A party is memorable if the bar is well stocked and the bartender does a good job. What accessories make a bar complete? There are so many, ranging from the merely functional to super premium ones that elicit envious glances.
A good home bar needs just a nice unit which can be bought readymade off the shelf, or you could make one which suits your decor at home and requirements. Restauranter AD Singh?s wife, Sabina, bought a cart, normally used by roadside vendors, but this one is brightly painted and now sits in the Singh household as a bar unit. The bottles are placed on the cart and it is wheeled around so that guests can choose their drinks. ?It has become a good talking point,? he says. With coasters depicting pictures of Hindi cinema, Singh?s parties are long remembered.
There are all kinds of bar accessories available in the market which can enhance a bar. Kenji Jesse, brand ambassador and international mixologist, Smirnoff Black, says the best accessories are ones that are well designed and functional such as hand-held lime squeezers, ice scoops with holes in them, Julep strainers and stainless steel olive sticks. ?Great glassware, a sharp knife, fresh fruit, lots and lots of ice, Boston shakers, Hawthorn strainers, muddler, lemon squeezer, bottle opener and a happy-go-lucky attitude. More than the accessories, the most important person needed in a bar is a friendly bartender,? stresses Jesse.
The latest in accessories, says Jesse, is what he found in Japan. Here, large ice blocks are double frozen and cut into chunks. Then, when it is used with an ice pick, the bartender will carve an ice-ball from it. These ice picks allow you to create ice that will chill the drink perfectly with little dilution, he says. What is in vogue though is Whip-its or cream chargers for those ?in the know? used to pass nitrous oxide though liquids to produce foams!
A bar may be funky and chic, but functionality is its essence. Clement Fernandes, consultant on restaurant and bars, and GM, Seijo and the Soul Dish, a trendy restobar in Mumbai, says a bar without a drain is not a bar. ?For me, hygiene comes first. You may have the best of drinks and glasses, but what is the point if you have no running water in the bar. I don?t want to have staff hopping in and out of the kitchen to the bar area to wash glasses. What you really need is a cocktail shaker, bar caddy ? a place to put in all the accessories, an ice scoop and you are done. Lots of people use a spoon to pick up ice. Now nothing can get tackier than that! Practicality and functionality defines a bar for me,? he says.
In India, Ravissant has sterling silver bar accessories. Some of these are combined with highly polished surfaces and also semi precious stones. ?We have everything for an exciting bar,? says Gia Sharan, COO.
There is an interestingly-designed bar collection by New York-based designer Karim Rashid that include stylish nut bowls and dessert cups. Says Vinod Jain, director, Magpie International Ltd, ?table dressing has now become a growing trend in India and we are trying to give our customer more options within a good price range to make their tables and bar more trendy.?
A bar needs several products. Like a cocktail shaker, Hawthorn strainer ? a slotted stainless steel strainer, usually has two or four prongs used to pour from a mixing glass or Boston shaker, Angels Wing (cocktail), Waiters friend ? corkscrew similar to a pen knife, hand-held blender, Speed rail, Bar optics, Speed pourers ? measure fitted into a spirit bottle to accurately pour a specific amount, Bar caddy ? for storing paper napkins, straws, etc, garnish tray/rack, ice bin and scoop, store & pours (1000ml & 500 ml) ? measures for liquor control, stirrer spoons, bar mats, floor mats, glass washer, Berg inventory system, cutlery and crockery, ashtrays, bar napkins, coasters, stirrers, chillers, dry stores, ice crusher and mats.
No matter what the bar accessories, the basic bar set-up remains the same. Says Anant Iyer, head, Institutional and Trade Marketing, United Spirits Ltd, the thumb rule is everything should be within reach of the bartender, so that at peak times he is able to produce the maximum numbers of drinks without disappearing or looking disorganised. ?There are various types of bar and designs vary according to the theme and the purpose of the bar. There are island bars which are designed to be compact and self- sustaining and are designed to house maximum number of items in minimum space. Also, there are dispense bars which are not flashy but can churn out drinks from the back area and are often not highlighted.?
Glassware plays an important part, says Iyer. ?For premium glassware, Schott Swizell, Reidel; which are premium quality glassware with rates upto Rs 2,000 per glass.? Shatbi Basu, director, Stir Academy of Bartending, says a bar needs just four things to be functional. A cocktail shaker, strainer, mixing spoon and a peg measure is all that is needed. ?If you?d like, you can have a hand blender for mixing frozen drinks. If one is into large parties at home, then it is wise to invest in heavy-duty equipment such as glass washers, ice crushing and ice cube making machines.?
Now for the most expensive item? Says Iyer, ?I personally wouldn?t mind if someone bought me an Alessi cocktail kit for Christmas, but I would say the most expensive are Vintage Antique cocktail shakers.?