Flatware Piece Types

Dinner forks are part of the typical 5-piece place setting. Dinner forks are used for the entrée course at dinner.

Luncheon forks are slightly smaller than the dinner fork, generally feature straight tines, and are used for meals and gatherings before dinner. Also, the luncheon fork can double as a youth or children’s fork and can be used with the luncheon knife and five o’clock teaspoon.

Teaspoons are perfect for coffee, tea, desserts, cereal, and soups. You can never have too many of these spoons. They are considered part of the standard 5-piece place setting.

Place spoons are the most versatile piece of silver available. They can be used as serving pieces or as individual spoons. Many people call these tablespoons. These pieces are great for soups, desserts, entrees, and cereals.

Gravy ladles are the most common ladle size. Generally, this piece is 6-8 inches in length and can be used to serve gravies or cream sauces.

Pierced tablespoons are similar to regular tablespoons except that they feature a pierced bowl. The pierced tablespoon is used to serve vegetables that need to be drained before serving.

Cold Meat Forks are versatile serving pieces that can be used for cuts of meat, cheeses, waffles, chops, and sliced vegetables.

Pierced bonbon spoons are used to scoop and serve bonbons. Unlike the solid bonbon spoon, this piece is pierced.

Carving forks are used with carving knives; the carving fork is used to stabilize meats while carving and serve individual pieces after they’re sliced.

Carving knives are used with carving forks. While carving forks are used to hold the meat in place, carving knives are used to cut the meat.

Pierced casserole spoons are like solid casserole spoons but are used to serve items that must be drained.

Cheese planes are drawn against a block of cheese. The result is a single slice of cheese that can be lifted and served using the cheese plane.

Chocolate spoons are used for serving hot chocolate (the drink made with actual chocolate, not hot cocoa). Because chocolate settles to the bottom of the cup faster than cocoa, these spoons help keep the chocolate well mixed. Chocolate spoons have very round-ended bowls, as opposed to the oblong teaspoon-shaped bowl found on similar-sized demitasse or after-dinner coffee spoons.

Food pushers are used to push food off of a plate or platter. This piece looks a lot like a crumb knife and can be used in the same capacity.

Grille forks are slightly longer than dinner forks. The handle is longer and the tines are shorter. This fork is used for eating delicacies right from the grille and may be used with the grille knife at a place setting.

Grille knives like their counterparts, grille forks, are used for carving delicacies that are served directly from the grille.

Ice cream servers are used in the same capcity as ice cream slicers. After a piece of ice cream has been cut from the block, the ice cream server is used to lift it and serve it into a bowl or sherbet glass.

Ice cream spoons are used for eating ice cream and feature a round bowl that is comparable to the cream soup spoon

Jelly/cake servers look like cake or pie servers. Like the cake or pie server, it is used to cut a piece of cake, lift, and serve it. This piece can also be used for solid jellies that have the consistency of cranberry sauce.

Ice serving tongs are handy to have around the bar and kitchen for a more elegant “hands-free” way to add ice cubes to drinks. 

Lasagna servers feature large flat blades that are used to cut and serve lasagna. 

Lettuce forks generally feature three flared prongs to aid in spearing and serving lettuce and other large leafy salad greens.

Master butter knives are meant to sit in the middle of the table or near the butter dish. This knife is meant for the cutting and serving of pats of butter. Generally, the master butter knife is passed around the table with the butter dish.

Master salt spoon is larger than individual salt spoons and used to dispense portions of salt from the master salt cellar into individual salt cellars.

Short handle olive spoons are used for the serving of olives and features a pierced bowl for draining olive brine.

Pasta servers are often called spaghetti servers by many people. This serving piece can be used for picking up, draining, and serving pasta.

Pastry forks, like cake or pie forks, are designed to look similar to the salad fork but features a widened or connected tine better suited to cutting through pastries, pies, and other after-dinner or teatime desserts.

Pierced pea serving spoons are similar to regular tablespoons and feature a pierced bowl for serving peas and other small vegetables that need to be strained before serving.

Pie knives are versatile pieces that can be used to cut and serve individual slices of pie.

Pie servers, like cake servers, are versatile pieces that can be used to cut and serve pie slices.

Punch ladles are like cream or gravy ladles except they feature a much larger bowl perfect for serving punch from a punch bowl.

Salt spoons are very small individual pieces used in addition to the 5-piece place setting. These spoons are generally 3-5 inches in length and are used with salt dips.

Sardine forks normally have short, wide tines. They may be used for serving sardines, anchovies, pickled vegetables, as well as petits fours.

Strawberry forks are individual pieces that are used for the serving and eating of fruit.

Sugar shells are commonly used with sugar bowls. This piece resembles a teaspoon and has a shell-shaped bowl.

Sugar spoons are used for serving granulated sugar. The spoon generally resembles a teaspoon or a cream soup spoon.

Sugar tongs are used with an open sugar bowl and are used to lift and serve sugar cubes.

Toast serving forks have long tines that are spread far apart. This serving piece can be used to lift, scoop, and serve toast.

Tomato servers are one of the most beautiful pieces of silver that can be found. The large round flat bowl is used to lift and serve tomatoes. The large flat bowl is generally ornate.

Wedding cake knives are designed much like a cake knife. However, cake knives are generally longer and are often given as a gift to the wedding party.

Youth forks are used by children. This piece is smaller than the regular dinner fork and is used in addition to the youth knife and five o’clock teaspoon.

Youth knives are used with the youth fork and five o’clock teaspoon. It is designed like a dinner knife, only smaller. This piece is used by small children.

Youth Spoons are commonly part of a setting that includes a youth knife and youth fork and are used by children and are typically smaller than regular place spoons.