Shoe is a term that refers to the device often found in brick-and-mortar casinos. The purpose of the device is to hold multiple decks of cards from which dealers take cards and deal them to players. It is most often used in games played with multiple decks, such as blackjack, for example.
In the early days, blackjack was played and dealt from a single deck. However, to prevent players from counting cards, casinos have started using multiple decks, all of which are held within the shoe.
The device was invented by John Scarne. Modern-day shoes can fit six to eight decks, and most of them are made of plastic. However, the first ones were made of wood and their shape resembled women’s high heels, which is how the device got its name.
Therefore, if you hear that someone is dealing from the shoe, you shouldn’t assume that there’s something weird going on as they are simply referring to dealing from the device we described.