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Adding a Simple Design Improvement to Chopsticks

Hover Chopsticks are shaped so that the tips don't touch the tabletop

By Rain Noe - August 17, 2018

in Food

After you get the hang of 'em, chopsticks are pretty darned handy; and once you've eaten a salad with them, particularly a messy one, you'll never go back to using a fork and knife.

Because the design is so simple and thousands of years old, you'd figure there's nothing you could do to improve upon them. But dining goods company AltGalley is trying. Their Hover Chopsticks are made out of carbon fiber, which is admittedly overkill; they claim the materials choice offers better grip for both your hands and the food you're picking up with the business end.

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But the one smart thing they have added is angled tips, meaning when you set them down on a table, you don't have to make that little paper chopstick rest to keep the tips off of the tabletop.

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英杰蔡

6 years ago

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Two thoughts:
1. There's sometimes food on the ends adding extra weight
2. Why not just lean them on your bowl, plate, etc... ?

I don't see anything groundbreaking here. I'm a fan of fine-point chopsticks BUT don't like FAT chopsticks. The fine points are nice BUT I'm afraid the width here might be problematic.

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- Esmond Sit Bo Sheng
  
  英杰蔡
  
  6 years ago
  
  Z
  
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  Just to add to your points, there is also no way you can set your chopsticks down onto the table and not have the tips touch the surface first unless you slam it down.
  
  And yeah, any chopstick using culture either uses a chopstick rest if you want to rest them on the table, or places them on the plate/bowl/dish.
  
  Essentially trying to solve a problem that isn't there IMO.
  
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  - Sean Horita
    
    Esmond Sit Bo Sheng
    
    6 years ago
    
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    +1 on the chopstick rest. That's a whole cottage industry that gets put out of business with an invention like these! (joking)
    
    I've learned there's an etiquette to handling chopsticks in a dinner situation that's akin to being able to hold or use a fork and knife properly. One part of this is how to pick them up and put them down (hint: it takes two hands).
    
    Another cultural question - perhaps for our Chinese friends in the audience - are there any extra points for being able to wield the traditional heavy/long/slippery/square Chinese-style chopsticks, holding close to the ends, eating oily foods without difficulty?
    
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Austin Liu

6 years ago

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Wow. Why was this not invented a thousand years ago? I need this.

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