The complete juice bar equipment list for start-ups - Juicers, blenders, fridges and more.......
A juice bar is a great business to run and its something I have been doing for the last fours years in different forms.
I've operated as a mobile juice bar pop-up at street food markets and festivals and owned a fixed brick and mortar juice bar. And they both have their advantages.
So if you are thinking of starting a juice shop business you are probably wondering what equipment is needed for a juice bar?
Below is a juice bar equipment list for everything you need to run a juice and smoothie bar.
From commercial juicers, blenders and prep tables to points of sales systems (POS) to take cash and card payments.
All the equipment on the list is suitable for both fixed location juice bars and mobile pop-ups from a food truck or food stall.
Juice Bar Equipment List
Below is some of the best juice bar equipment for start-ups, based on a combination of cost and product quality.
Most of the equipment I recommend I have personally used over the years operating a juice shop.
Juicers
First, on the juice bar equipment list is commercial Juicers and choosing the right type of juicer for your needs is important.
For example, there are cold-pressed/slow juicers and there are quicker centrifugal juicers that juice fruit and vegetables much quicker.
I recommend going for a centrifugal juicer as with a business you are likely to get busy, especially around breakfast, lunch and dinner. You, therefore, want to serve people as quickly as possible.
Recommended products
I've been using the Breville 800JEXL Juice Fountain Elite for my mobile juice bar for the last couple of years and it's a good mid-range commercial juicer that won't break the bank.
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Blenders
Blenders are another important piece of equipment for a juice and smoothie bar and something you need if you intend to make smoothies.
In both cases of juicers and blenders, you will need commercial-grade blenders to keep up with demand and constant use.
However, you don't need to spend an arm and a leg on a top-end blender as there are many good commercial brands out there that offer commercial performance at an affordable price.
Recommended products
Vitamix is a good brand and one I have used over the years to make smoothies.
A particular model, which is reasonably priced and good for commercial use is the Vitamix Explorian Blender.
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Citrus Juicer
If you intend to make juices that contain citrus fruits then you will need a citrus juicer as you can't really put a lemon or lime straight through a juicer without a bitter taste.
You can get either electric or hand-operated citrus juicers.
Recommended products
A brand called sage produces good quality stainless steel citrus juicers.
Refrigerators & Freezers
When running a juice bar you will be holding a lot of stock. Some of your products, such as apples can be left out at room temperature, but a lot will have to be cold stored.
This is where fridges and freezers come in for things like berries, milk and other perishable goods.
Depending on the size of your operation and space you have available, (whether it's from a mobile juice truck or a fixed location) will determine what type/size fridge/freezers you will need.
Recommended products
It's hard to recommend a product here because as mentioned needs will differ according to your juice bar set-up.
However, I can suggest checking out Nisbets, which is one of the leading juice bar equipment suppliers in the UK.
They have a wide range of commercial fridges and freezers available.
Preparation Tables
With a juice shop or any type of food and drink operation, comes a lot of preparation.
You will, therefore, need adequate work surfaces to prep your fruit and vegetables.
I recommend using stainless steel tables as there are more hygienic, easy to clean and look more professional.
Again depending on the size of your operation will determine what size catering tables you need.
Recommended products
With any juice bar, I recommend getting folding steel catering tables that are movable. That way you can adapt them to most layouts and move them if you do any outdoor events.
One of the catering tables I use is the Royal Catering folding work table.
I've also written a more in-depth article on the best folding tables for food prep that you might find useful.
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Sinks
With any type of food or drink operation, you will need sinks to wash fruit and veg and for hand washing and cleaning juicers, blenders and utensils.
For health and safety and food hygiene, you will need two separate sinks with running hot water.
One for solely hand washing and another for washing produce and cleaning juice bar equipment.
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Cash register and POS
When opening a juice bar you're hopefully going to be very successful and get a lot of customers.
You will, therefore, need a cash register and a Point of Sale system (POS) for card payments.
Card payments have overtaken cash now in many countries so a POS system is very important as this is how you will probably receive most of your payments.
Recommended products
I use a company called Izettle to take card payments that offer a range of point of sale systems to meet your business needs, such as card readers which connect to your smartphone or tablet.
Ice machine
Ice machines are useful and can save you money in the long run but I wouldn't say they are a necessity.
You can quite easily buy ice from your local suppliers and store it in your freezers.
However, sometimes places do run out of ice which can make it a little inconvenient, especially when the weather is hot.
Recommended products
I can't say I have ever actually owned an ice machine but from recommendations from others in the catering industry and my own online research, the Polar G-Series Countertop Ice Machine is a good brand and model to go for.
Disposable cups, lids & straws
Your beginning to get the main pieces of equipment for your juice bar together and now you have to think about what you are going to serve your juices and smoothie in - Namely disposable cups and straws.
We are now living in an increasingly eco-conscious world and consumers expect food businesses to be eco-friendly.
So make sure you go for bio-degradable and compostable cups, lids and straws.
Luckily there are loads of eco-friendly disposable supplier these days so it shouldn't be hard to source.
Recommended products
I've been using a company called Vegware over the last 4 years that supply a range of compostable and biodegradable disposable cups, lids, straws and food packaging.
Large display fruit baskets
Now its time to attract people with some good eye-catching presentation and nothing works better than large baskets full of fruit and vegetable.
It not only tells people you are a juice bar but also that your juices and smoothies are made fresh.
Prep utensils
It's hard to give a complete and exhaustive list when it comes to preparation utensils as you will probably find out the longer you operate the more bits of juice bar equipment you need.
However, the basics in terms of prep utensils are a range of different sized sharp knife for food prep, colour-coded chopping boards, spoons and peelers.
Tables & Chairs
Finally, you are going to need somewhere for your customers to sit and socialize.
And if you have outdoor seating areas you will need tables and chairs for both indoors or outdoors.
On the other hand, if you are a grab and go operation you won't need this type of equipment for your juice bar.
Key Takeaway
All of the items on the juice bar equipment list are suitable for both juice bars in a fixed location and for pop-ups from a food truck or food stall and were chosen with affordability and quality in mind.
In my experience, especially with juicers and blenders, you don't need to buy top end and expensive commercial equipment to get the desired results.
There are plenty of mid-range models that stand up to the job of keeping up with demand and constant use.
And as a new juice bar start-up, budgets are probably tight which mean price is a significant consideration.
So on that note, I wish you good luck with your new business venture!
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