A sentence from this site reads ungrammatical.
On the sweet side, don’t pass up the walnut coffee cake, which is served warm, the better to soak up the bourbon-caramel glaze.
Is the better a noun phrase in this sentence? Why is it not better to soak up the bourbon-caramel glaze as an adverbial? Is the sentence grammatical? What grammar function does the phrase the better to soak up the bourbon-caramel glaze serve? Is it a modifier to the main clause?
It's the same use as in Little Red Riding Hood, when the wolf says, "The better to eat you with." I'm not entirely certain about the grammar, but I think that the 'the' is being used as an adverb to emphasize 'better'. From Merriam-Webster:
the, adverb
1 : than before : than otherwise —used before a comparative, e.g. none the wiser for attending
2a : to what extent, e.g. the sooner the better
b : to that extent, e.g. the sooner the better
3 : beyond all others, e.g. likes this the best
I think that the use in the article is that of the first definition.
The phrase "the better" modifies the state of being warm. It is a comparison of utility of two opposites, warmth contrasted against coolness, by linking the state with more or less efficiency of soaking up the glaze.
...which is served warm [as opposed to cool], the better [of the two temperatures] to soak up...
See this definition as "more suitable to".
