Food serving bar with removable panel system and adjustable kickplate

Abstract

A food serving bar with a removable panel system and an adjustable kickplate system. The food serving bar has a cabinet that receives the panel system on the front, back and/or sides of the cabinet in a channel formation. Tongues extend down from the bottom edge of the panel and are received in openings in a lower support of the cabinet for securing the panel in place. A kickplate is adjustably fastened to the cabinet with a fastening system so as to permit adjustment of the kickplate up and down relative to the cabinet depending on the height of the gap between the cabinet and the floor.

What is claimed is  
     
         1 . In a food serving bar having a cabinet comprising a front, a back, opposite sides and a top, the improvement comprising a removable panel system for removable attachment to at least one of the front, back and sides of the cabinet, said panel system comprising: 
 at least one generally rectangular panel having a top edge, a bottom edge and opposite side edges;    an upper channel formation extending along said one of the front, back and sides of the cabinet for holding the top edge of the panel;    one or more tongues extending down from the bottom edge of the panel; and    a lower support along said one of the front, back and sides of the cabinet spaced below said channel formation, said support having one or more openings therein for receiving said one or more tongues and for supporting the lower edge of the panel with the one or more tongues received in respective one or more opening for securing the panel in place, said panel being movable vertically to remove the one or more tongues from respective openings to allow the panel to be removed from the cabinet.    
     
     
         2 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 1  wherein said one or more tongues are sized to extend through said respective one or more openings and to be bent on the underside of the support to lock the panel in place on the support.  
     
     
         3 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 1  wherein said one or more panels comprises one or more main panels each having a fixed length from one side edge of the panel to the opposite side edge of the panel, said fixed length being less than the overall length of the food serving bar from one side to an opposite side, and wherein said panel system further comprises one or more removable filler panels each having a top edge, a bottom edge, and opposite side edges, said one or more filler panels being removably attachable to said one of the front, back and sides of the cabinet in side-by-side relation to said one or more main panels.  
     
     
         4 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 3  wherein said food serving bar comprises a plurality of cabinets in an end-to-end orientation, and wherein at least one of said one or more main panels is removably attached to at least two of the cabinets such that said main panel bridges said two cabinets.  
     
     
         5 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 3  wherein the top edge of each filler panel is receivable in said channel formation, and wherein one or more tongues extend down from the bottom edge of each filler panel for reception in one or more openings in said support for securing the one or more filler panels in place, said one or more filler panels being movable vertically to remove the one or more tongues from respective one or more openings to allow the one or more filler panels to be removed from the cabinet.  
     
     
         6 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 1  wherein said cabinet has front, back and side walls, and wherein said one or more panels are secured face-to-face with the front wall of the cabinet.  
     
     
         7 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 1  wherein said lower support comprises an elongate bar having a first leg extending forward from the front of the cabinet and having said one or more openings therein.  
     
     
         8 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 7  wherein said lower support further comprises a second leg extending up from the first leg spaced from the front of the cabinet, said first and second legs defining a recess for receiving the lower edge of said one or more panels.  
     
     
         9 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 7  wherein said upper channel formation comprises a top wall of the cabinet and a lip extending down from the top wall.  
     
     
         10 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 9  wherein said lip and said second leg are generally coplanar.  
     
     
         11 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 1  wherein said cabinet has a bottom and legs for supporting the cabinet on a floor with the bottom of the cabinet spaced above the floor to form a gap between the cabinet bottom and the floor, one or more kickplates each having a lower edge, and a fastening system for fastening the one or more kickplates to the cabinet in a position where the lower edge of each kickplate is adjacent the floor and closing said gap, said fastening system being adapted to permit adjustment of the one or more kickplates up and down relative to the cabinet depending on the height of the gap.  
     
     
         12 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 11  wherein said legs are adjustable to vary the height of said gap.  
     
     
         13 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 12  wherein said fastening system comprises two or more laterally spaced vertical elongate openings in each of the one or more kickplates, and fasteners adapted to extend through the elongate openings and to be tightened to secure each kickplate in adjusted vertical position.  
     
     
         14 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 1  wherein each of said one or more panels has a cantilever shelf thereon projecting forward from the panel generally toward its upper edge.  
     
     
         15 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 14  further comprising a lighting system on the underside of said shelf for illuminating a front face of the panel.  
     
     
         16 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 1  further comprising a lighting system on said panel for illuminating a front face of the panel.  
     
     
         17 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 1  wherein each of said one or more panels comprises a rectangular frame defining a central opening and a cover assembly attached to the frame and covering said opening.  
     
     
         18 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 1  wherein said cabinet has one or more openings in its top for holding food pans.  
     
     
         19 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 18  further comprising a temperature control system for regulating the temperature of food in the food pans.  
     
     
         20 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 19  wherein said temperature control system is operable to cool the food pans.  
     
     
         21 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 18  further comprising a transparent breath guard mounted on the top of the cabinet and extending over the food pans, and a lighting system on the breath guard for illuminating the top of the cabinet.  
     
     
         22 . In a food serving bar having cabinet comprising a front, a back, opposite sides, a top, a bottom, and legs for supporting the cabinet on a floor with the bottom of the cabinet spaced above the floor to form a gap between the cabinet bottom and the floor, said gap having a vertical height, the improvement comprising: 
 one or more kickplates each having a lower edge; and    a fastening system for fastening the one or more kickplates to the cabinet in a position where the lower edge of each kickplate is adjacent the floor and closing said gap, said fastening system being adapted to permit adjustment of the one or more kickplates up and down relative to the cabinet depending on the height of the gap.    
     
     
         23 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 22  wherein said legs are adjustable to vary the height of said gap.  
     
     
         24 . A food serving bar as set forth in  claim 23  wherein said fastening system comprises two or more laterally spaced generally vertical elongate openings in each of the one or more kickplates, and fasteners adapted to extend through the openings and to be tightened to secure each kickplate in adjusted vertical position.