A couple of weeks ago, an odd message appeared on Twitter. An American food writer, sitting in a very exclusive restaurant, posted a picture of a spoon. Unlike the average tweeted food porn, this was accompanied by a plaintive request: what is this thing and what is it for? The tweeter, Kat Kinsman, is managing editor of CNN Eatocracy and she was sharing a table with a group of other high-powered foodists at a dinner honouring Thomas Keller at the time she hit “send”. Kinsman has prior form with flatware, as she mentioned later: “I have an MFA [master of fine arts] degree in Metalsmithing and am always deeply amused by antiquated or single-purpose items like grape shears, lamb handles, fish knives, etcetera.” The spoon, as a rapid Google search established, was a cuillère à sauce individuelle, with a flat spatula-like bowl, so sauce can be scraped from the plate without tilting it, and a notch through which any superfluous fat can drain.
几周前，Twitter上出现了一条怪信息：在一家很高档的餐馆，美国某美食作家当场在Twitter上贴出了一张勺子照片。与其它通常张贴的美食图片不一样的是：这张照片后面附了一则略带忧郁的设问：这是什么？能作何用？发照片者为CNN Eatocracy美食博客总编辑凯特•金斯曼(Kat Kinsman)，点击“发送”键时，正与一伙高级美食家就坐一桌，参加给托马斯•凯勒(Thomas Keller)捧场的晚宴。金斯曼之前也曾在网上发过扁平餐具的照片，正如她事后所说：“本人获得过金属加工的美术硕士学位，一直对有年头或是功能单一的餐具（葡萄剪、羊肉手柄、食鱼刀等）情有独钟。”快速搜索一下Google网，就知道它是带有扁铲状匙底、单独舀汤用的勺子，有了它，从盘子里舀汤就不再怕倾斜，勺子上的缺口则能滤掉多余的油。