Frequently Asked Questions About Heated & Refrigerated Food Merchandising Display Equipment
What types of food merchandising display equipment do you manufacture?
Atlantic Food Bars manufactures a full range of heated and refrigerated food merchandising display equipment, including hot food bars, refrigerated display cases, salad bars, soup bars, seafood display cases, sushi cases, and grab-and-go merchandisers. We also build combination hot and cold display cases, convertible self service to full service food bars and fully custom food merchandising systems designed specifically for supermarkets and prepared foods departments.
Learn more: Hot Food Bars | Refrigerated Display Cases | Combination Hot & Cold Cases
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What is a grab-and-go display case?
A grab-and-go heated or refrigerated display case is designed for self-service merchandising of packaged foods such as sandwiches, beverages, and prepared meals. These merchandisers are built as walkaround islands, in-line cases or end-cap units to be used in a variety of locations around the store to offer more food options to shoppers and drive impulse sales.
Learn more: Grab & Go Merchandisers
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What is the best display equipment for supermarket prepared foods?
Most supermarkets use a combination of hot and cold self service and full service food bars, as well as packaged grab-and-go merchandisers. The best solution depends on your food merchandising programs and store layout.
Learn more: Prepared Foods Merchandising Solutions
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Do I need self-contained or remote refrigeration?
Self-contained refrigerated display cases include a built-in compressor, while remote systems connect to a store’s central refrigeration system. The right option depends on your store layout, size, and long-term operational goals. We help customers evaluate both options during the design and quoting process.
Learn more: Refrigerated Display Options
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What is the difference between standard and custom food display equipment?
Standard food display equipment is built in commonly used sizes and configurations, allowing for faster delivery and consistent applications. Custom food merchandising equipment is designed specifically for your store, giving you flexibility in size, design and overall layout to match your merchandising goals.
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Do you offer standard food display cases or only custom equipment?
We offer both. Atlantic Food Bars builds standard hot food bars, refrigerated display cases, and grab-and-go merchandisers, as well as fully custom equipment. Many customers start with a standard piece of equipment and customize with key features to fit their merchandising goals and store design.
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Can I customize a standard food display case?
Yes. Many projects start with a standard configuration and incorporate custom features such as modified dimensions, finishes, profiles, and the number of pans or levels to best match the merchandising strategy and store environment.
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How much does food merchandising display equipment cost?
Pricing varies depending on the size, features and type of equipment. Merchandising cases such as hot food bars, refrigerated merchandisers, seafood displays and soup bars are quoted based on drawings and specifications, and we provide detailed pricing once we understand your requirements.
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What is the typical lead time?
Lead times depend on the type of equipment and project scope. Standard food display cases have shorter lead times, while custom hot and cold merchandising systems or multi-store rollout programs require additional planning. Confirmed lead times are provided during the quoting process.
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Do you have equipment available for quick shipment?
Yes. While most of our equipment is built-to-order, we occasionally have select standard hot food bars and refrigerated display cases available for expedited shipment. Availability changes frequently, so it’s best to contact our team with your timeline and needs.
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How does the quoting process work?
The quoting process starts with reviewing options for the type of display equipment desired, along with any store layouts, drawings, or specifications you may have available. Our team reviews your requirements, recommends configurations, and provides a detailed quote including pricing, drawings, lead times, and equipment specifications.
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Can you create drawings from my concept?
Yes. We develop drawings from sketches, concepts, existing store layouts or simply just your desired specifications. Our team works closely with customers to ensure the final design meets both operational and merchandising requirements.
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What are hot food bars used for?
Hot food bars are used in full service, self service or combination service formats in supermarkets to merchandise a variety of prepared foods for shoppers. They are designed to maintain proper temperature while maximizing product visibility and accessibility.
Learn more: Hot Food Bars
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What are salad bars and cold food bars used for?
Salad bars and cold food bars are designed to display cold prepared food items such as salads, olives, fruit, and deli entrees and sides. These merchandising displays are commonly used in self-service environments, and we also build in full service configurations and with convertible sneezeguards to allow stores the flexibility to easily change from self-service to full-service merchandising depending on the time of day and the type of food being merchandised.
Learn more: Salad Bars
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What is a seafood display case?
Seafood display cases are built to showcase fresh seafood while maintaining proper temperature and product quality. They are customizable with features to draw customer attention, including LED accent lighting and misting systems. High-quality construction, including leak-proof design, is critical for long-term durability.
Learn more: Seafood Display Cases
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What is a soup bar or soup merchandiser?
Soup bars are designed in many different shapes to hold a variety of soups in self-service or full-service formats. They are used to expand prepared foods offerings for stores that benefit from soup programs. The number of built-in soup wells can range from two to twenty in a single soup bar, and units can be built to incorporate pre-made grab & go take-home soup cups or refrigerated packaged food for customers to make a meal.
Learn more: Soup Bars
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What is a combination hot and cold display case?
Combination hot and cold cases allow supermarkets to display hot and refrigerated products in a single unit with side-by-side, over-under and back-to-back configurations. These prepared foods merchandising cases help to maximize merchandising space in a single footprint.
Learn more: Combination Hot & Cold Cases
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What types of customers do you work with?
We build for all types of companies in the foodservice industry internationally, from the world’s largest supermarket chains, to regional grocery stores, to one-store operators. We also work with convenience stores, corporate cafeterias, military bases and countless other retail and non-retail establishments serving prepared foods. Our equipment is used in new store builds, remodels, and national rollout programs where responsiveness, performance consistency, design quality, and temperature maintenance are critical.
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What departments are your display cases used in?
Our food merchandising equipment is used across prepared foods departments, including deli and seafood. We build 100′ lineups of hot and cold prepared food bars, and we also build small mobile merchandisers that are utilized in many locations throughout a store. Our hot cases are utilized at checkout lanes to generate last minute impulse purchases, as well as in the middle of the deli department as a centerpiece that is part of an island build featuring cold food and soup in bulk and packaged formats.
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How does display equipment impact food sales?
Well-designed food merchandising display cases improve product visibility while maintaining freshness with proper airflow systems and temperatures. This attracts customers and generates additional prepared foods sales with a one-stop opportunity for your stores’ shoppers.