Ice Tongs
Sprung tongs for lifting a single piece of ice at a time. They exist because each of the alternatives causes a specific problem: a bare hand, a glass, a wet scoop. The tongs cause none of them.
Alternatives
Budget Alternative
Plastic or lightweight metal ice tongs (£2–4) can be used in low-volume settings, though they bend easily and offer poor grip over time.
Premium Option
Professional stainless steel ice tongs (£15–20) provide better balance, durability, and control, making them suitable for consistent service in busy bars.
Care & Maintenance
Care Instructions
- Rinse regularly during service to remove meltwater residue.
- Wash with warm water and mild detergent after use.
- Dry thoroughly before storage to prevent spotting.
- Store with ice tools rather than garnish equipment.
Expected Lifespan
- •Premium stainless steel: 10–15 years with regular professional use
- •Standard stainless steel: 5–10 years before loss of tension or bending
- •Budget metal or plastic: 1–3 years before deformation or breakage
Usage
Placing large cubes and spheres into a rocks glass, lifting ice from a bucket during service, and any moment where a single piece needs to arrive somewhere precisely. Not for filling a shaker, which wants a scoop.
Why Not a Hand
Three reasons, in ascending order of how much they matter.
A hand is warm, so every cube you touch begins melting where your fingers were, and it arrives in the glass already glazed and slightly fused to whatever it lands on.
A hand is also wet, and the water it leaves behind pools in the bucket and accelerates the melt of everything else. And it is a hand: it has been on a bottle, a bar top, a phone and possibly a banknote, and the ice it touches goes directly into a drink nobody will heat. Behind a bar it is a hygiene failure customers notice.
Why Not a Glass
Scooping ice with the glass you are about to serve in is quick, and it is the reason bars ban it outright.
Glass chips in ice. A rim knocked against a frozen cube can take a flake off without any sound, the flake is invisible in the ice, and it ends up in a drink. It is a genuinely dangerous shortcut, and most trade bodies treat it as a sackable offence.
The related error is scooping with a glass that then breaks inside the bucket, which loses the entire load. Every cube has to go, because you cannot see glass in ice.
Tongs or Scoop
Different tools for different jobs, and a bar wants both.
A scoop moves volume: filling a shaker, loading a highball, packing a bucket. It is fast, it holds a dozen cubes, and precision is irrelevant.
Tongs place a single piece. That is the Old Fashioned with one large clear cube, the whisky served with a sphere, the drink where the ice is part of the presentation and dropping it from a scoop would splash. Tongs also reach into a narrow bucket without disturbing the rest of the load, which a scoop cannot.
If you buy one, buy a scoop. If you serve spirits over large ice, buy both.
Choosing a Pair
Look at the tips first. Claw or toothed tips grip a wet cube; smooth flat tips slide off one, which is how ice ends up on the floor. Sprung tongs that hold themselves open take one hand rather than two.
Solid stainless steel, not plated. Plating on cheap tongs flakes over time and the flakes go into the bucket, which is a worse outcome than a slightly duller finish.
Keep them dry between uses. Damp tongs left resting in the ice freeze to it, and the next person yanks them free and takes half the load with them.
Pro Tip
Ice is an ingredient. Handle it with the same care as the spirit in the glass.
What to Look For
- Slim, springless design for controlled grip.
- Narrow gripping ends sized for single cubes.
- Stainless steel construction that resists corrosion.
- Smooth edges that won’t chip or mark ice.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Using kitchen or BBQ tongs, which are too bulky and unhygienic.
- Gripping ice too tightly, causing cracks and fractures.
- Leaving tongs lying on the bar top between uses.
- Using the same tongs for garnishes and ice.
Professional Tips
- Grip the cube at its corners, not its flat faces.
- Keep them dry between uses or they freeze to the ice.
- Stainless, not plated. Plating flakes into the bucket.
- A scoop for volume, tongs for placement. Own both.
Specifications
Material
Stainless steel
Capacity
Not applicable
Details
Straight, springless tongs with narrow gripping ends designed to hold individual ice cubes securely. Lightweight construction prioritising precision over force.
History & Context
As hygiene standards improved in late 19th and early 20th century bars, direct hand contact with ice became unacceptable. Ice tongs emerged as a simple solution, allowing bartenders to handle ice efficiently while maintaining cleanliness. Despite modern refrigeration, they remain a fundamental tool for professional service.
Common Questions
Why use ice tongs?
Because the alternatives each cause a problem. A hand is warm and wet and has touched everything else on the bar; a glass can chip invisibly into the ice. Tongs place a cube precisely without melting, wetting or contaminating it.
Tongs or an ice scoop?
Both, ideally. A scoop moves volume, filling shakers and packing buckets, and precision does not matter. Tongs place a single piece, which is what an Old Fashioned with one large clear cube needs. If you only buy one, buy the scoop.
What tongs hold large cubes?
Ones with claw or toothed tips, which bite into a wet surface. Smooth flat tips slide off a large cube and drop it. Grip at the corners rather than the flat faces, where there is more for the teeth to catch.
Are tongs really more hygienic?
Yes, and visibly so. Ice goes into a drink with nothing downstream to kill what is on it, and bare hands carry whatever they last touched. It is one of the few hygiene failures a customer will notice from the other side of the bar.