You snap the tab at the corner and peel back the cover of your bite-sized packet of Nutella. Its nutty, chocolatey goodness instantly coats the inside of your nostrils. Picking up the knife, you gingerly paint the perfect piece of toast in a fine layer of your favorite morning treat. Ahh, you think to yourself. Europeans really know how to do breakfast right.

Hoping to enjoy every remnant, you work the knife into each corner with the precision of a sculptor. And still, holdouts remain. So when your dining partner gets up to grab yet another danish, you seize your chance. After a cursory glance to make sure no one is watching, you lick that container clean. No shame. Nutella is just that good. But what to do with the evidence?

Enter: The Tidy Table.

A white planter pot-shaped container sits in front of you. It’s unassuming in both size and stature, and nestles nicely between circled hands. In all the places in America I’ve lived and traveled I’ve never seen one, but these little table pots are everywhere in Europe. The cutest little waste baskets to ever dine with you.

That’s right, the Tidy Table is a small waste bin that sits at the center of the table at most European dining establishments. It’s meant to hold your flotsam and jetsam. Think butter wrappers, banana peels, peach pits, pieces of bread you burned in the toaster and other food you decide later you don’t want to eat, or food you did want to eat but, sadly, dropped on the floor.

While Americans would never imagine putting a garbage can at the center of their dining experience, I’m here to tell you we should change our tune.

Here’s why:

1. The Tidy Table makes cleanup easier. Done with that napkin? Wad it up and toss it in the bin (or “bin it” as they say on The Great British Bake Off, the best show ever known to humankind).
2. The Tidy Table makes your plate more appealing. Now that you don’t have to make room for your banana peel, you have a lot more real estate for edibles. Especially handy for folks with OCD or those who like extra room so none of their food touches.
3. The Tidy Table gives your plate extra life. You can go back for seconds and use the same plate since you aren’t carting around a bunch of trash or food remnants. A win for you and for the environment.
4. The Tidy Table hides your shame. Did you eat three Nutella packets at breakfast (and secretly have three more in your pockets). You don’t have to take the walk of shame to the garbage can. Tuck those holders of mouth-magic away in the bottom of your bin and take the stride of pride out the door.
5. The Tidy Table feels more civilised. And yes, that’s spelled “civilised” with an “s”, and not a zed. We are in Europe after all.

For all of these reasons, and more that I simply cannot explain unless you’ve experienced the life-changing power of the Tidy Table for yourself, I’m advocating that we adopt this miraculous invention in the states. We’ve said yes to IKEA, now it’s time to take ye hence to pick up a tidy table of your own. They sell them. I checked. We just call them by the wrong name.

But as Shakespeare said, “A rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Perhaps he was talking about the Tidy Table, he is European after all. And you need this. By virtue, it gives you a tidy little life.

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