How to Choose the Right Bar Stools?

A bar is one of the most important elements of any restaurant. It is often used by people who come to a restaurant by themselves, while it’s also the central meeting place for those who only come to have a couple of drinks after work. To cut a long story short, investing in bar stools for your restaurant is definitely a wise choice.

Still, when buying any kind of restaurant furniture, there are some things you should pay attention to. Especially when it comes to bar stools, it goes without saying that they have to be the right height and material and blend with your restaurant style.

Height

You can’t start your quest for the perfect bar stools if you don’t know the height of your bar. This is essential as you want to buy chairs that will be tall enough for people to feel comfortable sitting on them. Once you write down the bar measurements, you can move on to picking the size of your bar stools.

The most common types of bar stools in terms of height include classic bar stools and counter stools. The former is suitable for standard bars around 42 inches high, as the height of these stools is approximately 30 inches.

The latter type is a better fit for slightly smaller counters. Usually, counter stool height ranges between 24 and 26 inches, and it goes very well with 36-inch bar counters.

Seat Shape and Size

It’s not only the size that has to be right for your restaurant bar stools. The size and shape of the seat are also important factors and have to be chosen carefully.

First off, you need to pick the seat size to allow your bar stools to be placed at the right distance from each other. There has to be a bit of space between them, but not so much that two people sitting together can’t talk using a normal tone of voice. In other words, the seats shouldn’t be too big, but they shouldn’t be too small either.

Speaking of the seat shape, you can choose the one you like the most. It can be round or square, as long as one can feel good sitting on it for an extended period.

Material

Each barstool consists of two major sections — the frame and the seat. The frames of restaurant furniture pieces are usually made of wood, metal, wicker, rattan, and aluminum.

Each of these materials is a good choice as you need your stool frame to be strong and support people of different weights. Also, you need to match the material of the frame with the style of your restaurant, so there’s one more thing to think about when shopping for bar stools.

The material of the seat is essential as well, and to take the best pick of this tiny detail, think about the one that won’t bother your visitors in any way. Plastic can be a good choice, but it can often be a bit hard to sit on. For instance, it is a good idea to go for a stuffed seat covered by leather or any other smooth material that won’t irritate someone sitting on it in a short skirt.

Style

The style of your restaurant bar stools is, perhaps, the most important detail to take care of. Nowadays, there are many different types of bar stools to choose from, making shopping a daunting task. In case you don’t know where to start, here’s a list of the most common styles of bar stools:

• Backless — Backless bar stools are found in the majority of restaurants worldwide. They can be easily placed under the counter and don’t take that much space, so you can add more of them in a row.
• Swivel — Swivels are another common type of chair seen in restaurants. In most cases, they are also backless, but they allow you to turn around more easily and feel more comfortable while having those drinks at the bar.
• With armrests — If you want stools with some extra comfort, the ones with armrests can be a great idea. Armrests will make people feel like they’re sitting at a classic table and enable them to lean back into a more comfortable position.

Finally, when style is concerned, you also need to determine whether you want traditional, modern, vintage, contemporary, or any other bar stool design. Yet, this won’t be such a hard decision as you’ll already know what type of restaurant you want to own. Naturally, if the restaurant is modern, you certainly won’t go for traditional or retro bar stools and vice versa.

All in all, if you’ve decided on your restaurant style and corresponding bar stools, just follow this simple guide, and you’ll find the right product for your needs.