# Butter Bells...anyone use one? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 28, 2010, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/butter-bells-anyone-use-one/551827 "2010-08-28T22:24:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2010, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/butter-bells-anyone-use-one/551827/21 "2010-08-29T16:20:34Z")
Seems so much simpler to leave just a quarter stick out at a time. If you are so slow to use the butter that a quarter stick would spoil … leave out half a stick. It’s dry, doesn’t require packing … I’m not seeing the utility of these butter dishes at all. ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21906_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2010, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/butter-bells-anyone-use-one/551827/22 "2010-08-29T16:51:49Z")
I have your basic cheap rectangular glass butter dish with a lid. It holds one stick of butter. We don’t use tons of the stuff, but I’ve never had it go bad. It does get a bit loose in the summer. ---
**Author:** ![Renee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/renee/32/287_2.png) [@Renee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2010, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/butter-bells-anyone-use-one/551827/23 "2010-08-29T17:17:08Z")
> [@runner pat](#): > > > [@Renee](#): > > > > Thanks for that, I was confused. So, the butter stays under water…when you pull it up to use it, isn’t it all drippy and wet? Seem simpler to just leave a butter dish out on the counter–I’ve never had butter go bad that way. But it is a pretty little dish. > > > > edit: Another question: It looks like you have to soften the butter then shove it into the bell before you submerge it. Correct? > > Butter is fat, repels water. You could do a quick wipe with a towel on the outside for any drips. Or a quick shake. Yeah, I know the butter wouldn’t mix with the water, but the surface of the butter isn’t going to be flat, and it seems like drops of water would still kind of stick to it, plus the actual bell would be wet, plus the packing of the thing in the first place…just seems like a more complicated procedure than putting a regular stick of butter in a regular butter dish (which is conveniently butter-stick shaped, so no packing required), and requires no shaking of water or drying of anything to use. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2010, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/butter-bells-anyone-use-one/551827/24 "2010-08-29T17:26:06Z")
I just buy spreadable butter and keep it in the fridge. ---
**Author:** ![filling\_pages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9bd4f/32.png) [@filling\_pages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filling_pages)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2010, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/butter-bells-anyone-use-one/551827/25 "2010-08-30T17:54:50Z")
My mom had one for years, and it was great. Before that we just left a stick on the counter in a regular glass butter dish. The thing is, this is Florida - it never went bad, but all through the summer the butter would melt in the dish. Great for buttering unwarmed bread, bad for not making a mess when someone picks up the lid. The butter bell looked nice, kept the butter unmelted but soft, and kept bugs/cats/babies from trying to get to it. ---
**Author:** ![AndyPolley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/54ee81/32.png) [@AndyPolley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AndyPolley)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2010, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/butter-bells-anyone-use-one/551827/26 "2010-08-30T20:06:29Z")
I love my butter bell. Water on the butter isn’t a problem, so little of it ‘sticks’ I don’t notice it. A quick shake is all it takes. I usually leave a stick of butter out of the fridge before I go to bed, then it’s soft enough to cram into the bell the next morning. 5 seconds in the microwave in a pinch. Changing the water isn’t a big deal. If you let the butter go for weeks without using it, you might have a problem. I change it when I refill the butter, and it’s been fine. Go for it, **kittenblue** , you’ll love it. ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2010, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/butter-bells-anyone-use-one/551827/27 "2010-08-30T20:21:18Z")
**kittenblue** , I am positive I’ve seen butter bells at one of the kitchen stores at Aurora Farms, FWIW. No idea on the price tho - I’m sure they are comparable to what you bought online. My mom kept butter out in a Tupperware butter dish my entire life. Now she’s upgraded to a crystal-looking-plastic dish and I have the Tupperware one. I have the same issue you have - my kitchen is too cold in the winter. Now I just buy spreadable butter-food. ---
**Author:** ![kittenblue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ba8739/32.png) [@kittenblue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kittenblue)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2010, 8:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/butter-bells-anyone-use-one/551827/28 "2010-08-30T20:32:49Z")
I checked both of them the last time I was down there…maybe there was a third one I missed. The Corning store, and the one across from it. Doesn’t matter, it’ll be here soon! ---
**Author:** ![Cyros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a698b9/32.png) [@Cyros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyros)\ **Post date:** [August 30, 2010, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/butter-bells-anyone-use-one/551827/29 "2010-08-30T23:10:14Z")
I bought a butter bell last year and love it. I don’t use very much butter but when I am baking or when I really want that buttered toast it is handy to have. I have left it for up to a month at a time and have never had it go rancid. A good buy that I would recommend to anyone. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/butter-bells-anyone-use-one/551827.md?page=1)