Friday Review: Animal Food Picks

These food picks are absolutely the go-to item out of all my bento supplies. When you're running late or your brain isn't working, or you failed to prep a single thing, these little guys are life savers. They will make anything cute. Stick a few into an ordinary sandwich, and you've got a zoo. They're handy for quail eggs, fruit, cheese, and veggies, and also eliminate the need for utensils. 

There are two different types displayed here: single picks and what I call "multi" picks. The ones on the left are from one package and came with short ones and tall ones. I've used the short ones for skewering string cheese or roll ups, which was super cute in my coworkers lunch bento, and I plan to use the tall ones for sandwich "stackers." The multi picks on the right are great for mushier things like fruit or mini sandwiches on soft breads.

I will say that I have not used both the tall single skewers or the tall (elephant and giraffe) multi skewers because they do not fit well into the bento boxes we have. If I laid them down sideways, that might work, but I tend to pack the boxes full, so there's really no room. The shorter picks all can stand straight up and still fit, so they are more useful. 

They're reusable and more durable than party picks or toothpicks, and super easy to wash - I just dump them all into a dish of hot soapy water and swish it around a bit. Just don't let them go down the drain, especially if you have a garbage disposal! 

These types of picks should cost you no more than $5.00 max, for a package of at least 10-15. They also come in lots of different varieties, like hearts, flowers, leaves, even little hats. If you don't have a store that sells this type of thing in your neighborhood, Amazon online has a pretty good selection. But if it's over $5.00, they're totally ripping you off. My single skewer picks are going for $11.99 on Amazon and I bought them for $1.50 at the Daiso store.