orange juice as well as cranberry and pomegranate juice.

Another fun idea for the holidays is setting up a Christmas tree mimosa bar. Fill ornaments with juice and add them to a tree for people. Guests can pluck them off the tree and pour the juice into a glass and top with champagne.

What to serve with a mimosa bar

Mimosas go with just about anything breakfast-y! Here are a few ideas for food stations to set up alongside your mimosa bar:

• A bagel bar with New York Style Bagels and a smattering of cream cheeses like smoked cream cheese and toppings like lox, onions and capers.
• A yogurt parfait bar with a few types of yogurt, fresh fruit and homemade granola.
• A waffle bar with batter for your favorite waffles near a waffle maker, plus a few types of syrup, butter, fruits, chocolate chips and whipped cream.
• A biscuit bar with large biscuits plus fillings like jam, butter, sausage, bacon, cheese and eggs.
• A muffin spread of various sweet muffins, like chai muffins or blueberry orange muffins plus butter and jams.