The Food Section

Destination Japan

Silicone chopstick rests by Shukoh Hayashi are twisted to form the shape of a helix. $30 for five.

The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) has created Destination: Japan, a collection of more than 100 products (exclusive to the MoMA Store) created by established and emerging Japanese designers. We've sifted through them to find culinary-oriented products, from cooking gadgets to barware and tableware. Below are highlights of some of the more stylish, useful, intriguing, and amusing designs.

This earthenware apple-shaped jar has a wooden serving spoon at its core. $55.

Vegetables and fruits are rendered as cartoonish monsters and embroidered on a cotton T-shirt. $45.

This PVC "Patisserie Ring" (also available in blackberry and ice cream) is made of PVC embedded with Swarovski crystals. $45 to $65.

This ceramic grater's base is made of non-slip silicone so it won't budge as you grate away, even with one hand, at the kitchen counter. $28.

The quirky silicone pig cooking lid releases steam through the pig's snout as food cooks below. $18.

A folding bread board folds small for a round loaf or extends to slice a baguette. $75.

The Sushi Bar Card Game is a memory game containing cards with illustrations of fish commonly used for sushi. $29.95.

This bento box contains two germ-resistant silicone rubber containers. An air valve controls the air pressure inside the box to prevent food from sticking to the lid. $20.

Originally created for a Japanese ramen chain, this streamlined spork was designed to eliminate waste created by disposal chopsticks. $12.

The surface of this sake carafe (and cup set) resembles ice. A contour in the side provides a place for your thumb for ease of pouring. $55.

Great Grater

Fans of Microplane, the maker of ultra-sharp and incredibly effective zesters and graters based on woodworking tools, has applied its brilliant design to re-engineer the classic box grater. Like the original, the Microplane Box Grater has four cutting surfaces to zest citrus and slice, shred, or finely grate vegetables, chocolate, or cheese. Just be extra careful of your knuckles the next time you make potato pancakes. $34.95 at Williams-Sonoma.

Espresso Anywhere

The latest from the Department of Culinary Mashups (see also the Rossini Pie Server) is the Handpresso espresso maker, which looks like a bike pump on too much caffeine. For mobile baristas everywhere, the cordless gadget works by inserting an E.S.E. coffee pod, adding hot water, and pumping the device by hand to build enough pressure to pull a shot of espresso. €99 at Handpresso.com.

A Leg Up

There comes a time when strapping a toddler into a high chair can turn into a nightly struggle of the wills. The alternative -- sitting the child in an adult chair -- is a messy proposition leading to dripped yogurt and dropped noodles. The KABOOST chair booster offers a solution that lifts a child to table-height without the stigma of the high chair. A sort of reverse booster seat, KABOOST jacks up an adult chair from its legs. The device adjusts to fit any chair and is portable. $39.99 at Buy Buy Baby.

Nut Job

Made in Germany, the Nusskubus Nutcracker is comprised of two beechwood cubes with different sized hollows carved in the sides for cracking various nuts: "Simply place a nut in one of the hollows and slam the two cubes together." It's stylish, functional, and, slam, therapeutic. $35 at MoMA.

Get a Grip

MKS Knives, the creation of designer Adam Simha, meld steel blades forged in Sheffield, England, with shiny red, green, and blue vinyl bike handles (pictured here is a mezzaluna). The knives, in various shapes and sizes, range from $150 to $225 at the MKS Design Shop. [via CHOW]

Down with PTZ?

Are you down with PTZ? That's the "Perfect Temperature Zone," according to the makers of the Brugo travel mug.

As you tip the thermal mug, hot coffee is released into a small chamber at the top where it cools down before reaching PTZ. $19.95 in multiple colors at Brugo.

Spoiler Alert

When did you open that baby food? And, how many days months has it been since you unsealed that jar of mayonnaise? The New York Times recently pointed to the DaysAgo "digital day counter," a nifty timer which attaches to a container either magnetically or by suction to track the declining freshness of your food. $10 for a pair at howmanydaysago.com.

Chop Chop

The smart design of the Miller Cutting Board, made of laminated bamboo, includes a removable stainless steel bowl for sweeping away the errant garlic peel or collecting your finely chopped shallots. $28, including three bowls, at Furni. Via outblush.

Tricky Trivet

Space-starved New Yorkers, take note: the nifty Propeller Trivet by Danish design firm Menu collapses on its axis, so you can stow it away in a kitchen drawer. I spotted the silicone gadget at at the Milan branch of Italian housewares mini-chain D CUBE, but you can also find it stateside at the Museum of Modern Art. $18 at the MoMA Store.

Coffee for One

Why suffer through undrinkable office coffee, when you can make your own individual brew? Perfect for the workplace, the Coffee for One coffee-maker comprises a ceramic french press pot with a matching, stacking mug. One pot brews 14 ounces of coffee. $26 in red, blue, black, and aqua at wishingfish.com.

Coffee for One

Why suffer through undrinkable office coffee, when you can make your own individual brew? Perfect for the workplace, the Coffee for One coffee-maker comprises a ceramic french press pot with a matching, stacking mug. One pot brews 14 ounces of coffee. $26 in red, blue, black, and aqua at wishingfish.com.

Allium Express

Inventor and former chef Herman Rasmuson and designer Lisa Flodin have created the Garlic Card, a minimalist grater patterned on the design of a credit card (the embossed letters scrape away bits of garlic as you rub the clove along the card). We don't really recommend that you add the Garlic Card to your wallet, but for hardcore gastronomes, this might just be the perfect travel accessory. $5.99 in assorted colors at Stacks and Stacks.

Allium Express

Inventor and former chef Herman Rasmuson and designer Lisa Flodin have created the Garlic Card, a minimalist grater patterned on the design of a credit card (the embossed letters scrape away bits of garlic as you rub the clove along the card). We don't really recommend that you add the Garlic Card to your wallet, but for hardcore gastronomes, this might just be the perfect travel accessory. $5.99 in assorted colors at Stacks and Stacks.

Nice Cubes

Who knew that LEGO was in the kitchen supply business? As seen at Cool Hunting, this LEGO ice cube tray makes 10 ice cubes in the shape of the classic toy bricks. Use them to chill your favorite drink or as the building blocks to create your own personal ice sculpture. Also from LEGO: coasters, a corkscrew, and salt and pepper shakers. The ice cube trays are $7.99 each at LEGO.

Nice Cubes

Who knew that LEGO was in the kitchen supply business? As seen at Cool Hunting, this LEGO ice cube tray makes 10 ice cubes in the shape of the classic toy bricks. Use them to chill your favorite drink or as the building blocks to create your own personal ice sculpture. Also from LEGO: coasters, a corkscrew, and salt and pepper shakers. The ice cube trays are $7.99 each at LEGO.

Pumpkin Power

When it comes to serious pumpkin-carving, scooping out the flesh and seeds with a plain old spoon just won't cut it. That's where the Pumpkin Gutter comes in. Attach the device as you would a drill bit to any electric or cordless drill, and you'll be "gutting" your pumpkin in seconds (works on squash too). $11.95 at Get Carving Quicker. Via Make.

Pumpkin Power

When it comes to serious pumpkin-carving, scooping out the flesh and seeds with a plain old spoon just won't cut it. That's where the Pumpkin Gutter comes in. Attach the device as you would a drill bit to any electric or cordless drill, and you'll be "gutting" your pumpkin in seconds (works on squash too). $11.95 at Get Carving Quicker. Via Make.

Cold Comfort

A robe for your romaine? How about some outerwear for your Absolut? As seen at Oh Gizmo! the Ice Jacket is a mold that will encase a bottle of liquor in a sleeve of frozen water. Just insert the bottle in the mold, add water, and place in the freezer to chill. When the device is removed, a built-in drip tray collects water as the ice melts. The Ice Jacket will be available for delivery in the U.S. starting in January 2007. For more information, visit icejacket.com.

Cold Comfort

A robe for your romaine? How about some outerwear for your Absolut? As seen at Oh Gizmo! the Ice Jacket is a mold that will encase a bottle of liquor in a sleeve of frozen water. Just insert the bottle in the mold, add water, and place in the freezer to chill. When the device is removed, a built-in drip tray collects water as the ice melts. The Ice Jacket will be available for delivery in the U.S. starting in January 2007. For more information, visit icejacket.com.

Sporty Spork

Brendan I. Koerner's "The Goods" column in the New York Times looks at the spork created by Swedish product designer Joachim Nordwall for the outdoor gear company Light My Fire. The stylish new design breaks down and reconstructs the classic cafeteria model with the practical needs of campers in mind: the spoon and fork elements have been divided and set at opposite ends to make a two-headed utensil with a serrated edge. Made of a heat resistant plastic that can withstand boiling, The Light My Fire Spork is strong enough that it can be used as a tent stake, writes Koerner. $9.95 for a mulit-colored four-pack at REI.

Sporty Spork

Brendan I. Koerner's "The Goods" column in the New York Times looks at the spork created by Swedish product designer Joachim Nordwall for the outdoor gear company Light My Fire. The stylish new design breaks down and reconstructs the classic cafeteria model with the practical needs of campers in mind: the spoon and fork elements have been divided and set at opposite ends to make a two-headed utensil with a serrated edge. Made of a heat resistant plastic that can withstand boiling, The Light My Fire Spork is strong enough that it can be used as a tent stake, writes Koerner. $9.95 for a mulit-colored four-pack at REI.

No More Sobbing While Slicing

In her latest "Food Stuff" column in the New York Times, Florence Fabricant points to these Onion Goggles which promise to prevent crying in the kitchen -- over onions, at least --  by placing a barrier between thiopropanal sulfoxide, the irritant released by onions when cut, and your eyes. While the breathe only through your mouth and not your nose method has always worked for me, these specialized spectacles might come in handy if prepping a large volume of onions (that is, if you can stand the nerd factor while wearing them). $19.99 in black or white at The Cook's Warehouse.

No More Sobbing While Slicing

In her latest "Food Stuff" column in the New York Times, Florence Fabricant points to these Onion Goggles which promise to prevent crying in the kitchen -- over onions, at least --  by placing a barrier between thiopropanal sulfoxide, the irritant released by onions when cut, and your eyes. While the breathe only through your mouth and not your nose method has always worked for me, these specialized spectacles might come in handy if prepping a large volume of onions (that is, if you can stand the nerd factor while wearing them). $19.99 in black or white at The Cook's Warehouse.

A Robe for Your Romaine

As seen in Time Out New York, the Salad Sac promises to extend the life of your salad leaves (and herbs, greens, and other vegetables too) by enrobing them in super-absorbent 100% cotton teri cloth. As your coddled salad cools off in the fridge, excess moisture escapes into the pouch -- a veritable spa treatment for your veggies. But, does it work? Let us know in the comments. $10.95 at The Spoon Sisters.

A Robe for Your Romaine