Chork (chopstick + fork)
A “chork” (chopstick + fork) is a food utensil that that looks like a fork at one end, but then branches out into a pair of chopsticks. The product was designed for Americans who are uncomfortable using chopsticks. The word “chork” was trademarked by the Brown Innovation Group, with a first use date of June 1, 2010.
However, “chork” has been cited in print before 2010. “The combination of chopsticks and fork could be called chork sticks, or maybe chopforks” was posted on the newsgroup sci.physics on November 4, 2005. “Chopsticks + Fork= The Chork: The convenience of a fork and the style of chopsticks” was posted on Twitter on April 12, 2007.
The chork was popularized in August 2016, when the Panda Express restaurant chain introduced the product at its restaurants.
TheChork.com
THE CHORK® IS A THREE WAY UTENSIL.
The Chork is cost-effective for restaurant owners and engaging for everyone from chopstick aficionados to virtual newbies. Unlike anything currently on the market, the Chork is an innovative and unique product that will certainly stand the test of time.
Google Groups: sci.physics
the chopstick is inferior to the fork
LEFTY
11/4/05
Somebody should make some chopsticks with forked ends, sort of like the spork (spoon-fork).
The combination of chopsticks and fork could be called chork sticks, or maybe chopforks.
So, the West is still “way ahead” of the East in terms of technology.
Twitter
digg feed
@diggfeed
Chopsticks + Fork= The Chork: The convenience of a fork and the style of chopsticks. Pretty ingenious! http://tinyurl.com/yoc4kn
9:17 PM - 12 Apr 2007
Twitter
wilsonchun
@wilsonchun
thinks the idea of “chork” (chopsticks + fork) is ingenious. perfect combination of mastering the wooden sticks and being a barbarian.
5:08 PM - 18 May 2009
Twitter
Mark Sikes
@snanderbatch
New new fave word. Chork. Half Chopstick, half fork. Did that really need to be invented? http://snurl.com/te8a5
7:02 PM - 23 Nov 2009
Twitter
Eric Wu (๑˃̵ᴗ˂̵)و
@eywu
What happens when you cross a Chopstick with a Fork? You get a Chork! http://cli.gs/chork via @winni3
6:15 PM - 16 Jul 2009
August 2011, Boxoffice, “Special Report: Food Glorious Food: Should Your Theater Go Gourmet” by J. Sperling Reich, pg. 21:
James E. Heard, Jr., COO of Muvico Theatres, says the company is looking abroad for new and exciting concession ideas that could work at their multiplexes in California, Florida and Illinois. “We’re looking at a world market approach in the future,” he says. “Maybe we’ll add some Asian fusion in the concession stand where we may sell a lo-mein and package it nicely in a Chinese togo container with a chork, this neat little fork that I found which is a chopstick and a fork combined.”
30 October 2013, Washington (DC) Post, “The chork rules at Newton’s Noodles; Dennis Friedman opens the newest Asian assembly line kitchen in downtown D.C.”:
The most interesting detail to spring from Newton’s Noodles in downtown Washington, the fast-casual spinoff from the owner of the eclectic Newton’s Table in Bethesda, is its signature Chork.
Long and slender, the plastic utensil combines chopsticks and a fork. It is used to distinguish the pan-Asian feeder from its competition. “Home of the Chork,” reads the slogan on the black T-shirts of the staff members animating the assembly line and kitchen brought to life by chef Dennis Friedman.
Twitter
Lisa Jennings
@livetodineout
And BREAKING: @PandaExpress is considering a move toward the “chork,” or the chopsticks/fork
4:13 PM - 10 Aug 2016
12 August 2016, Nation’s Restaurant News, “America: Meet the chork” by Lisa Jennings:
“Cheater” chopsticks, or training chopsticks that many families buy for kids, have been available for years. But it seems there is a growing need for hybrid utensils that make chopstick use more accessible.
The chork is a product of Brown Innovation Group, which debuted the product at the 2010 National Restaurant Association trade show, where it won an innovation award, said Jordan Brown, founder and creative director. It hit the market in 2011, and is growing its presence in restaurants and food trucks across the country. Wedding and event planners also love the product.
Time magazine
People Are Loving the New Panda Express ‘Chork’ for the Chopstick-Challenged
Raisa Bruner @raisabruner Aug. 17, 2016
Giving the people what they want
It’s chopsticks! It’s a fork! No, it’s the “chork” — a tweezer-like chopsticks-fork hybrid. Get used to the word: fast casual chain Panda Express might make the unusual utensil go mainstream, just as KFC did for the spork.
Travel + Leisure
Half-Chopstick, Half-Fork; The ‘Chork’ is Coming
by Mike Pomranz August 18, 2016
This story originally appeared on FWx.com.
(...)
The Chork brand fork-chopstick hybrid has been around for some time. (For example, Amazon lists the product as being sold since 2011), but the company is possibly poised get a big boost by another brand that melds American and Chinese culture: Panda Express. According to a tweet from Nation’s Restaurant News’ Lisa Jennings, America’s largest Chinese fast food chain has hinted that it “is considering a move toward the ‘chork.’”
The Huffington Post
Behold The Chork, Panda Express’ Fork-Chopstick Combo
08/26/2016 11:49 am ET
Foodbeast.com
A couple weeks ago, Panda Express started hyping up these new Chorks. The plastic utensil features a fork on one end with a pair of chopsticks on the other.
Like the wooden chopsticks found in most Asian restaurants, you can snap the Chork in half and they’ll act as traditional chopsticks. If you’re unfamiliar with how to use chopsticks, leaving them connected lets you train with them.
(Trademark)
Word Mark CHORK
Goods and Services IC 008. US 023 028 044. G & S: Cutlery, namely, forks having chopstick handles. FIRST USE: 20100601. FIRST USE IN COMMERCE: 20100601
Mark Drawing Code (3) DESIGN PLUS WORDS, LETTERS, AND/OR NUMBERS
Design Search Code 11.01.03 - Forks
11.03.06 - Bowl (empty); Soup bowls, empty; Sugar bowls, empty
27.03.05 - Objects forming letters or numerals
Serial Number 85065640
Filing Date June 17, 2010
Current Basis 1A
Original Filing Basis 1A
Published for Opposition December 7, 2010
Registration Number 3922614
Registration Date February 22, 2011
Owner (REGISTRANT) Brown Innovation Group, Inc CORPORATION UTAH 5568 South Farm Hill Drive Salt Lake City UTAH 84117
Attorney of Record Jason P. Webb
Disclaimer NO CLAIM IS MADE TO THE EXCLUSIVE RIGHT TO USE “CHORK” AND THE DESIGN OF THE COMBINATION FORK-CHOPSTICK APART FROM THE MARK AS SHOWN
Description of Mark The color(s) red and black is/are claimed as a feature of the mark. The mark consists of the word “CHORK” in red lettering with the “O” illustrated as a perspective top view of a bowl with a utensil in black extending from bowl diagonally towards the right.
Type of Mark TRADEMARK
Register PRINCIPAL
Live/Dead Indicator LIVE