What is the difference between a Butter Knife and a Butter Spreader?

What is the difference between a Butter Serving Knife and Butter Spreader Knife? The butter serving knife sits with the butter dish. It usually has a pointy end and is meant for someone to poke a piece of butter pat and place it on a bread plate and then return to the butter dish. The butter spreader which sits at each place setting and has a rounded end, is used to spread the butter at each individual place setting. The little cut out in the knife is to prevent the bread from tearing, and the butter doesn’t stick to the knife for an easy spread. Sometimes there is a little cut out in the butter serving knife as well which in that case it is just so the butter doesn’t stick to the knife for an easy transfer.

Most patterns will have a butter knife included in the hostess set but not all. Butter Spreaders would be listed under “additional place setting pieces” if there is a spreader available in that pattern.

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