In fine dining restaurants, you are not likely to see table forks being used, and instead, there will be specialist forks for different types of food. Toasting Fork

Toasting forks are used for holding food over an open flame. They most commonly have two tines, but some types will have three. The tines will be sharp so that the food will be speared and help securely over the flame, to prevent it from falling off into the fire and being wasted. A carving fork is designed specifically with the sole purpose of holding a joint of meat in position with one hand while you use a knife to carve it with the other hand. Some people may only see this type of fork when they visit a restaurant, but in some parts of the world, such as England, this is a commonly owned fork that is used on a weekly basis on Sundays when many people have a roast dinner. This fork will have a large handle that enables the user to get a good grip on it, and two large, sharp tines, which are long enough to stab all the way through a slab of meat. You can find carving forks in a wide array of designs, with some being classical-looking while others are more decorative. High-quality carving forks can be quite expensive, but these are nice items to bring out on special occasions, such as at Thanksgiving, and they can also be passed down through the family as an heirloom. Disposable Fork Disposable forks are typically made from plastic, and they are useful if you buy a takeout meal to eat on-the-go. They are commonly found in pre-prepared salad boxes in grocery stores or cafes, but many retailers are phasing them out in an attempt to reduce the amount of single-use plastic being made.Disposable forks are also a common feature of children’s birthday parties, as they are inexpensive and can be thrown out after use that saves on having to wash up. Spork Serving forks are larger than dinner forks and are usually sold in a pair with a matching serving spoon. These two items are typically used together to dish out a big plate of food that will sit in the center of the table, such as a side salad or a large bowl of pasta.

Dinner forks are larger than table forks, and these will most often be found in fine dining restaurants. They are the largest of all the commonly used forks, generally measuring seven inches in length. Salad Fork

Table Fork

This type of fork is shorter than both a table fork and a fruit fork, with a slightly slimmer head. It has three tines and is commonly seen in place settings at fine restaurants above where the plate is positioned. This type of fork is designed for use with desserts such as pies, tarts, cakes, and other sweet dishes. Most people only have a few different types of dining fork in their home cutlery draw, and you may be surprised to find that there are actually over 30 different types of forks used for dining. This fork can double up as a cake fork or dessert fork, but in very fine dining establishments, a pastry fork will be separate to a cake and dessert fork. Pastry forks are usually quite small and are intended to be held in the right hand while the left hand is used to hold the plate. This is why the edge of the fork is sharp and functions as a knife so that you won’t need two hands for holding two utensils. Chip Fork

You could use this fork at home when serving fish to impress your guests, but if you are serving fish that has already been filleted, then a regular table fork would be more suitable. Oyster Fork Despite their name, spaghetti forks are designed to use when eating all sorts of long pasta, such as linguine, fettuccine, and tagliatelle. These forks will typically have three tines, and each tine has ridges in it that makes them better able to grip the pasta that is wrapped around them.Though most people will use a spoon to eat ice cream, an ice cream fork might be used with this dessert in very fancy restaurants. This type of fork has a wide, shallow, rounded shape similar to a soup spoon, but has segments cut out to create a central tine, giving it the look of a fork. These types of forks are often very intricately designed and are nice to use on special occasions such as weddings. The spoon part of the fork is used for scooping and eating ice cream, while the fork part of it can be used to cut and spear more firm types of ice cream. Lunch Fork A pastry fork is made for, you guess it, eating pastry. These forks have three or four tines, with the left-hand tine being larger and flattened with a beveled edge, which allows it to double up as a sort of knife for slicing the pastry into smaller, mouth-sized portions.