Know a good knife sharpener ???

[roasted138]

I need to sharpen 2 or 3 or my knives and don't know where to go. I'm willing to travel, though. I used to go this a nice old man's garage but he isn't answering the phone number I have for him, and another shoemaker I went to on Magnolia did a really subpar job. I tried Sur La Table in the Grove, like I said I'm willing to drive, but they said their sharpener is broken right now. Does anyone know any good places???

[Skunk2Racer]

Anyone know where they sharpen Japanese Chef Knives? Mine are Damascus Steel.

[reality check]

Almost anybody listed in this thread can sharpen your Japanese knifes and good a good job.

[MagnusChops]

Just make sure you find a place that actually hand sharpen you Japanese knives on water stones, so you don't ruin your knives. Most of the ones mentioned in the thread doesn't do hand sharpening.

[reality check]

John Powers uses a water stone to sharpen Japanese knifes. He does a great job, too.

[mrhooks]

I don't know of any place local that knows how to sharpen Japanese VG-10, et al., knives. I think all the places above use sharpening machines, which are far too coarse for Japanese steel, and will damage your knife. I send mine to www.japaneseknifesharpening.com and he does a fantastic job. One of these days I'll get a (relatively) cheap Japanese knife to practice water stone sharpening with, so I no longer have to spend so much time and money getting my knife sharpened. The price you pay for superior performance...

If you have a Shun, they will sharpen your knife for free.

[la2tokyo]

Japanese Knife Imports just opened a brick and mortar store in Venice that does knife sharpening, although it's not cheap. Jon the owner is a great guy and is extremely helpful. Rather than pay him to do it I think a better option is to take one of his sharpening classes and learn how to do it yourself. Sharpening is a skill that will pay dividends for the rest of your life.

http://www.japaneseknifeimports.com/a...

[Chemicalkinetics]

"If you have a Shun, they will sharpen your knife for free."

Unfortunately, not anymore. Read here:

http://www.kershawknives.com/sharpeni...

Like you said, get a cheap knife and a inexpensive warterstone and just start playing with it...

[knittingfuzz]

I had my knives sharpened for free at Bristol Farms in West Hollywood while I did my grocery shopping. They won't do serrated knives. Take them to the butcher's counter and pick them up when you're done shopping. FYI - I called Surfas in Culver City, and they don't offer knife sharpening.

[clairelouise]

The Bristol Farms on Beverly (the old Chasen's spot) used to sharpen knives for free back at the butcher's counter.

[Fat Billie]

Pacific Knife Sharpening is a mobile knife sharpener, but can't remember the number.

You can always take your knives to Surfas, or Sur Le Tab also has a location in Pasadena, or go to the beach and visit the one in Santa Monica.

[roasted138]

Thanks for all the great recommendations everyone, I think I might try the Ross Cutlery, sounds very reputable and I love me some great architecture, reminds me of Chicago : ). Thanks again everyone for all the help, cheers!

[George]

I watched them open up shop yesterday at around 8:50 am. Really wished I had my knives with me at that specific moment. They are across the street from Grand Central Market, fyi, so you could get a decent carnitas taco at Roast to Go, or whatever your favorite GCM thing might be.

[roasted138]

aww, this just keeps getting better, carnitas! : ) Woot, woot! Thanks for the tip George!

[Chez Coop]

Go to the Sword and Stone in Burbank on Victory.. They do sharpening every Saturday for $4.00 a blade. Can't go wrong since they are blacksmiths and knife/weapon makers.. Just search the name and you can check out their site. Cheers..

[zoemoss]

On Sunday mornings at the Mar Vista farmers market there is a gentleman who sharpens knives.

[SIMIHOUND]

Knife sharpeners are at fabric stores like Beverly's and Joann's about every 4-6 weeks. They have signs up at the stores ahead of time. Drop your knives off and pick them up later on.

[Alan408]

I recently returned from a fishing trip to Alaska. The lodge's filet knives were very dull. I let them use my Rapala sharpener. They liked it so much, I left it there. IIRC it cost ~$2.

The same company makes them in two brands: Normark and Rapala, I purchased the one I left in Alaska at a fishing tackle shop. I still have one branded Shakespear. I have stones and a chefs choice, but my go to are the little ceramic sticks.

I am usually successful with my "disposable pocket" sharpener.

I understand you are looking for a person who sharpens knives, but for ~$2 you may find you don't need to outsource your sharpening.

[Jesdamala]

Try calling these places to see what their current services are...

Standard Cutlery & Supply Company 9509 Santa Monica Blvd Beverly Hills, CA

Pioneer Hardware in Beverly Hills

[westsidegal]

VERY far from you, but

Thee Cutlery • Manhattan Village • 3200 Sepulveda Blvd. Manhattan Beach

[katydid13]

I just got 4 sharpened at the little shack in the parking lot at Whole Foods on Fairfax & Santa Monica Blvd. He cuts keys and sharpens knives and is open Mon-Sat. I've never knives sharpened before, so I can't compare/contrast him to others, but he was fast & quite reasonably priced.

[DMojoD]

The knife sharpener at the Wednesday Santa Monica Farmers' Market.

[rednyellow]

ross cutlery downtown on, I think, Spring or Broadway, not sure. Good work, overnight service

[slacker]

Ross Cutlery! The best. They've been sharpening knives for a long time and know their stuff. They also have a good selection of knives and accessories. A storefront in the Bradbury building, so you can scope out some cool architecture too, even better if you're a movie buff. On Broadway.

http://www.rosscutlery.com/

[howchow]

Capehart Cutlery 818 366 0095 or 818 831 5959
they have a store in Chatsworth but they have a truck that goes to different locations and sharpens knives - they come to the studio city Gelson's every 2nd saturday of the month - $3 a knife. Give them a call to find out what other locations you may find them.

[NowIKnow]

I know this is a really old post but I was looking for a knife sharpener in the SFV and called Capehart after reading this. Apparently they no longer have a physical store, just a mobile truck that they take to various supermarkets and restaurants to sharpen their knives. Chris was very helpful and let me meet him at the Gelson's in Sherman Oaks after he did their knives. Price was $3 per knife and they came out really well (set of Henckels Classic). Additionally he told me I could return a knife with a broken handle to Henckels and they would fix or replace it for free (lifetime warranty), so that ended up saving me some money. 866.690.3343 or http://capehartcutlery.com/

[reality check]

From this thread; http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/767422 John Powers is another person, you can go to.

John Powers
[phone]
[e-mail]

[nick_r]

Sur La Table in Santa Monica or Pasadena should do it too. Also there's a knife shop downtown, next door to the Bradbury Building, that will sharpen just about any knife but I forget what it's called.