Sea Creature Sauce Dish, Square Speckled Ceramic Plate for Soy and Dips

A small square sauce dish in speckled porcelain, 3.3 inches across, with a sea creature drawn in dark blue across the bottom of the well. Pick one of six, a puffer fish, a crab, a squid, a shrimp, a flounder or a big-eyed fish, or take all six as a set.

No bottle of soy passed up and down the table. No dip spreading across the plate. Everyone gets their own little dish, and each one has something different looking up from it.

A plain dish does the job, and this one gives the table something to look at

Most sauce dishes are a white circle, and nobody notices them until they are empty. These carry a drawing in the style of old blue-and-white tableware, a single creature in loose brush strokes with soft shading, so the dish still has a picture in it once the soy is gone. The glaze is a pale gray with a faint green cast and small dark flecks all over. Around the rim it breaks into a toasted brown that runs a little way down the sides.

The shape is just as considered. It is a soft square with rounded corners, and the corners lift a little above the middle of each side, so from the table it has a low, wavy outline. A small foot underneath raises it clear of the cloth, and the dishes nest in a stack when they go back in the cupboard.

One dish for each sauce, right where you reach

At 3.3 inches square and just over an inch high, it holds a splash of soy for sushi, the vinegar and chili oil that go with dumplings, a spoon of wasabi or a little pickled ginger. A shallow pour covers the floor of the well, so you are not filling a bowl just to have something to dip into.

Off the dinner table it works just as well for olives, salted nuts or a pinch of flaky salt beside a cheese board. The glaze is microwave safe, so a dip can be warmed in the dish it is served in.

Six creatures, so pick a favorite or take them all

Each design is sold on its own. Buy two or three of the same creature, or mix them so every place at the table has its own. The puffer fish and the crab are the boldest of the six, drawn with thick round outlines that read from across the table. The squid, the shrimp and the flounder are finer and more detailed, and the big-eyed fish, all lips and one huge eye, is the most playful of the lot.

The Set of 6 brings one of each, which is the easiest way to lay a table for six without anyone getting the same dish twice.

Specifications

Type: Sauce and dipping dish

Material: Porcelain

Glaze: Glossy pale gray with dark speckles and a brown-edged rim

Decoration: One sea creature drawn in dark blue in the well

Designs: Puffer Fish, Crab, Squid, Shrimp, Flounder, Big Eye Fish

Shape: Square with rounded corners, lifted corners and a low foot

Dimensions: 3.3 x 3.3 x 1.1 in (8.5 x 8.5 x 2.8 cm)

Microwave safe: Yes

Natural variation: The speckles and the brown rim vary slightly from dish to dish

Use: Soy sauce, dips, condiments and small snacks

Package Includes

Single design:

1x Sea Creature Sauce Dish in the design you choose

Set of 6:

6x Sea Creature Sauce Dish, one of each design