Each type of ice serves a specific purpose. Some are designed to chill drinks, others are designed for food display, and there's even ice suitable for chewing. Their different characteristics make one more suitable for a particular task than another.
Features: The full ice cube has a durable construction and a nearly 100% ice-to-water ratio. The temperature inside the cube is approximately -8°C.
Application:
The cube is best suited for packaging and transportation (for use in catering and production of ice for sale), as well as soft drinks and mixed drinks (in the bar).
Application: The full cube is usually popular in restaurants, bars, hotels and discos.
Size, mm: 22x22x22 - 29x29x29
Melting rate: slow
Advantages: The cube gives drinks a refined appearance thanks to its uniform shape and size. Due to its larger size and slower melting rate (compared to the Half Cube, Thimble, and Half Moon ice cubes), full ice cubes provide maximum cooling while reducing ice consumption and saving you money on the cost of a serving (two or three ice cubes can fill almost the entire volume of a glass).
Disadvantage: If you need crushed ice and don't have
an ice maker capable of producing
Thimble or
Scale ice, your
ice crusher will experience increased stress. It's recommended to remove
the cube from
the freezer for 2-3 minutes before crushing to make it easier to crush. This will extend the life of the bearings and
blades .
Cube tiles
This type is also known as:
Chinese cube because inexpensive Chinese ice makers produce ice in this type.
Specifications: Similar properties to the Full-Size Cube. Due to the vertical placement of the evaporator, the cubes don't fall out individually, but rather as a single bar, similar to a chocolate bar.
Application: After manual dicing, the bar is suitable for soft drinks and mixed drinks. After crushing the bar in
an ice crusher , it can be used for cocktails and serving chilled beverages.
Application: Cube tiles are suitable for undemanding customers in bars, hotels and discos.
Tile weight, kg: 0.4-2
Melting rate: slow
Advantages: Low price of the ice generator.
Disadvantage: After manually crushing the ice cubes, the shape of the cubes is far from perfect, some cubes may break, so they are only suitable for further crushing.
Hat cube
Features: Gourmet Ice has a unique octagonal or cylindrical shape with a thicker bottom (giving it a hat-like shape), durable construction, and a nearly 100% ice to water ratio.
Uses: This ice is best suited for serving premium liqueurs and fine spirits such as whiskey or aged spirits.
Application: The cube hat is usually used in high-end restaurants, bars and banquet halls.
Size, mm: 21x21x25 - 38x38x41.
Melting rate: slow
Advantages: Thanks to its unique shape and generous size,
Top Hat Ice effectively chills drinks and has an attractive appearance. The ice is crystal clear and elegant, and drinks aren't diluted by melted water too quickly.
Half-cube
Also known as: Half Dice, Small Cube
Features: The half cube is popular due to its convenient size. It has a durable construction and a nearly 100% ice-to-water ratio.
Application: The cube is suitable for packaging and transportation (when used in catering and commercial ice production), as well as for beverages such as soft drinks, mixed drinks and frozen cocktails.
Application: Half ice cubes are considered a universal ice cube. Ice cube halves are popular in restaurants, bars, and stores.
Size, mm: 11x22x22
Melting rate: moderate
Advantages: Thanks to their unique shape, half-size cube ice fits more compactly into a glass. This will increase your profits, as a significant portion of the glass's volume is taken up by the ice, not the drink itself. This ice shape also cools drinks perfectly. Half-size cube ice dissolves much faster than its full-size counterpart (due to its higher surface area to volume ratio), making it ideal for chilled coffee drinks and smoothies.
Thimble
Characteristics:
Finger ice is a cylindrical ice cube with a hollow core, similar to a thimble. This design provides a larger contact surface with the liquid, allowing it to cool significantly faster than
cube ice. This ice has a 90% ice-to-water ratio. Finger ice comes in various sizes and weights: large (American type), medium (Spanish type), and small (European type).
Finger ice is an excellent solution for establishments with hard water issues, as the thin wall of the ice cubes makes cloudiness less noticeable than with
cube ice .
Application: Finger ice is widely used for preparing cocktails, alcoholic and soft drinks.
Application: Finger is popular in restaurants, bars, hotels and discos.
Size, mm: 42x29x29
Melting speed: fast
Advantages: Small thimbles are often used in
blenders and
shakers because the walls of this ice are quite fragile and it crushes well when shaking drinks. This ice crushes well with any type of
ice crusher (for making
crumbs ,
snow , and even
by hand ).
Granule
Characteristics: Granulated ice is produced by pressing ice flakes together, making it soft enough to chew, yet firm enough to maintain its shape. This ice doesn't freeze together, is easy to store, and mixes with drinks. When used for display, it tightly envelops food items, has no sharp edges, and won't spoil them. The temperature of this ice is approximately -0.5°C. Residual moisture content is 8%.
Application:
Granulated ice is used for serving champagne or wine in restaurants, for salad bars or buffets, when plates of prepared dishes are placed on an ice bed, and for displaying fresh fish in stores. Bartenders often use this ice for soft drinks, cold drinks, and mixed drinks such as smoothies or frozen cocktails. This ice is ideal for sporting events where injuries are possible (due to its softness, this ice easily conforms to the shape of the injured body part and does not cause injury with sharp edges).
Application:
Nugget is most often used in medical institutions, restaurants, bars and supermarkets.
Size, mm: Nugget - Ø11 mm H=13 mm, Cubelet - 16x15x7-8 mm
Melting speed: fast
Advantages: Considered appealing to ice-chew lovers because it absorbs the flavor of the drink and is easy to chew. Pebble Ice mixes well and quickly chills drinks. It's perfect for
sodas —the ice floats on the surface of the drink, separating it from the surrounding environment and preventing premature oxidation.
scales
Characteristics:
Flake ice is the coldest form of ice. Temperatures range from -6°C to -12°C, and this ice is very dry, with a residual moisture content of 2%. The shards resemble broken glass and vary in shape and thickness, ranging from 1 mm (ideal for meat) to 2 mm (suitable for fish).
Application: Dry and cold
flake ice naturally heats up to higher temperatures, at the same time the moisture level will increase, which allows this ice to be used for a long time for direct contact with fish and other products.
Applications: In large hypermarkets for displaying fish (preferred thickness - 2-2.2 mm), seafood, meat (preferred thickness 1-1.2 mm), and deli products on display cases and counters. For delivering fresh fish from ships or from port refrigerators to stores without losing quality (the use of flake ice increases the shelf life of fresh fish from 1 to 10 days). For pre-cooling fish, poultry, fruits and vegetables (cooling 1 ton of fresh fish from 26°C to 0°C requires 250 kg of ice). In sausage production, flake ice is added to meat to prevent heating during the
grinding process. In restaurants and supermarkets to preserve the presentation of products. In the bakery industry for cooling dough during the
kneading process.
Size, mm: length - 5-50, thickness - 1-2.
Melting rate: slow
Advantages:
Flake ice melts slowly, making it ideal for large display surfaces.
Flakes
Also known as: Flake Ice, Shaved Ice
Properties: Flake ice is soft and snow-like, with a 75% ice-to-water ratio, meaning it contains about 25% water. It melts quickly and is easy to mold. Temperature: around -1°C.
Application: This ice is primarily intended for displaying seafood, meat, and other produce in market or buffet
displays . It is also often used for medicinal compresses or in cocktails. Flake ice is also used to complement fashionable aperitifs, such as the French-style "crudites," and in ice buckets to maintain the serving temperature of champagne and white wine.
Application: The flakes are commonly used in supermarkets, fish markets, bars and medical institutions.
Size, mm: 3-10
Melting speed: fast
Advantages: Thanks to its soft consistency, flake ice is gentle on food and fragile seafood on
display or in food transport, preventing the formation of impact marks. Its softness is also ideal for compresses for injuries, as it cools without applying excessive pressure.
A variation of Flake Ice is Super-Flake Ice. This ice has a lower moisture content because it is produced at a lower temperature (-3 to -4°C), retaining only 15-18% residual moisture.
The basic use of Super-Flake ice is the same as Flake Ice, but Super-flake lasts longer than Flake and requires less frequent refilling at the counter.
Crescent
Features:
The Half Moon Ice has a distinct half moon shape and a durable construction.
Application: This ice cube is ideal for soft drinks and mixed drinks. It was designed to reduce splashing when added to a drink. Its unique design prevents this ice cube from sticking together. It easily passes through the surface of the liquid it's placed in, ensuring optimal cooling of the drink it's in.
Application:
Crescent ice is commonly found in restaurants, bars and nightclubs.
Size, mm: 38x28x12
Melting rate: slow
Advantages: Due to its unique shape, crescent-shaped ice can move freely in the glass without sticking together and can fill the glass better since one surface is cylindrical.
Ice storage and use
Ice from
the ice maker is removed with a plastic scoop (usually included with the ice maker). Do not use your hands, a glass, or a drinking glass to remove ice. Cocktail ice (
cubes ,
crescents ,
granules , and
thimble ice) is placed in
a freezer , container, or ice bucket. Ice can be removed with tongs, an ice scoop, or
a metal scoop . Ice for display is typically not stored and is used immediately after production.
Ice is an essential part of your business, whether you sell beverages or showcase prepared foods and products. Whether you own a restaurant, convenience store, grocery store, or bar, choosing the right type of ice for your establishment can ensure positive customer reviews and save you money in the long run.
