A spoon is a utensil consisting of a shallow bowl, oval or round, at the end of a handle. A type of cutlery, especially as part of a place setting, it is used primarily for transferring food to the mouth (eating). Spoons are also used in food preparation to measure, mix, stir and toss ingredients and for serving food. Present day spoons are made from metal, wood, porcelain or plastic. There are many different types of spoons made from different materials by different cultures for different purposes and food.
In cutlery or kitchenware, a fork is a utensil, now usually made of metal, whose long handle terminates in a head that branches into several narrow and often slightly curved tines with which one can spear foods either to hold them to cut with a knife or to lift them to the mouth.
A spork is a form of cutlery and combination utensil taking the form of a spoon-like scoop with two to four fork-like tines. Spork-like utensils, such as the terrapin fork or ice cream fork, have been manufactured since the late 19th century; patents for spork-like designs date back to at least 1874. Sporks are commonly used by fast food restaurants, schools, prisons, militaries, backpackers, and airlines.
Cutlery includes any hand implement used in preparing, serving, and especially eating food in Western culture. A person who makes or sells cutlery is called a cutler. While most cutlers were historically men, women could be cutlers too; Agnes Cotiller was working as a cutler in London in 1346, and training a woman apprentice, known as Juseana.
Table setting or place setting refers to the way to set a table with tableware—such as eating utensils and for serving and eating. The arrangement for a single diner is called a place setting. It is also the layout in which the utensils and ornaments are positioned. The practice of dictating the precise arrangement of tableware has varied across cultures and historical periods.
Various customary etiquette practices exist regarding the placement and use of eating utensils in social settings. These practices vary from culture to culture. Fork etiquette, for example, differs in Europe, the United States, and Southeast Asia, and continues to change. In East Asian cultures, a variety of etiquette practices govern the use of chopsticks.
Kitchenware refers to the tools, utensils, appliances, dishes, and cookware used in food preparation and the serving of food. Kitchenware can also be used to hold or store food before or after preparation.
Tableware items are the dishware and utensils used for setting a table, serving food, and dining. The term includes cutlery, glassware, serving dishes, serving utensils, and other items used for practical as well as decorative purposes. The quality, nature, variety and number of objects varies according to culture, religion, number of diners, cuisine and occasion. For example, Middle Eastern, Indian or Polynesian food culture and cuisine sometimes limits tableware to serving dishes, using bread or leaves as individual plates, and not infrequently without use of cutlery. Special occasions are usually reflected in higher quality tableware.
A splayd is an eating utensil which combines the functions of a spoon, knife and fork. It was invented by William McArthur in the 1940s in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. There are several manufacturers.
A grapefruit spoon is a utensil usually similar in design to a teaspoon that tapers to a sharp edge or teeth, the intent of the front serration being to separate the flesh of a grapefruit from its rind. Also called an orange spoon, citrus spoon, and fruit spoon, it is used for other citrus fruits, as well as kiwifruit and melons.
Table manners are the rules of etiquette used while eating and drinking together, which may also include the use of utensils. Different cultures observe different rules for table manners. Each family or group sets its own standards for how strictly these rules are to be followed.
Lusikkahaarukka or LuHa is a stainless steel, folding spoon-fork combination issued together with a mess kit in the Finnish Army. It is widely used in camping and outdoors activities.
A grapefruit knife is a special type of knife designed specifically for cutting grapefruit. Grapefruit knives are small with a curved serrated blade, designed to hug the curves of the grapefruit. This is used to separate the outer edge of the segments from the rim of the fruit. The term "grapefruit knife" can refer to a type of knife with short, serrated twin blades about 2mm apart, used to separate the sides of each section from the dividing membrane. Some grapefruit knives incorporate both types, a double-sided curved blade on one side and the parallel twin blades on the other. Another type includes an angled tip and double sided serrated blade. When both types are used, the result is an intact-looking fruit with sections which lift out easily - especially if a "grapefruit spoon" is used.
Chopsticks are shaped pairs of equal-length sticks that have been used as kitchen and eating utensils in most of East Asia for over three millennia. They are held in the dominant hand, secured by fingers, and wielded as extensions of the hand, to pick up food.
Knife and Fork, Fork & Knife, Knife-Fork, may refer to:
Edible tableware is tableware, such as plates, drinkware glasses, utensils and cutlery, that is edible. Edible tableware can be homemade and has also been mass-produced by some companies, and can be prepared using many different foods.
The fish knife together with fish fork represent a set of utensils specialized for eating fish. A fish knife is a strange-looking, purposely blunt implement.
Combination eating utensils, also known as hybrid utensils, are utensils that have the qualities of other utensils combined into one. This can be done to make a more convenient, less wasteful, or more cost-efficient product. Many different types of combination utensils have been created, each designed to serve a different purpose.
