We’re about to move shortly. Once we have our new house, I want to get a small home bar. We host large parties and dinner parties frequently (it’s been on hiatus with COVID but we’re keenly waiting to resume hosting plenty of gigs soon).
Installing a small home bar is pretty easy these days because there are many pre-built home mini bars you can choose from. That’s what this gallery is all about – setting out many of the finest home bar cabinets and sets you can buy.
Where should you place your home bar?
Most people place them in a living room, alcove off the kitchen, a finished basement and/or family room. The thing is, especially with our list of compact home bars you can buy as-is (the first list below) is they can fit pretty much anywhere.
Related: The Home Bar Phenomenon | Home Bar Design Ideas | Buy Large Home Bars Online | Types of Chairs | Types of Bar Carts | White Leather Bar Stools | Types of Bar Stools
Our Favorite Small Home Bars (Buy Ready-To-Pour)
Below is our shortlist of minibars you can buy. Be sure to scroll down to the end where we feature some pretty high-end home bars you can buy. Some are amazing.
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Types of Home Bars
As with most furniture, there are quite a few styles to choose from (we feature several styles). Some are a simple portable home bar cabinet while others are more elaborate in an L-shape that are more permanent.
Some are designed to be placed against the wall, while others are designed to be placed away from the wall creating more of real bar with stools. The type that’s placed against a wall is a bar cabinet while the type that’s placed away from the bar is a bar set.
Some are small and simple in design. Others are elaborate, ornate, large and expensive. There are many to choose from (check out our gallery below).
Features to Consider
Wine Rack: Not all units include a wine rack. Therefore, if you wish to store wine, restrict your search to models that include a wine rack.
Closed Storage (that locks): If you would like to lock up your alcohol, look for locking home bar cabinets (many offer locking features).
Space for a Refrigerator: This isn’t very common, but some do offer space behind-the-bar for a small refrigerator. We feature one below.
Built-in Ice-Bucket: Again, not a terribly common feature, but a nice bonus. Read the specifications carefully. Most built-in ice buckets are located on the prep counter behind-the-bar.
Foot Railing: This is a great feature to have because it makes sitting on stools much more comfortable. Plus it adds authenticity to your bar.
One or Two Tiers: Some home bar sets have one counter while others have a lower bar accessible from behind the bar as well as a front, elevated counter.
Wine Glass Storage: Some include stem glass storage while others do not.
NOTE: While some units displayed in our gallery below show bar stools, most do not come with bar stools – you’ll need to buy the bar stools separately.
Additional accessories to consider buying
Most home bar sets and cabinets don’t come with stools or a bar table. Therefore, if you’re looking to create a true “bar environment” you’ll want to also look for stools and perhaps even a bar table (elevated to accommodate stools).
What about getting a custom residential bar built?
This is another option. It’s more expensive, but you’ll get a much larger bar than the types you’ll buy at an online store or local store.
If you’re looking for something substantial with plumbing and custom electrical work, your best bet is to seek out custom bar/cabinet shops who can design, build and install your home bar for you.
25 Beautiful Smaller Custom Home Bar Ideas (Gallery)
Below is our original list. FYI, some may no longer be available. Our updated scrolling gallery above is totally up-to-date.
1. Cherry Wood Home Bar with Wine Rack
See more at Wayfair. This cherry wood home bar is nicely detailed. Check out the lower foot bar, which is a nice touch. This bar set includes a wine rack (but doesn’t include the stool shown in the image above).
This particular model is very popular with more than 50 customer reviews (33 of which give 5 out of 5 stars, which is impressive).
2. L-Shaped Cherry Home Bar
This cherry L-shaped home bar is fairly large for a bar cabinet you can buy online. It’s not exactly all that portable within your home, but at the same time, it offers that “bar experience” which is great. It’s perfect for finished basements, billiards rooms, and entertainment rooms.
Customers who purchased this unit liked it with an average of 4 stars out of 5.
3. Contemporary Luxury Compact Wine Bar (with Outstanding Customer Reviews)
This is one of the most popular and highly rated small wine bars in our gallery. Out of 76 reviews, 45 buyers rated it 5 out 5 stars; 21 gave it 4 out of 5 stars). It’s easy to see why.
The front is elegant while the rear storage is very smartly designed to store a great deal of wine, liquor, dishes, and accessories. It’s compact in design… kind of like the luxury RV of wine bars.
4. Weathered Oak Bar Cabinet
See more at Wayfair. As you can see, the amount of storage in this rustic home bar cabinet unit is substantial. However, notice that it doesn’t include a wine rack. In the center where the larger bottles replaced, that’s a Lazy Susan, which is a great storage feature.
This model is built with weathered oak.
5. Laminated Granite Top Hardwood Home Bar
This substantial home bar unit built with hardwood is a luxury unit with ornate woodwork, laminate granite top, brass finished rail, and for safety, offers locking doors.
6. Mid-Century Modern Vinyl Bar
This is not your typical home bar design. It’s a mid-century modern style with vinyl upholstery and chrome feet. As you can see, it’s fairly small so it fits in many rooms. If your living room is decorated in a mid-century modern design, this bar could fit in nicely.
7. Oak Bar with Laminate Surface
This oak felt-lined drawer home bar includes plenty of bottle storage as well as a stainless steel dry sink.
8. Small Wine Bar Cabinet
Here’s a home bar for wine lovers with its 18 bottle wine rack. The striking black granite top goes well with the Umber wood finish. While the bulk of storage is dedicated to wine bottles, there is storage for standing bottles up as well as several wine glasses.
9. Barrel Bar
Here’s a fun “barrel bar” unit that’s perfect for a wine cellar tasting room, rustic family room or finished basement. It can be a stand-alone bar cabinet or complement a larger bar unit.
Made from an oak wine barrel, it offers a surface large enough to serve as a small wine tasting table. The interior offers one shelf which provides storage for small plates, bottles and bar accessories.
10. Stylish Dark Brown Hardwood Home Bar
This dark brown home bar cabinet is larger than most assembly style units. Built with hardwood, it’s a sturdy unit that includes a foot-rest bar on the bottom making it a terrific unit for placing bar stools along the front.
The design includes wine storage, wine glass storage and plenty of space for liquor bottles and accessories. Behind the bar is a lower counter for drink creation and storing items. The upper bar is elevated to accommodate bar stools.
11. Oak Veneer Bar with Glacier Finish
See more at Wayfair and Hayneedle. A solid unit with plenty of bottle storage, ice bucket built into the behind-the-bar countertop and easy-glide drawers. The glacier finish gives it a contemporary rustic look that would look great in rooms with white, grey or brown color schemes.
12. Small Elegant Bar Cabinet with Antique Brass Hardware
If you’re looking for a more elegant home bar that’s not too big, this unit is for you with. With a laminated marble top, smooth curves, engraved wood, and antique brass fixtures, this unit can enhance the décor of any room.
This unit includes a wine rack in the center flanked by closed cupboards and drawers. The top row is a series of 3 small drawers, ideal for silverware and small bar accessories.
13. Simple and Small Oak Veneer Home Bar
This is a very simple home bar that offers a decent amount of storage including a 9 bottle wine rack. Behind the bar are 4 levels of open shelving for easy access; however, because it’s open, it’s not a locking unit. The front of the unit offers an elevated bar counter in front of which you can easily accommodate two or three bar stools.
14. Walnut Veneer L-Shaped Wood Paneled Home Bar
I really like this model because I like the L-shaped home bars… yet this model isn’t too large which makes it easy to fit in most rooms. The L-shape creates extensive storage with some open shelving and some closed storage. There are a built-in ice bucket and space for placing a small refrigerator (not a common feature).
15. Cherry Wood Straight Bar with Foot Railing
This plainly designed cherry wood home bar would fit well in contemporary home design. There’s a behind-the-bar preparation counter as well as an elevated counter bar. Moreover, the top wraps around slightly.
As for storage, there’s a wine rack and plenty of closed storage.
16. Oak L-Shaped Home Bar with Foot Railing
Here’s a large L-shaped oak home bar with a good mix of open and closed storage. There’s a wrap-around upper counter as well as a behind-the-bar prep counter which is very handy. As you can see, the L-shape offers a good deal of storage and creates a real bar environment… great for being able to face someone while chatting.
17. Small Black Wrap-Around Mini-Bar with Glass-Faced Cabinets
See more at Wayfair and Hayneedle. This model, in black with a contemporary design, offers 2 unique features. First, it’s a wrap-around counter which is unusual for such a small home bar. Second, it has glass-faced cabinets viewed from both front and back.
Here’s a solid oak home bar that offers a decent “real bar” experience with wrap-around foot railing and counter. NOTE – the mirror is sold separately.
18. Birch Wood Home Bar
This Birchwood bar is a one-level unit with a 15 bottle wine rack and closed storage.
19. Traditional Style Home Bar
For a smaller design, this home bar offers some great features such as a foot railing and a behind-the-bar preparation counter with a built-in ice bucket and small wine rack.
20. Marble Countertop Wood Wine Bar
This ornate wood wine bar includes a foot railing and decorative front woodwork. While not large, it offers an elevated counter to accommodate at a minimum two bar stools.
21. Walnut Wood Home Bar
This is a beautiful home bar unit with sturdy foot railing, extensive storage including a wine rack and locking storage, and sturdy construction. Moreover, it offers a built-in ice bucket and refrigerator access – two not-so-common features.
22. Semi-Circle Wood Wine Bar
This is really a classic semi- circle wine bar unit with a 12 bottle wine rack and glass stem rack as well as plenty of bottle and accessory storage including a pull-out shelf. The counter is marble laminate and includes an insulated stainless steel bin for chilling wine.
23. Modern Wine Storage Cabinet
This is a classic cabinet instead of a bar. We included it in this gallery because of it’s unique symmetrical, clean lines design.
I like the front of this mini-bar but when you check out the rear, you’ll notice it lacks storage compared to the other mini-bar units in this gallery. One advantage is this is a truly portable home bar since it sits on castor wheels.
24. Small Marble Top Bar
Customers love this small ornate home bar cabinet with an average rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars. For a smaller home bar unit, it offers decent storage options including a wine rack. The way it’s configured, you can have stools on the front side as well.
25. Laminated Granite Topped, Hardwood Classical Home Bar
See more at Wayfair and Hayneedle. If you want masculine, this is the home bar for you. It’s large and sturdy and designed for the classic masculine bar environment.
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