The field of the present invention is tongs principally used for food items.
Tongs have long been used to handle hot food items in a kitchen environment. Kitchen tongs, commonly referred to as a pair of tongs, frequently employ two arms pivotally attached to one another at one end and having jaws at the other. A resilient spring biasing the arms to an open position allows the user to conveniently compress the arms together to grip food items for manipulation and transport. A lock to retain the two arms closed together principally for purposes of storage has been found useful. Such locking mechanisms include simple rings which may be drawn along the arms of a pair of tongs away from the pivot until the arms are retained in close proximity.