Restaurant & Bar Linen

Bar mops are the heavy-duty 14"×17" ribbed-terry cotton towels used for wiping bar tops, kitchen counters, and cleaning spills. Weight is specced in ounces per dozen: 24 oz/dozen is standard, 32 oz/dozen is heavy-duty. Higher weight = more absorbent, longer life under harsh chemical exposure.

Traditional color is white with blue or red center stripe for inventory tracking. Ribbed terry (vs smooth terry) provides better scrubbing action against dried food and beer residue.

Bar mops cycle at 2-3× per station — a busy bar with 4 bartender stations runs ~24-30 bar mops in rotation. Expect 150-200 wash cycles before retirement; replace sooner if they develop permanent grease staining.

"Bar towel" and "bar mop" are often confused. Bar towels (16"×19" cotton/poly herringbone) are the thinner, smoother towels used for glassware polishing — the surface that touches wine glasses and cocktail stemware. Ribbed terry is too lint-heavy for glass-polishing.

Bar towels also serve waitstaff as sidework towels for clearing tables and polishing silverware. Spec 86/14 cotton/poly blend for hem durability under commercial laundry bleach.

Spun poly napkins (20"×20") are the workhorse of casual and mid-tier restaurants. Durable (300+ wash cycles), stain-release, drape okay, cheap at $0.35-0.75/unit wholesale. Downside: slight plastic hand-feel.

Hemstitched cotton napkins are the luxury spec — better drape, perceived quality, but 50-75% price premium and shorter lifespan (120-150 cycles) under stain load. Reserve for fine-dining and banquet.

Standard restaurant par for napkins: 4-6× daily covers. A 150-cover-per-day restaurant stocks ~600-900 napkins in rotation.

Standard aprons:

• Bistro apron 28"×32" — waist-tied, waitstaff and bartender. Usually black.
• Full-bib apron 34"×34" — over-the-head + neck strap + waist tie, line cook.
• Four-way apron — four rotatable aprons sewn together, high-volume line.

Fabric: cotton/poly twill (65/35 or 80/20), 7-10 oz weight. Black hides stains; white signals executive-chef tier.

Chef coats aren't typically purchased through linen wholesale — they're uniform SKUs from chef-apparel specialists. Linen rental services often include them as a bundle.

Side towels (17"×22" cotton flat-weave, aka "oven towels" or "kitchen towels") are the heat-resistant towels line cooks use for pan handles and hot pot lids. 100% cotton is mandatory — polyester melts on contact with 400°F pan handles.

Side towels are disposable on a 30-45 day cycle in high-volume kitchens. Char marks, grease stains, and burn holes accumulate fast.

Most US restaurants contract commercial linen rental service (Cintas, Aramark, Alsco) for napkins, aprons, and bar mops rather than owning inventory. Rental service handles laundry, rotation, and replacement at fixed per-unit-per-cycle rate.

Own-purchase economics favor restaurants that (a) do in-house laundry for other reasons, (b) run a unique color/size not available through rental, or (c) operate at high volume (400+ covers/day) where rental pricing bracket creeps above own-purchase amortization.

Towel Depot sells direct to restaurants that own their linen — independent operators, chain groups running in-house laundry, and specialty concepts with non-standard linen needs.

Landed wholesale pricing at case quantity:

• Bar mop 14"×17" 24 oz white+stripe: $0.80–$1.30
• Bar towel 16"×19" herringbone white: $1.10–$1.75
• Spun poly napkin 20"×20" white: $0.35–$0.75
• Hemstitched cotton napkin 20"×20": $1.25–$2.50
• Bistro apron 28"×32" cotton/poly black: $4.50–$7.25
• Side towel 17"×22" cotton: $0.90–$1.40

Net 30 terms available to qualified restaurant-group accounts.