A beautiful retro-fitted teardrop trailer-turned-mobile-bar recently swished onto the Sarasota scene. Tap & Toast Mobile Bar offers customizable drinks in a pretty package perfect for private events.

Owner Jessica Dell'Amico credits her 15 years of hospitality industry experience as the ingredient that makes her venture great.

"I’ve been in hospitality for what feels like forever," she says. "I was a bartender, server and manager at a restaurant. Bartending was what always felt the most organic—the interaction with the guest. Learning craft cocktails and making something tasty and original evolved on its own."

"As time has gone on, I’ve had this little voice telling me I could do this on my own," she continues. "I did my research for about a year and a half and then this idea fell into my lap."

Dell'Amico moved to Sarasota seven years ago from Pennsylvania to be near her parents.

"I was ready for something fresh and new," she says. "I thought I’d give it six months, and here we are seven years later. I love it here. I’ve gained such a sense of community and belonging, and yet the ceiling is so high and the opportunities are endless."

Dell'Amico's first job in Sarasota was at Shore on St. Armands Circle.

"Shore helped me hone my tools regarding hospitality. I’ve been able to take that with me, create my own style and curate what that means for me and how I want to express it," she says. "Shore has high standards and we worked really hard to keep them and they’ll stay with me. It’s all about details at the end of the day."

The Tap & Toast is full of those details, from the overall design of the teardrop trailer to its customizable drink packages. From mimosa bars to mocktails, Dell'Amico seems to have thought of everything.

"The trailer has a four-tap system," she explains."There’s an innovative cooler that allows the liquid from the keg to be cooled to 46 degrees. It’s called a jockey box system, which cools the cocktail as it moves through the tap system. So you can really put anything on tap, from kombucha to cold brew to batched cocktails."

As for why Dell'Amico decided to put her business on wheels instead of opening a brick-and-mortar, "I really liked the idea of a mobile business," she says. "Offering something to someone by coming to them felt like the right move. From Covid-19 to where we are now, everything has shifted."

Dell'Amico emphasizes that "bar" doesn't have to mean alcohol, and that there are plenty of mocktail options available if you're hosting a party for kids or grownups who abstain.

"I want to appeal to everyone," she says. "I don’t want to be limited to just being a bar. I want it to be well-rounded. I want everyone to be able to take advantage of what we have."

To learn more about Tap & Toast Mobile Bar, click here.