Ramekin Forks

Serving creme brulee,? Then for correct service and presentation you will need to use Ramekin Forks. These pieces are smaller than salad forks. Some have a bowl like shape design. The purpose is to fit into the small individual dishes that custards such as creme brulee are baked and presented.

You will find old Ramekin forks in many patterns. You can check the list of all pieces in a pattern to see if any given piece was offered (at any time). They will (usually) include on the list discontinued pieces.

(Shown in Marquis by Whiting 5 inches)

(Shown in Louis XV by Whiting 5 1/4 inches)

Chipped Beef Fork

First, for those not familiar, chipped beef is thinly sliced smoked cured beef. So, naturally, we need a Chipped Beef Fork to serve it. Personally, I still use Chipped Beef in a recipe, but I skimp and use a regular "place" fork to handle it. The pieces can be very ornate and lovely. They are small, approximately 6 3/4 inches.

(Shown in Pansy by International)

(Shown in New Art by Durgin)

Grape Shears

A very ornate but rather rare piece that is no longer popular. Grape Sheers were used to cut the stems when serving grapes. Most measure 6 -7 inches long.

(Repousse by Kirk Stieff) 

Berry Serving Spoon

OK, this piece has a split personality. It is officially called a Berry Spoon but every reference I found says that it is used for scooping berries and serving casseroles - go figure. In my book, those are two entirely different dishes, unless you consider a blueberry cobler - a casserole. Sometime the bowl may be plain and sometimes it can be shell shaped. Some of these pieces are the most ornate bowl type servers I have seen in sterling and vary greatly between patterns.

(Shown here in Buttercup by Gorham  9 1/8 inches)

(Shown in Arlington by Towle 9 inches)

(Shown in Heraldic by Whiting 8 1/2 inches)

Strawberry Pieces

Strawberries must have been big because there are beautiful Strawberry Serving sets, which consist of a spoon and fork. Also, there is a Strawberry Fork, used in addition to the 5 piece place setting when strawberries are served. It has a special 3 tine designed for eating the fruit.

(Strawberry Serving Set shown in unknown pattern)

(Two Tine Strawberry Fork in an unknown pattern by Hamilton & Diesinger 4 1/2 inches)

(Three Tine Strawberry Forks shown in unknown pattern by Campbell-Metcalf)

Saratoga Chip Server

Yes, the Victorian germaphobes did not want their potato chips touched by human hands as they were served from whatever vessels (bowls, baskets, etc.) they used. So, naturally one would use a sterling silver server - a Saratoga Chip Server . These can be found in most patterns. The name Saratogo comes from the history of the potato chip, invented in Saratoga, NY in 1853. The servers only date back to 1873 - I wonder what they did up until that time?

Lancaster by Gorham

Crumb Knife

Not just for the efficient waiter in the fancy restaurant, these are available in your pattern for use at your dining room table. The Crumb Knife (or Crumber) is designed to remove crumbs from your table. My assumption is that this was not meant for the lady of the house but more likely for her house servants.

This can be a very expensive piece in some of the older patterns.

(Unknown pattern by Duhme)

Oyster Servers

Yes, there are two - the Oyster Server and the Fried Oyster Server, as well as an Oyster Fork, which is used in addition to a five piece place setting. The server is used to serve oysters both in and out of the shell, while the fried server, just like its name, is used to serve fried oysters. (And, to think all these years I have been using a standard serving spoon - how embarrassing.)

The Oyster Server shown Lancaster by Gorham

Oyster Fork shown in Olympian by Tiffany

Petite Four Server

If you didn't know before, you need the Petite Four Server to properly to serve your petite fours. You can find this piece in most patterns.


(Shown Love Disarmed by Reed and Barton)

Jelly/Cake Server

Once again, not to be confused with your every day cake server, the Jelly/Cake Server looks like a cake server or pie server and can be used to lift and serve pie or cake, however this piece can also properly serve solid jellies. It would have taken a while for someone just to have learned which of these pieces were used for which occasion. God forbid one use a regular cake server when the occasion called for a Jelly/Cake Server.

(Shown in Stratford by International)