Where to purchase cutlery online
I am looking for a good online store where I can buy a new set of knives at a good price.
I recently bought a new set of All-clad pots at really good prices thanks to hounders.
Any recommendation on what brand I should get? I heard Global makes good knives.
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I've said this a lot in other threads, but... you probably do NOT want to buy a set. Spend your money on a good 8-10" chef's knife or 7" santoku - probably the former. This is the knife you'll use 90% of the time, and the one that will last the longest. Then spend a little on a decent bread knife slicer, and a little on a paring knife. Mundial or Forschner have good values in forged cutlery for the latter two - you can probably get the slicer for $15-$30 and the paring knife for ~ $10. For the primary knife, I'd echo the suggestion to get something Japanese - Shun, Global, or if you want to get more fancypants, Misono or Hattori.
Once you have those three knives, see if you really need anything else.
I've been happy with happychefuniforms.com and my local kitchen supply store for prices on Mundial forged cutlery.
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Asian knives, Shun and Global for example, are made of steel considerably harder (Rockwell 61) than is used in Wusthof or Henckels or Forschner or any other Western made knives (Rockwell 55-57). As such, the edges can be ground to a more acute angle that lasts just as long but reduces the cutting effort. If you think of how easy a razor blade cuts, part of the reason is the edge angle. it has an edge angle of 2-4 degrees. Shun and Global are 15-17 degrees and Western knives are 18-20 degrees. The more acute angle requires the least effort.
Global is less expensive than Shun but you have to like the modern handle and if you do, you should never pay retail online. All online merchants sign agreements (just like we do) with the manufacturer not to offer a discount larger than 20%, but if you find one that ships it free, it's like getting more of a discount. Hope that helps.
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I recently picked up a few shun classics and shun elites. We have a number of knives (henckel, wusthoff, messermeister, some japanese), but I as I cook a lot, I wanted some great knives that I could use all the time.
My favorites are the shun elite santoku and the shun classic utility knife. Both are extremely sharp (particularly the santoku) and they are very comfortable to hold and work with.
I would suggest starting with only a few knives that you would regularly. It's tempting to pick up knives you might not need.
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I third that, you really have to go to a store first and handle the knives before buying. Globals, for example, are very nice knives but a lot of people find the handles uncomfortable. Find a brand that's comfortable, and don't buy a set, concentrate on the knives you use the most. The best prices I've found online are at Knifecenter:
JapaneseChefsKnife.com has some great knives at great prices, but you can't handle them first:
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xnyorkr
Feb 6, 2007 07:22 AM
I don't know the best place on line, but I have to strongly endorse Soy's recommendation to go to a store and decide what you want before you buy on line. I was leaning towards Henckel's, and once I compared how they felt to Werstof, Werstof won hands down.
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soypower
Feb 6, 2007 07:09 AM
I was in the market for some new cutlery as well a few weeks ago when I posted the following thread:
http://www.chowhound.com/topics/360328
I got some great advice - almost EVERYONE said to go to a cutlery store and see how the knives actually feel in my hand before purchasing online. So I did, and I fell in love with a couple of Shun Stainless Knives which I ordered online at www.cutleryandmore.com for a much lower price than the store where I tried them out. :o)
