What Are the Different Types of Bar Gadgets?

There are numerous bar gadgets on the market. Some are only practical for commercial bars, while others are suited for both home and commercial use. Bar gadgets include tools and appliances for preparing drink ingredients and making drinks as well as items that make it easier to manage a bar. In many cases, the use of bar accessories is up to the individual bartender, with some using many gadgets and tools, while others prefer a minimalist approach.

Many commercial bars, and even some home bars, rely on specialty appliances. In the United States, where ice is often added to cold drinks, many bars are equipped with automatic ice makers. Commercial bars typically use high-capacity ice makers that are actually built into the bar, whereas home bar owners may use a counter top model. Not all bars offer frozen or blended drinks, but those that do typically have a heavy duty blender that is capable of crushing ice on hand. Another bar appliance often found in high-end cocktail bars is an electric juicer used to prepare fresh juices for specialty cocktails.

Other high-end appliances and bar gadgets found behind mostly commercial bars include soda guns that can dispense soft drinks, tonic water, and soda water quickly. Inverted liquor bottle dispensers allow bartenders to quickly and precisely measure out liquor pours and special wine refrigerators that hold red and white wines at appropriate temperatures. Some commercial bars eschew this fancy gadgetry, though, and use a beverage tub, full of ice, to store white and pink wines and provide their bartenders with a simple shelf, called a speed rail, at the front of the bar for storing bottles of commonly used spirits.

Standard bar gadgets and tools that can be found behind both commercial and home bars include cocktail shakers for mixing drinks, long-handled cocktail spoons, and corkscrews. Other tools include muddlers, which are thick sticks with rounded ends used to mash up fruits in the preparation of cocktails, bar knives, and strainers for use with cocktail shakers. If fruits are frequently used in the preparation of cocktails, bartenders will typically need sharp knives for cutting fruit and making twists as well as a sectioned container for separating and storing garnishes such as lemons, olives, and maraschino cherries. Depending on the types of drinks prepared at the bar, bar owners may have a special container that contains salt and sugar for the bartender to apply to glass rims.