What's that?

Most of the time I feel pretty comfortable talking about food--ingredients, techniques, equipment, etc. But this little tool (pictured below) really stumped me. We have a fork, a knife, and a...what is that? A chipped spoon? A spork wanna-be? What is it!? Matt and I found this pretty little piece of silver at Le Bec Fin in Philadelphia, a place where it would be totally uncool to ask how to use cutlery, let alone what it should be used for. So naturally, we ignored it. Never used it. And then (discreetly) took a picture of it.

Well, thanks to the wonderful world wide web, I've got an answer! It's a saucier spoon--a flattened, notched spoon used for saucing food like fish. Despite the completely ridiculous notion that we need a separate spoon to sauce our fish, I'm kind of sad that much of the tradition and ritual has been taken out of meals. I'm not saying that dinner needs to be formal. In fact, I prefer informal, rustic meals shared between loud and laughing friends and family. But there is something about the idea of taking the time to set the table with the utmost care in preparation for a long, loving meal that I find so alluring. Maybe if we spent more time preparing for our meals we'd feel the need to spend more time together at the table. So no more eating dinner on the couch in front of the television! I'm buying a saucier spoon.

Happy adventuring!