Food and beverage tray

Claim 2

A food and beverage tray designed so that a user can simultaneously support the tray and a beverage container thereon comfortably with a single hand, said tray comprising a bottom having an upper bottom surface and an outer bottom surface opposite the upper surface; a food containing area; a beverage container recess formed in the bottom; at least one thumb placement surface next to the container recess; and a continuous sidewall radially connected to the bottom with a sidewall outer surface which transitions to the outer surface of the bottom and a continuous flange located on an upper end of the sidewall, said flange extending outwardly toward the outer perimeter of the tray from said continuous sidewall and away from said food containing area and said beverage container recess, and said continuous sidewall being downwardly angled in the region of said container recess so as to form said thumb placement surface, there being a difference in height between the height of the sidewall adjacent the beverage container recess and the height of the sidewall at the thumb placement surface, such that said height of the sidewall adjacent said beverage container recess is about 0.125 to about 0.50 inches greater than said height of the sidewall at the thumb placement surface, where said sidewall height is the distance from the top surface of said sidewall to said outer bottom surface.

Claim 3

The food and beverage tray of claim 1 including a stacking lug means located on an outer surface of the sidewall at a part Of the tray adjacent the food containing area and opposite the container recess.

Claim 4

The food and beverage tray of claim 1 further comprising a dividing rib separating the beverage container recess from the food containing area of the tray where said rib has an undersurface which at its intersection with the sidewall has a height no more than about one-half of the overall height of the tray when measured from the bottom of the tray and wherein said rib extends from a first said sidewall on one side of the tray to an opposing sidewall on the other side of said tray, and said rib has a height which is higher than the height of said rib at said sidewall intersection, said heights being measured from the bottom of the tray.

Claim 5

The food and beverage tray of claim 1 comprising thermoplastic or thermoplastic foam.

Claim 6

The food and beverage tray of claim 1 comprising a foam laminate comprising a polystyrene foam core layer and upper and lower layers of polystyrene

Claim 7

The food and beverage tray of claim 5 wherein the upper layer has a density greater-than the density of the lower layer.

Claim 8

The food and beverage tray of claim 1 wherein the beverage container recess has a raised portion on its undersurface sized to fit into the bottom of a beverage can having a recessed bottom.

Claim 9

The food and beverage tray of claim 1 comprising paper pulp.

Claim 10

A food and beverage tray designed so that a user can simultaneously support the tray and a beverage container thereon comfortably with a single hand, said tray comprising a bottom having an upper bottom surface and an outer bottom surface opposite the upper surface; a food containing area: a beverage container recess formed in the bottom; a thumb placement region on each side of the container recess; a continuous sidewall radially connected to the bottom with a sidewall outer surface which transitions to the outer surface of the bottom and a continuous flange located on an upper end of the sidewall and being downwardly angled in the region of said container recess such that said continuous sidewall has a height adjacent the container recess and thumb placement region which is lower than said height adjacent the food containing area, said sidewall height being defined as the vertical distance between said continuous flange of said sidewall and the plane occupied by said outer bottom surface of said food containing area whereby the tray is adapted to comfortably permit a user to grasp the tray with a thumb of one hand on the thumb placement region and with remaining fingers of the same hand on the outer surface of the bottom of the tray; said tray further comprising a stacking lug means on an outer surface of the sidewall; and a rib separating the container recess from a food containing area of the tray.

Claim 11

A food and beverage tray designed so that a user can simultaneously support the tray and a beverage container thereon comfortably with a single hand, said tray comprising a bottom having an upper bottom surface and an outer bottom surface opposite the upper surface; a food containing area: a beverage container recess formed in the bottom; a thumb placement region on each side of the container recess; a continuous sidewall radially connected to the bottom with a sidewall outer surface which transitions to the outer surface of the bottom and a continuous flange located on an upper end of the sidewall and being downwardly angled in the region of said container recess such that said continuous sidewall has a height adjacent the container recess and thumb placement region which is lower than said height adjacent the food containing area, said sidewall height being defined as the vertical distance between said continuous flange of said sidewall and the plane occupied by said outer bottom surface of said food containing area whereby the tray is adapted to comfortably permit a user to grasp the tray with a thumb of one hand on the thumb placement region and with remaining fingers of the same hand on the outer surface of the bottom of the tray; said tray further comprising a stacking lug means on an outer surface of the sidewall; and a rib separating the container recess from a food containing area of the tray.

Claim 12

The food and beverage tray of claim 9 comprising a thermoplastic or thermoplastic foam.

Claim 13

The food and beverage tray of claim 9 comprising paper pulp.

Claim 14

The food and beverage tray of claim 9 comprising polystyrene foam.

Claim 15

The food and beverage tray of claim 9 wherein said rib extends from a first said sidewall on one side of the tray to an opposing sidewall on the other side of said tray, and said rib has a height which is higher than the height of said rib at the intersection thereof with said sidewalls, said heights being measured from the bottom of the tray.