Kitchen Knives

can anybody chime in for tojiro? i've been wanting a good value chef's knife or a santoku

Originally Posted by indesertum

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can anybody chime in for tojiro? i've been wanting a good value chef's knife or a santoku

I've heard positive things about Tojiro, but I opted for Togiharo which (according to the folks at Korin) has a larger handle and better fit & finish, for nearly the same price.

I started with a Togiharo. Great knife for the $.

Shun Classics are the way to go. The Ken Onion and Kaji line are overpriced.

If anyone lives in the Sacramento area I get a pretty big discount on knives, just pm me.

Originally Posted by robin

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Just spent about 30 minutes cutting stuff up for dinner with my new south paw Shun santoku. Wonderful knife, I'm probably going to go back to the store to get the chef's knife now too.
Plz get a couple good stones and a ceramic honing steel if you've already got a good Japanese blade. Nothing will **** up your beautiful edge more than a ****** metal steel.

Originally Posted by Kd88

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Shun Classics are the way to go. The Ken Onion and Kaji line are overpriced.

If anyone lives in the Sacramento area I get a pretty big discount on knives, just pm me.

The Elite line is better than the Classic, by enough to compensate for the price. Not only aesthetically, but in the quality of the steel and the ability to hold an edge. I agree that the Ken Onion are bad, and gimmicky at that.

which togiharus do you have?

i've heard a lot about togiharu moly cores, but i've also heard that tojiros are much less maintenance. i try not to be, but i do get a bit lazy sometimes and leave the knife out overnite especially if i'm in a hurry.

maybe i should just get togiharu and be more careful?

Kwilk, how does it work in your restaurant? Does everyone bring their own knives? All their own tools, or just knives? Not even knives?

If knives, do they bring the good stuff, or do they use "beaters"?

Originally Posted by Manton

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Kwilk, how does it work in your restaurant? Does everyone bring their own knives? All their own tools, or just knives? Not even knives?

If knives, do they bring the good stuff, or do they use "beaters"?

Everybody brings their own knives and steels, but nothing else. Sharpening stones and all other tools can be found in the restaurant somewhere.
We all bring our good stuff, and don't you ******* DARE touch someone else's knife without their explicit permission. That's no joke. There is no faster way to become the kitchen ***** than to grab someone's knife without permission.
They all definitely bring some good stuff. My knife is the smalltimer of the kitchen, which honestly blows my ******* mind. I it though. It makes me happy to work with.

What are these people using?

Originally Posted by Manton

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What are these people using?

Almost solely Japanese steel, usually handmade. Most of them are non-brand names and are handmade to order by a few different Japanese companies. All I know is that if you want a knife, talk to our special knife Chef with the hookups and he'll get you something incredible for a few hundred bucks.

Originally Posted by pscolari

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I can't wait till someone buys the two Shuns my fiancee and I registered for - 10 inch chef and 9 in slicer. I keep checking on Williams Sonoma in hopes these are the first items to be bought.

The associate who helped us mentioned you can send back Shun knives to the distributor and they will sharpen them for free, you jsut have to pay for shipping.

Looks like I will just have to wait until next April until our wedding, and in the meantime use our Henckels. We just had these handsharpened at Stoddard's so they are having a bit of a renaissance in our kitchen.

The wife and I registered at WS just for the knives basically. Bed Bath and Beyond carried them but I couldn't play with them. And I like to play with new toys before I buy them. I went to WS to use the three big names and liked the Shuns the best. I got the 7 inch Santoku as an engagement party gift, the 8 inch Chef and the paring knife for wedding gifts and the 6 inch utility and 6 inch tomato (identical knives but one is serated).

I also got the whet stone to sharpen them which I do about twice a year...

Originally Posted by Kd88

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Shun Classics are the way to go. The Ken Onion and Kaji line are overpriced.

Originally Posted by kwilkinson

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The Elite line is better than the Classic, by enough to compensate for the price. Not only aesthetically, but in the quality of the steel and the ability to hold an edge. I agree that the Ken Onion are bad, and gimmicky at that.

Personally, having owned the Classics and now owning the Ken Onion line, I vastly prefer the KOs. They hold an edge much longer than the Classics and the blades are aesthetically pleasing to mine eye. While I can't really refute the "gimmiky" portion of your statement, the idea that the knives themselves are "bad" is laughably wrong. Probably because I am an Amature (note the capital "A"), but I find the handle of the Ken Onions much easier on my hands, especially on long jobs, say a 10lb. sack of potatoes. YMMV, but if you can get a deep discount on them (They ARE overpriced ) I heartily reccomend them.

Originally Posted by indesertum

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which togiharus do you have?

i've heard a lot about togiharu moly cores, but i've also heard that tojiros are much less maintenance. i try not to be, but i do get a bit lazy sometimes and leave the knife out overnite especially if i'm in a hurry.

maybe i should just get togiharu and be more careful?

I have the Togiharu moly and find it quite easy to deal with. Then again, I've made it a point to wash every knife as I finish its task, before I move on to something else.

Originally Posted by kwilkinson

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(...)

They all definitely bring some good stuff. My knife is the smalltimer of the kitchen, which honestly blows my ******* mind. I

it though. It makes me happy to work with.

On one level it blows my mind as well. On another level...it still blows my mind. But, knowing what I now know about custom knife-smiths...I'd imagine it worth the expense to get something exactly as you want it - handle, blade width, hardness, bevel, weight, balance, etc.

OK, I read this whole thread, and like many things on SF I am now not only more confused than when I started, and many questions remain unanswered, but worst of all I feel like **** about what I currently own. Here's my question - I always thought the Japanese knives were meant to be used differently than Western knives, i.e. Westerners are supposed to cut with a push stroke, and the Japanese knives are designed to cut on the pull - much like western vs. Japanese saw blades, and that the different sharpening angle (~30 degrees on a western vs. ~20 degrees on a *** knife) was designed to accommodate this. Sounds like that may be a bunch of bunk. Also sounds like I'm not supposed to rock the blade? How else would I mince garlic or parsley or any other herb? I am suffering through with some Wusthofs that have served me well but could really use a sharpening - it's been a few years. I probably kill them when I hone them but it does seem to make a difference - I'm honing by hand and probably not at the perfect angle but it's definitely easier to cut after I've done so. I also can't imagine not having a full bolster, as I've become accustomed to using my thumb and forefinger to "pinch" the blade just on the business end of the bolster, and that really seems to help with precision and balance. Am I just an idiot? All you Michelin guys would likely think I'm a philistine if you saw my Julienne. I can see how less belly would be much better for slicing an onion, or julienne for example, or certainly for skinning a fish (impossible with my knife). I apparently suck