Basic Bar Equipment and Supplies Part 1

If you are thinking about opening a bar or incorporating one into your restaurant, there are certain pieces of bar equipment and bar supplies that you will need. Because of beer and liquor markup, a bar can be a very profitable venture if done right. Just like in most food service operations, the key to a successful bar is the number of covers done per shift. Without a well designed bar with adequate bar supplies and bar equipment, bartenders will have a harder time maximizing covers. Easy access to beer, liquor, ice, and glassware are essential elements of a well designed and equipped bar. This article covers the first two items.



There are numerous ways of providing access to liquor bottles and the choices vary in functionality and form. A functional display is one such option and it is a compromise of form and function. This consists of having bottles displayed behind the bar on shelves. This allows customers to see the liquor choices before ordering. Each bottle must have a pourer tap on it because they will be used right off the shelves. This is not always the best option in high traffic bars because multiple bartenders may be trying to get to various bottles, without knocking any over, all at the same time. There are two pieces of bar equipment that are more suited to the high traffic environment. The first is the speed rail, which comes in single or double tier models. Speed rails attach to the back bar counter and place one or two rows respectively of bottles at waist level, encouraging speedy access. Another option exists for bars with large selections of liquor and it is the liquor display. Liquor displays are basically free-standing multi-tier speed rails that can place as many as 36 bottles at waist level. Liquor displays are generally installed underneath the bar counter in line with refrigeration and underbar sinks.



Refrigeration is obviously required for storing cold beer and mixers and there are multiple options there as well. The primary choice that must be considered is between solid and glass front back bar cooler units. If you have a really nice selection of import and domestic beers that you would like to show off, a glass door unit is a no-brainer. This gives customers a chance to see their options without having to look at a long list or you having to put a sample bottle of each beer out somewhere. This is of course meaningless if your cooler isn't on the side of the back bar that is visible to customers. The other thing to note is that glass door coolers are less efficient than solid door because of the decreased insulating ability of glass. If you don't care about customers seeing the beers, a solid door unit is the way to go. You also will not need to worry about cleaning and organizing a solid door unit as frequently as you do a glass door. The other large piece of bar equipment that should be considered for any high traffic operation is a horizontal bottle cooler. These units have sliding door tops that make it easy to reach into from above.



Jesse Starr is a contributing writer for FoodServiceWarehouse.com. He writes about restaurant equipment, restaurant supplies, and how to choose the best bar supplies and bar equipment for your bar or restaurant.