Cutlery Reviews

This is a small bladed knife. It also has a really useful handle. It is constructed of the same high quality materials of all knives in this series, and is a worthwhile addition to any kitchen. It's one of those tools that find more and more use with experience. It's a good buy.

I had some pretty worthless knives in my kitchen so when I decided to replace them, I looked at the big names in cutlery (Wusthof and Henckels). I also looked at this knife by Calphalon. After comparing the specs I figured I'd be remiss if I didn't give this knife a try, especially considering the cost savings. I'm really glad I did because it performs just as well as my Henckels. And isn't performance the bottom line? If you are looking for a good knife, give this line a try. I don't think you will be disappointed and you'll have some cash left over for more kitchen stuff!

I didn't know how much I needed this knife until I had it. This is my first "good" knife, and boy does it make a difference. For a long time I had heard that one good knife can be your most useful tool in the kitchen, and it is the truth! I used to be a kitchen gadget collector, but I use this knife for a lot of the things that I used to have gadgets for (frees up a lot of space in my kitchen!) I also invested in a sharpener, and try to sharpen the knife every three or four uses.

The balance of this knife is great, and it fits my hand perfectly. It was a little heavier than I anticipated, but I got used to that very quickly. This knife has replaced most of my other cheap knives, and I don't miss them a bit.

I was fortunate enough to pick this knife up as a "Gold Box" offering. Though the finish of the blade isn't as smooth and shiny as I might have expected from a company such as Calphalon, the overall quality of the knife is really exceptional, especially for the price. As you may have expected, this knife is crafted in a Chinese factory, and they never seem to "buff" their metal to quite the same degree as products from western origin. But I must say, I really love this knife. It's mass and blade curvature make it equally effective for cleaving apart a chicken or rocking through herbs to mince them. It comes with a very sharp edge, which is easily maintained by using a steel or keen to re-burnish it from time to time. The ONLY thing I'm slightly dissapointed about is the fact that the blade is just a little too thick to fit into the slot on my current knife holder block, so it spends a lot of time flat on the counter. I plan to make a new holder to house it along with my other 4" and 6" versions from the same Calphalon collection, which I have since purchased at full Amazon price--I was that impressed.

Well balanced, a pleasure use, and a real value for the money. My husband and I love to cook and we love this knife - so much so that we are replacing all our knives with this Calphalon Contemporary line.

I bought this knife for my mother who found my 8" chef's knife just a tad too big. I like the sleek and ergonomic looking handle. It's a very hefty knife, but maybe a bit too hefty. The blades are quite thick--not exactly what you want to produce thin slices. But for less than half the price of a Wusthof, you are getting a very decent knife--light years better than those flimsy Wal-Mart cheapos, but not quite as high-performance as some of the European knives.

While looking at cutlery for a wedding present a couple months ago I stumbled on Calphalon's new line. Being cheap by nature I was intrigued by their prices on chef's knives. This led me to get myself one of their 8" models. It is a great knife with only one drawback - it's almost too big for my small handed wife. Although it almost killed me to pay more for a smaller knife I recently purchased a six inch version. This knife we both love. Fit, finish, and balance all would make you swear that this is a high grade tool. Although priced nearer the cheapened up versions of Chicago Cutlery found in the Marts this is a knife that feels like it is a high grade piece. On the downside the knife is not German or American made but is another Chinese product. Unlike a lot of stuff from over there this time they got it right.

A bread knife is a specialized tool -- you really can't use it for much other than cutting bread. It's tempting to purchase just any bread knife. But this is forged, rather than stamped, and the reduced flexing of the blade goes a long way towards making the slice the slice you wanted rather than what you happened to get. Functionally, this knife is beyond reproach. Even with crusty breads, the crumbs are minimized.

It does not use the traditional three-rivet handle -- the handle is molded. But it is a full tang, and there's no reason to expect any loss in longevity.

I gave this four, rather than five, stars primarily on the basis of the appearance of the blade -- but this is a matter of personal taste. Unlike knives used in the kitchen (where getting the job done is the job, and the appearance is not particularly important) a bread knife is likely to be used before guests. The utilitarian appearance of the blade is entirely appropriate to my tastes, however it may not appeal to those who expect a highly-polished appearance. Also (and this is visible from the photos) this bread knife does not have an offset handle, which may be awkward with large cutting boards.

I had been wanting a good santoku knife for a while when I ran across the Calphalon Contemporary 7 inch Santoku. I figured for 40.00 I should at least try this knife. So I did. I love the size, the weight, the grip and even how it cuts when it is sharp. I have to sharpen this darn knife WHILE I'm using it or it goes so dull it's about as effective as a butter knife. When I first got it, it was razor sharp. I used it twice. Twice meaning, I cut 2 limes up for drinking Corona's. On the third lime it was dull.