Practical Travel Utensil Sets You Can Tuck in Your Purse

Just hours after I ate a bowl of takeout chili with a disposable cardboard spoon, I started searching for more pleasant alternatives. Here are some practical, beautiful travel utensil solutions you can pack in your purse or car to make mealtime away from home more pleasant for your taste buds and lips!

Have you tried the new eco-friendly style of disposable utensils?

man and woman on a park bench eating icing cream with wooden spoons watching a cruise ship go by

Last week, I had the absolute joy of hosting my sister from Montana, who came to visit us in our Canadian home.

As we traveled around seeing the sights, we stopped often to sample the fun treats at nearby restaurants and snack shops.

In just a few days, I discovered a whole new range of biodegradable and recyclable alternatives to plastic utensils, including:

A spoon for ice cream made of popsicle stick wood (or is it cardboard?). Whatever it was made of, it tasted like I was licking my delicious peanut butter chocolate ice cream (pictured above) off a wooden picnic table. What a shame.
The drinks on our beautiful ferry ride came with a paper straw, the cardboard kind that disintegrates on your lips while you’re trying to sip a slushie…
A hot coffee cup lid made of cardboard! (Oh, it tasted terrible! The lid, that is. The coffee was delicious.)
And the straw that broke the camel’s back? Last night we ate chili, CHILI!, with a cardboard spoon. I commented on Instagram that it felt like I was eating dinner out of an Amazon box!

My Instagram messages lit up with comments from people who had never experienced the cardboard spoon situation (and didn’t want to!), and from people who had already gotten prepared so they could avoid it in the future.

Here’s what I learned.

Creative ways to take travel utensils on the go

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My Instagram friends quickly confirmed there’s wisdom in traveling prepared in the utensil department these days. Just as we now keep a stack of reusable shopping bags in the trunk of our car (since plastic bags aren’t even an option at our stores anymore), it’s time to think about utensils, too.

Here are some ideas for taking travel utensils on the go:

If you’re crafty, you can sew a roll-up utensil holder and fill it with utensils to keep in the glove box of your car. You can also buy them ready-made. Here’s an option.
One lady says her husband keeps stacks of plastic spoons and forks in his pickup truck. (An idea if you can still buy them where you live.)
Since I’m not always in the car when I need a travel-sized utensil, I like the idea of a fold-up utensil that I can tuck into my purse. Here’s the fold-up spoon I’d like to try.
Lots of travel utensil sets come in handy cases. I love that. Here’s a travel utensil set with a case that I like.

The one downside to travel utensils is that you’ll have to remember to wash them between uses. You might need to find a restroom to rinse them off before you can get home and wash them in soapy water. Other than that detail, I think travel utensils are a fantastic idea.

Did you know you can get foldable, collapsible stainless steel straws?

Years ago, I was given a collapsible stainless steel straw with a carrying case as a gift. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve pulled it out and used it in the last few weeks. It’s absolutely genius, and it feels like a glorious luxury when all your friends are sipping soft drinks and slushies through disintegrating paper straws. Here are some collapsible straws similar to mine. Mine fits very nicely into the pocket of my purse, right next to a little bottle of hand sanitizer.

Travel Utensil Sets & Collapsible Straws: Great Alternatives to Cardboard Spoons

I searched online for nice travel utensil sets and collapsible straws and found them in a variety of places. I’ll link some below. I haven’t ordered any of these specific ones yet, so check out the reviews and buy from places you trust.

Alternatives to cardboard spoons and straws found on Amazon

If you love the convenience of shopping on Amazon, here are some options for travel utensil sets and straws you can find there. You might want to add one to your next order.

Although there are travel set options made of plastic, I chose the stainless steel ones, since I find they’re so much nicer to eat and drink with!

I have a similar collapsible stainless steel straw with a holder and cleaner in my purse, and I love pulling it out to use on a regular basis!
This simple travel utensil set comes with a case that can be tucked into a backpack, purse, lunch box, or the glove box of your car!