How To Stock And Style An Outdoor Bar Cart For Summer
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An outdoor bar cart is an easy, elegant, and efficient element to add to your summer entertaining. Prepare drinks that impress without missing out on time with your guests. Whether it’s a cookout, an evening soiree, or simply appetizers on the patio before dinner inside, entertaining al fresco is a highlight of summertime. With these tips, you can master the art of the perfectly stocked bar cart.
Entertaining al fresco is a highlight of summertime. From picnics to parties, there’s no shortage of ways to enjoy the summer weather with friends and family.
The food is easy to figure out: You could grill burgers or set up a taco bar. Drinks, on the other hand, are a little more ambiguous. You’ll need a few options for guests — both alcoholic and non-alcoholic — and a way to keep the drinks cool in the heat. And you certainly don’t want to run back and forth to the fridge inside while your guests enjoy themselves on the patio.
Outdoor Bar Carts
An outdoor bar cart makes serving drinks a lot easier when dining outdoors. You can have several cold drink options ready to go and at arm’s length. It’s a great outdoor party or family reunion idea that will save you plenty of time when serving drinks.
My bar cart is a fixture in our outdoor entertaining area – friends and family would just come up to it and pour themselves a drink or make one just the way they like it. So convenient!
While a simple cooler filled with ice is great for sodas and beer, with a bar cart, you can have wine, champagne, cocktails and pitchers of flavored water ready to go. Plus, bar carts add a touch of elegance to your deck, balcony, or patio.
“I love my guests to arrive to a signature cocktail al fresco before the dinner party comes inside and starts. I keep my bar carts simple with just the ingredients for one cocktail, garnish and maybe a bottle of red or white wine. Keeping it simple and stocking the bar cart means I can spend more time with my company.”
— Kita Roberts, Pass the Sushi
If you don’t have a bar cart, you can set up a table to use as a drinks station. You could also place an indoor bar cart outside for the party.
How To Stage An Outdoor Bar Cart
Bar carts typically have two or three tiers, which makes it easy to stock extra bottles and glasses below while having ready-to-go drinks on the top shelf.
What To Put On the Top Shelf
The top shelf is the easiest to reach, so put things on this tier that are easy for you to serve and for guests to grab, such as:
- Pitchers for water and batch drinks
- Open wine bottles
- Ice bucket
- A few cups or glasses
- A wine opener and bottle opener
- Bowls of garnishes (like lime wedges or fresh mint)
- Straws
- Drink napkins
- Decorations, flowers or a plant
- A kitchen towel (for wiping up spills)
What Goes On The Bottom Shelves
The bottom shelves should contain extras or things you might not need frequently but might want to grab once or twice during the party, such as:
- Extra glasses
- A few bottles of different types of alcohol, if desired
- Extra bottles of red wine (white wine should stay in the fridge)
- Bowls and plates
Drinks For Bar Carts
When deciding on your drink menu, consider the size of your party. For a small get-together, you can offer a few limited options. Since it’s smaller, you’ll have time to make guests their favorite drink while you chat.
A signature cocktail works best for a larger gathering. You could make homemade sangria or a big batch of margaritas. You can quickly pour each guest a glass and add a garnish without spending a lot of time on each drink.
Don’t miss this guide to stocking a bar on a budget to help you plan your shopping list. The budget guide will also be handy for stocking a bar for winter cocktails during cooler months.
What To Serve
A variety of options is ideal for any party, so guests can feel free to choose what sounds good to them.
Beer: Keep bottles and cans in a large ice bucket, cooler or indoor fridge as long as you make it clear to guests where they can find them. The same goes for hard seltzer, cider, soda and sparkling water.
Wine: Offer two types of wine — typically a red and a white, though rosé is popular for summer parties. Use a wine bottle chiller on the bar cart to keep white wine, rosé, and champagne cold. Don’t forget to use the right wine glass for your chosen wine!
Mixed drinks: If you offer liquor drinks, add a few common spirits, like vodka, gin and bourbon, to the top shelf of your bar cart for easy access. A bottle of bitters or a jar of simple syrup might be helpful too. Put any cocktail mixers on the bottom shelf.
Signature cocktail: Prepare a pitcher for punch, sangria or a batched cocktail to quickly and easily prepare drinks. You don’t have to serve mixed drinks if you make a signature cocktail. My refreshing electric lemonade is always a hit with my guests. It’s easy to make, requires only 4 ingredients, and it’s perfect for beating the summer heat!
Non-alcoholic drinks: Always serve a non-alcoholic drink option — not just water — to anyone who isn’t drinking. Batched mocktails and iced tea are an impressive step up from soda and seltzer, but those work too.
Water: Guests need to stay hydrated, especially in the summer. Ice water or flavored water should be easy for them to locate.
Finger Food That Pair Well With An Outdoor Bar Cart
Now that we have covered the drinks for your outdoor bar cart, let’s explore some finger food ideas to go with them. Of course, the food you serve will mainly depend on the occasion and the vibe of the party.
For example, if you’re hosting a backyard BBQ, mini sliders or some BBQ chicken wings are ideal. However, if you’re celebrating something more special like an 18th birthday and have a formal dining table set up, you would want to serve finger food like mini quiches or shrimp cocktails. Here are a few finger food options to serve alongside your outdoor bar cart:
Charcuterie Board
A charcuterie board is a fun and unique way to serve your guests a variety of snacks and finger food. One awesome thing about it is that you can customize the spread according to the occasion – you can create a board for Christmas, Easter, 4th of July, or for a wedding. But since you’re entertaining for summer, try a beach-themed charcuterie board filled with meats, cheeses, summer berries and other in-season fruits, nuts, and other goodies!
Veggie Sticks and Dip
Vegetable sticks or slices are light yet filling, just perfect for summertime. They’re also great for feeding a large crowd. I like to serve carrot and celery sticks, cucumber slices, bell pepper strips, and cherry tomatoes with my 3-ingredient onion dip, but you can choose other dips like hummus, guacamole, Greek yogurt, or Ranch.
Summer Skewers
Skewers are another convenient and portable finger food option to serve a big crowd at a summer party. Not only are they visually appealing, but they’re also highly customizable, offering endless possibilities for flavor combinations and ingredient variations. They’re easy to clean up, too!
Make skewers that pair well with your chosen drinks and suit your celebration. A few skewer options include grilled chicken and vegetables, shrimp and pineapple, cherry tomatoes and mozzarella balls, spicy sausage and bell peppers, and fruit skewers.
Stuffed Options
Stuffed finger foods are perfect for a summer party, especially when served alongside cocktails from your outdoor bar cart. They allow guests to enjoy a variety of flavors in bite-sized options. They’re light and refreshing, too! Here are a few ideas you can try:
- Stuffed Cherry Tomatoes: Cherry tomatoes hollowed out and filled with a mixture of herbed cream cheese, then garnished with fresh herbs like basil or chives.
- Stuffed Jalapeño Poppers: Fill half jalapeño peppers with a mixture of cream cheese, shredded cheddar cheese, and diced bacon. Bake until bubbly and golden.
- Stuffed Cucumber Boats: Remove the seeds out of cucumber slices to create canoe shapes, then fill with a mixture of avocado, lump crabmeat, and lime juice.
- Stuffed Mushroom Caps: Stuff large mushroom caps with feta cheese, garlic, spinach, and breadcrumbs, then bake until golden.
- Stuffed Dates: Fill pitted dates with creamy blue cheese or goat cheese, then wrap them in bacon or thinly sliced prosciutto. Secure with a toothpick and bake until the cheese is melted and the meat is crispy.
Pizza
Pizza is the ultimate comfort food for both adults and kids. It’s a great finger food option for a summer party, especially if you’re serving beer from your bar cart. Friends and family love my homemade pizzas at our gatherings, my favorite of which to serve at parties is my English Muffin Pizzas because they’re in individual servings.
Outdoor Bar Cart Tips
Know your audience. For example, if your friends aren’t beer drinkers, you can skip it. But if you don’t know your guests well, putting a few choices on the menu is wise.
Save time and pre-batch a cocktail you can serve in a pitcher from the bar cart, especially for larger parties. Your time should be spent mingling with guests, not mixing up drinks.
But if you plan to shake up a few cocktails on the spot, a bar tool set with a shaker, jigger and strainer should go on the top shelf for easy access. Put it below if you think you might need it, or leave it off entirely if you don’t plan to serve liquor drinks.
How To Keep An Outdoor Bar Cart Clean
Bar carts can get dirty if left outside. Remove everything from the shelves and store it out of the elements when not in use to keep it looking nice for longer.
If you must store it outside, invest in a protective cover. No matter what, always wipe it down with a cloth and a cleaner before re-stocking.
The fun doesn’t stop when summer ends: Your outdoor bar cart can easily transition to other seasons. In the fall and winter, you can serve apple cider or hot chocolate from a slow cooker perched on the top shelf.
Portions of this article originally appeared on Food Drink Life.
