THAT! Inventions’ SpreadTHAT! II is a butter knife that looks like it’s been designed by Porsche. It’s a beautifully crafted product that’s won its share of awards. But it tries to solve a dilemma that never really was a problem to begin with.
This serrated knife made from a temperature-conducting metal, coated with titanium, transfers heat from your hand across the surface of the blade. It’s supposed to soften the butter as you strip it from the cold stick, then spread it on your toast, all thanks to the heat transferred from your hand. Neat, right?
But who is this product for? Definitely not me. I drive a Scion. With a leaky tire. I haven’t washed it in six months.
Anyway.
How it works: Imagine cutting off a pat of butter and placing it on a piece of toast. Now think about where you cut the pat of butter from — most likely from the end of the stick. The SpreadTHAT! II wants you to scrape the TOP of the stick of butter.
Does it work?: With its serrated edge, it scrapes the butter off in thin strands fairly nicely in the first two or three passes. But as I held the knife, my hand got slightly colder and the butter became difficult to scrape. The heat and cold balanced out in the blade, making it tough to scrape.
On top of that, the butter slides around on the dish. So I tried holding the butter in its wrapper, but the heat from my hand made the stick of butter slip and slide. Anarchy. It worked better when I wore a thermal glove.
Spreading the butter on the toast was much more calming. The knife did its job there.
Pros: It’s not sharp enough to be dangerous.
Cons: There’s no sharp edge, so it doesn’t cut bread. It doesn’t heat up that well. It does one thing — spread butter for a premium price. And it doesn’t do that especially well.
Cost: $25, Compleat Kitchen at Kahala Mall
Worth it?: It’s a utensil to use on a dish made by Lamborghini, with butter from Scotland and bread shipped fresh from France. If you have the money to burn, buy this beautiful knife.
