5. Review, Verify, and Organize Equipment

Review, Verify, and Organize Equipment and Inventory

After reviewing relevant documentation and conducting a bar walkthrough, the bar captain should review, verify, organize all equipment and inventory. Using the rental list and beverage inventory sheet, the bar captain is expected to:

Review the rental list thoroughly, attending to details regarding rented equipment, house equipment, and specific instructions before intake begins.

Verify the delivery of all required items during check-in. This includes ensuring every piece of equipment is present, functional, and in good condition, documenting and reporting any discrepancies immediately, as well as verifying beverage inventory levels to confirm accurate starting quantities.

Organize the verified equipment and inventory by type and physical placement to streamline the overall setup process and establish an efficient bar flow.

Below is a description of essential equipment and inventory practices with which the bar captain should become familiar.

Essential Equipment

Some equipment is used to structure the bar itself. In the event of a built-in bar, there is the

• Bar: The general term for the structure that makes possible the service of beverages

• Bar Top: The long, often rectangular portion of the bar accessible to the guest for receiving and/or enjoying beverages

• Grated Rail or Spill Grate: The long, often rectangular portion of the bar on the bartop accessible to the bartender for building beverages. Grates allow extra water and/or liquid to fall through to the dip tray trough (may be substituted by rubber bar mats)

• Dip Tray Trough or Dip Tray: The long, rectangular portion of the bar on the bar top that collects the water and/or liquid that falls through the grated rate or spill grate

• Workspace: The general term for the portion of the bar accessible to the bartender and/or barback for building and garnishing beverages

  • Point of Service: Any location in which a specific service is being provided. A bar with two bartenders has two points of service, since both are running service. In the event two bartenders are working and only one is interacting with guests while the other is building tickets without interacting with guests, the former is often deemed “point” bartender while the latter is “service” bartender.

• Speed Rail: The recessed rail that holds bottles

• Ice Bin: The bin that holds ice

• “Low Boy” or Under-the-counter Refrigerator: The short, refrigerator that stores beverages and ingredients

In the event of a temporary bar, there is the

• Table: The long table that substitutes for a bar top

• Linen: The bar top cover

• Risers: The extensions placed on or built into the legs of a table to provide height up to 42”

Other equipment is used to build and serve beverages.

• Mixing Glass or Stirring Glass: Holds the ingredients of stirred cocktails

• Shaking Tins: Holds the ingredients of shaken cocktails

  • Boston Shakers: Two tins or a tin and a glass that are fit together with a straight edge on one side

  • French (Parisian) Shaker: Two nesting tins that fit together with no gap

  • Cobbler Shaker: Two nesting tins with a built-in strainer and a cap that fit together with no gap

• Jigger: Used to measure liquid ingredients (often 1 oz and 2 oz OR 1/2oz and 3/4 oz)

• Barspoon: Used to stir stirred cocktails or measure ingredients

• Muddler: Used to mash solid ingredients (e.g., limes, mint) in a tin before shaking

• Strainer: Used to strain stirred or shaken cocktails

  • Julep Strainer: Strains stirred cocktails

  • Hawthorn Strainer: Strains stirred or shaken cocktails

  • Fine Mesh Strainer: Strains shaken cocktails (often used in conjunction with a hawthorn strainer)

• Speed Pours: Used as a replacement for a bottle cap to ensure liquid can be poured quickly and consistently

• Corkscrew (Wine Key) or Bottle Opener: Used to open corked wine bottles or capped bottles

Other equipment is used to prepare and present garnishes and ice for beverages.

• Y-Peeler or Citrus Peeler: Used to peel the skin from citrus

• Microplane or Zester: Used to grate the skin from citrus

• Paring Knife and Cutting Board: Used to cut citrus wedges, wheels, and other garnishes

• Hand Juicer: Used to juice individual citrus items

• Ice Scoop: Used to scoop ice from the ice bin into stirring glasses, shaking tins, and glassware

• Ice Pick: Used to break ice into manageable pieces

Still other equipment includes common glassware that is used when serving a beverage:

• Goblet Glass: Short-stemmed glass commonly used for water

• Wine Glass: Stemmed glass commonly used for white, red, and sparkling wines and/or spritzers

  • Red Wine Glass: Typically has a larger bowl and wider rim

  • White Wine Glass: Typically has a smaller bowl and narrower rim

  • Flute or Tulip Glass: Typically used for sparkling wines

• Beer Glass: Glass commonly used for beer

  • Pint Glass: Tapered or straight-lined glass with straight walls used for standard beer pours

• Rocks Glass: Short rounded or square glass commonly used for stirred cocktails (e.g., old fashioned), neat pours, on-the-rocks pours, and sometimes shaken cocktails (e.g., margaritas)

• Collins or Highball Glass: Tapered or straight-lined glass commonly used for built or shaken cocktails elongated with carbonation

• Coupe Glass: Stemmed glass with a wider rim commonly used for built cocktails, shaken cocktails, and occassionally sparkling wine

• Nick and Nora Glass: Stemmed glass with a narrower rim commonly used for stirred cocktails

• Martini Glass: Stemmed, often V-shaped glass with a wider rim commonly used for martinis

Of course, there is also all necessary sanitation equipment, including:

• Rags or Cloths: Keeps surfaces and hands free from water or liquid waste

• Garbage Cans: Collect waste inside of garbage bags (often 30-gallon or “Slim Jims”)

• Garbage Bags: Hold waste

• Lexans and Bussing Pans (with strainers): Collect liquid waste and separate liquid waste from dry waste

• Spillage or Water Pan: Collect soiled items in lieu of crates and bins

• Disposable Broken Glass Box: Collect broken glass for safe disposal

• Skewer Bottle: Collect used skewers from beverages for sanitation or safe disposal

• Trays: Provide the service professional team the ability to safely transport items from the bar and to and from the sanitation station

• Drying Racks: Collects equipment for quick drying

Inventory Practices

The bar captain should have a thorough knowledge of the function and usage of a rental list and beverage inventory sheet. However, to ensure no issues with equipment and inventory, particularly beverage offerings, ensure:

• The rental list and beverage inventory list matches the actual equipment and inventory and properly accounts for the quantity and quality of items

  • Report any discrepancies promptly

• There is a clear bottle counting process in place

  • This may involve physically counting starting bottles and ending bottles to determine used inventory (subtracting the ending number from the starting number)

  • This may involve physically counting bottle caps, corks, and/or cans to determine used inventory