I have a Victoronix 8 inch chef and 3.5 inch paring knife. They're very plain in the looks department, but feel nice in your hand and hold an edge forever and ever. And they're pretty damn cheap. I will just keep buying this brand piece by piece as needed. I have a set I got for my wedding that I never use now.
You're sure to get about 200 different opinions on knives and which high end brand is the best. It's quite the interesting market.
There was a time when German Steel Cutlery (Henckle and Wusthof) was all that.
Pretty hard to beat Japanese Craftsmanship, durability and beauty.
Look into:
Shun [Reply]
Bought a set of Ginsu knives on Black Friday like 5 or 6 years ago for $25. It gets the job done. I did however purchase a separate larger kitchen knife for barbecue.
One other note...probably 15 years ago, I bought my mom a set of miracle blades for Christmas...not gonna lie, better than I thought they would be by quite a bit. [Reply]
Originally Posted by eDave:
I still have my Cutco starter kit from a loooooooong time ago. Still the best knives IMO.
Originally Posted by Why Not?:
I don’t know shit about kitchen things or cooking but my wife sure as hell does and she only uses Cutco knives.
An underappreciated benefit of Cutco is the forever guarantee. My 'starter set' is now 30 years old, and over the years I've picked up some newer and some even older pieces. Have about 20 in all. Mom has another 10-15 or so, and sis has 4-5 as well [all of theirs, and most of mine after the starter set, came from estate sales and flea markets].
Every 18 months or so, I send it all to Cutco for them to inspect/repair/replace. If they can't return any piece to new condition, they'll just give me a new one.
I have a nearby retail center, so I can just drop them off and come back for them later. If you don't have a retail center, you have to mail them back to the Olean NY factory and pay for return shipping. But otherwise, not many things I've used and abused daily for 3 decades that is literally as good as new today. [Reply]
I bought this J.A. Henckel block set 10+ years ago and it has been great. The forged steel is great; international basically means that it is made in China instead of Germany. Might not be as good as the German made, but it sharpens quickly and holds the edge well.
Originally Posted by eDave:
I still have my Cutco starter kit from a loooooooong time ago. Still the best knives IMO.
Freshman year in college I worked for cutco and got that starter kit, too. Still have them and still sharp. That was 17 years ago. Love those knives. [Reply]