There’s a seemingly endless plethora of bar accessories to choose from when building-out your man cave
Believe us, we’ve been there! Well…we never really left, as building-out your man cave is never really ‘done’, let’s be honest!
With this in mind, we wanted to put together a guide for anyone who is at the point of building out a home bar, whether that’s in your shed, basement, spare room, garage, or man cave.
You chosen your home bar name, you’ve got your dimensions nailed, you know about the must-have products that any man cave simply needs to have, but what about those supporting accessories? And, when we say accessories, these aren’t necessarily smaller items either (and that’s often why it’s so hard to choose…).
Below, we’ve put together ten of our favourite accessories that you simply have to take a look at. Whether you land on all ten and decide to fill your man cave bar with them is totally up to you, but at least now you’ve got a definitive list on where to start!
10 must-have accessories for your man cave bar
1. Bar Stools
Okay, we get it, you’re probably going to be sitting down for a fair amount of time if you’ve crafted a gaming man gave anyway, but if you’re just focusing on the bar aspect of your man cave, then you’re going to need some quality bar stools. Emphasis here on the quality aspect.
Like any piece of furniture, you can buy cheap, and end up buying twice. Especially after a few of your home bar concoctions, the last thing you need is for a cheap chair to crumple and turn into a safety hazard. Also, let’s face it, you’re going to want bar stools that actually look good.
These HOMCOM stool are modern, sturdy, come with slip resistant foot pads and best of all, they’re genuinely comfortable to sit on. Basically, exactly what you’d want in a bar stool that you’re making a bit of an investment on.
2.Dart Board
Right, now we’re talking! When it comes to dart boards in your home bar, these days you’re spoilt for choice. You ideally want to be looking for a modern dart board that is well-built and offers good value for money, rather than something that is cheap and is going to either keep falling off your wall or disintegrate after a few uses.
You can go for a more traditional dart board or have a look at the more modern incarnations… there’s even augmented reality darts for those of you wanting to make a serious investment (or if you just want to start taking your dart playing more seriously with a proper piece of kit!).
Make sure that you factor a dart board into your dimensions when building your man cave if you haven’t already. It’s not necessarily the size of the board, but the ample room you’ll need to play effectively without jumping out of the way of stray darts or elbowing your mates when loading up for a Luke Littler-esque throw.
Check out our dart board guide to take a look at our top picks and what we recommend.
3. Beer Dispenser
It seems like beer dispensers are everywhere these days, and it’s not hard to see why. Particularly for those of you looking for that pub pint at home without the pub prices, beer dispensers make a lot of sense.
With tons of popular beers that you can now get in smaller keg sizes (and obscure ones too), it’s not exactly like you only have a couple of options once you’ve bought the dispenser. Plus, coupling the dispenser with a keg fridge is a great way to add that little bit of ‘wow!’ to your pint.
These can be a bit of an investment upfront, and if you want to get a keg fridge to match then you’re going to have to factor that into your space planning, but if you’re a fan of a frosty pint then you really can’t go wrong here (or miss out on having one!).
Our recommended beer dispenser
4. Jukebox
So you’re in your man cave bar, pint in hand, but it’s all a bit…quiet… Enter, the jukebox. The absolutely perfect addition for any man cave dwellers who like to have their mates round, modern jukeboxes are super simple to use and they’re really not the type of accessory that you get bored of using.
Many of the jukeboxes these days are throwbacks to classic stylings, meaning that they essentially become their own centrepieces and can be bought inline with your favourite styles, or even brands in some cases. Music storage is never an issue, and you don’t need to find loose change to get them going either.
For anyone wanting to put a proper pub together at home, these really are worth the investment.
Check out our recommended jukebox
5. Neon Signs
What bar isn’t complete without a neon sign or ten? To be fair, most man caves regardless of whether they have a bar or not will have some kind of neon lighting, but it’s always cool to have theme-specific lighting, and neon signage offers both a low-cost and highly customisable option for this.
You can get pre-made neon signage to pay tribute to your favourite pint, or splash out and have something made custom from scratch. And, if you’ve got the budget, then why not go all-out with something that is truly special and reflects what your man cave (or bar) is all about?
Make sure you consider lighting aspects as part of your man cave build so that you’re not caught short for space, and really don’t underestimate the wall (or countertop space) you’re going to need if you’re looking at larger custom signage.
Check out our go-to for personalised neon signage
6. Espresso Machine
Alright, we get that it’s a bar, but you can’t just have beer all the time…right? Well, that might be up for debate, but what isn’t is just how handy an espresso machine is to have as a non-alcoholic bar accessory. Psst… These also come in handy for cocktail making, just saying…
Espresso machines vary wildly in terms of sizes and pricing, so make sure you do your research. We have our favourites, but really it should come down to the amount of times you’re planning on using it (consistently or sparingly), what you’re willing to spend on the coffee itself, how often you’ll need to restock, and the actual countertop or cupboard space you’ve got to play with.
It helps to give yourself more space than just the size of the machine too, so that you can clean it easily without having to faff around moving things with minimal room to get your scrubbing done.
Here’s our favourite espresso machine
7. Soundbar
Soundbars are always a good addition to a home bar or man cave. Not only do they elevate the gaming experience of any console or PC setup, but they’re pretty easy to hide and often don’t cost an absolute fortune.
For the audiophiles among you, don’t worry, you can go super-techy and sound-specific with them, but for most people who just want quality sound they can rely on, the commercial soundbars offer more than enough in the way of audio bliss.
We typically recommend that you buy your soundbar at the planning stages, so you know where it’s going to be placed within the space you have to work with, and you know you’ll have enough floor, counter or table space to cover the length and width.
It’s not like these are monstrous bits of kit, but still, you want to know you’ve got enough room and can have it in an optimal position for when your noughties classic rock playlist comes on shuffle.
8. Football Table
More of a focal point than an accessory, but let’s keep it in this list… It’s hard to deny that a football table isn’t on most man cave-builders must-haves.
Surprisingly, you can actually go quite cheap when shopping for football tables, or you can go right up to the modern pro versions (they exist!).
The biggest tip we can give is not to think about just the floor space for the table, but allow enough room for multiple people to play. Do you really want your mates putting holes in the wall because they don’t have enough room to frantically save a shot?
Football tables can be seriously addictive and a lot of fun, and if you’ve never held a tournament or played in one with your friends, then you seriously need to consider what an addition a high-quality football table could make (if it doesn’t damage your wallet, it might damage some friendships… choose your opponents wisely…).
Check out our guide to the best football tables
9. Projector
Projectors are such a good addition to any home bar as they don’t take-up a ton of room, and can really give that extra bit of depth to your space.
They also make watching sports event or movies with friends so much more practical than crowding around a laptop, and you can even use them for gaming if you want to take your current screen setup that one step further.
Gone are the days of grainy projections too. These modern versions are ridiculously crisp, and they aren’t so big that that they need their own corner of the room. Just an all-round awesome accessory that makes a massive difference.
10. Ice Maker
Whether you’re making cocktails, hiding from the sun and need a crisp water, or have a darts-related injury and need to reduce some swelling (only joking on that last one… Be careful!), an ice maker is always a good choice.
It’s often the type of accessory that you don’t think about, even when creating a home bar, but you quickly realise how impractical it is to constantly keep buying bags of ice, or just how much you need ice on-hand when you’re using your bar.
These days, ice makers are super quick to work, don’t need a load of room, and you can pick one up for relatively cheap (considering how much you’re going to be using it!).
Take a look at our favourite ice maker
What you need to know about buying accessories for your man cave bar – Some final thoughts
We’ve said it a few times, but the big thing is really taking into consideration how much space you’re going to need for your accessories.
It doesn’t take long to plan-out the space required, and it’ll save massive headaches later down the line, especially if you’re splashing-out on larger accessories and products.
Don’t forget to leave some space free too, as you’re likely not going to want to stop at the first point of accessory purchase… Basically, give yourself room to splurge on more accessories for when you inevitably get the itch. We’ve been there way too many times!
In Conclusion
There we have our top ten accessories that you simply have to have, or at least think about having, for your home bar or man cave.
If you liked this guide and want to see more insider tips and advice, check out our related guides below:
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My core areas of expertise include technical, local and organic SEO, alongside targeted content development and white-hat outreach strategies for link building purposes. When I'm not doing SEO you can find me gaming in my man cave!
