Restaurant Bar Supplies: Your Resto's Spirit

Imagine the world without alcohol --- beer, tequila, cocktails. Yes, that's pretty unimaginable. Drinking has been the favorite past time of many people even before Jesus turned two jars of water to wine. Restaurant owners claim that a huge bulk of their profits come from alcoholic beverages. This is exactly why the bar in your restaurant is very, very important. If the kitchen is the heart of a restaurant, the bar isits spirit.

It is not enough to have a bar in your restaurant, it has to be well-equipped. You don't really need heavy and expensive equipment for your bar. What you need are a few basic supplies that are mostly available at any kitchenware store. Here are some of the bar supplies that you will need.

Shakers can be categorized into two: the two-piece Boston shaker and the three-piece cocktail shaker. The two-piece Boston shaker consists of a mixing glass and a flat-based metal cone, but some shakers have two metal cones. The three-piece cocktail shaker has a glass or metal cone with a flat bottom. A metal strainer fits onto the cone and is topped off with a cap. It is a very elegant type of shaker but is very hard to clean. Because of this, most owners and managers prefer the two-piece Boston shaker.

If you buy a Boston shaker, it is likely that it doesn't have a built-in strainer. Strainers are used in pouring drinks from the mixing glass. Like shakers, strainers come in two types. The Julep strainer is a perforated metal item that looks like a giant spoon. The other type is the Hawthorne strainer. It is a flat, perforated metal item usually seen hanging from the bar.

Paring knives are used in preparing fruit juices and for garnishes. Although most people would consider using an ordinary knife, a paring knife allows more creativity in preparing drinks.

It doesn't really matter what type of citrus reamer or extractor you use. What matters is that you have an extractor that you can use to squeeze juice from citrus fruits. In cocktail-making, fresh juice is one of the most common ingredients.

Other restaurant bar supplies include barspoons, cutting boards, jiggers, muggers, ice tools, stirrers, glass bottles, sipsticks, straws, bar napkins, cocktail picks and coasters.