Ice bin
The ice bin is where you keep your ice to serve the
awesome drinks that you make.
It’s usually a stainless steel container that varies in size.
It might be 24 – 36 inches side to side. 18 – 24 inches front to back
and 12 – 18 inches deep.
The sizes aren’t important. They vary from bar to bar.
I’ve worked in places that had ice bins that were smaller
than that.
It really depends on how much room you have behind the bar.
Bigger is better. A bigger ice bin means that you don’t have to
refill it as often.
Not refilling as often means less time spent away from the bar
or waiting for the barback to fight through the crowd to bring
the ice.
That’s right, the ice machine is rarely behind the bar. It’s usually
in the kitchen or some other place in the building.
Keep it clean.
Ice bins get nasty, if they aren’t cleaned.
It needs to be emptied and washed out every night.
I know it’s a pain, but that’s part of the job.
Maybe you do it, or the barback, but it needs to done.
The mold and slime that grows in the ice bin is gross.
And a health hazard.
It also causes you to lose money.
Drinks with things floating in them are not good for
business.
Dirty ice means less money for the business and less
money for you.
You also will have an ice scoop at the ice bin.
This is used to scoop ice and put it in the glass.
Did you read the rules about the Ice Machine and ice scoop?
The same rules apply to the ice scoop at the bar, but I have to be honest.
I leave the scoop in the ice bin all the time, NOT IN THE ICE MACHINE.
The ice bin behind the bar is a little different because you’re constantly using it.
If you leave the scoop in the bar ice bin then don’t just drop it in there.
Spike it. So that the handle is sticking out.
That way you aren’t touching the ice when you grab it.
Nobody wants your filthy hand grime touching the ice that goes in their drink.
The correct way is to place the scoop next to the ice bin and not in the ice.