While we're at it, microplane graters can be vicious little weapons if used carelessly. Last year my suggestion "wouldn't fresh nutmeg be better in the eggnog" led to some serious road rash on one finger. Conclusion: grate nugmeg first, then get over-served.

thanks everyone for the tips and the er, "tips" (and knuckles too?) I will definitely check out Northwestern Cutlery and also see if they have anything at Wooden Spoon. And Cathy2, thanks for the pro-active caution. My big chefs' knife is so dull it's more like chopping/sawing/hacking than slicing, so I can see underestimating its (hopefully) new sharpness.

bjt

I would also caution you folks about the serrated edge along the box of Target brand plastic wrap. It just took a nasty cut out of my thumb.

Throughout April have up to three knives professionally sharpened at Sur La Table.

Details Here

Jay K wrote:Throughout April have up to three knives professionally sharpened at Sur La Table.

Details Here

Unless they bring in someone with an entire grinding wheel rig, all I've ever seen them do at SlT is use one of those Chef's Choice machines.

I was in Sur La Table on North Ave. earlier this week, and they were indeed using one of those Chef's Choice machines to sharpen knives.

>I was in Sur La Table on North Ave. earlier this week, and they were indeed using one of those Chef's Choice machines to sharpen knives.

Is there something wrong with this method?

I was thinking of taking advantage of their April offer.

Roger

the chef's choice machines are a hack. they can restore a bevel quickly, but they are imprecise, get the edge of the blade hot, and do slighly hollow-grind the edge. A hollow ground edge is sharper, but dulls quickly...so a few days after you get your razor sharp edge, it is dull again. The "finished" edge of a chef's choice sharpened knife is rough like a saw, rather than finished and smooth as a kitchen knife should be.

Erik.

Taking all this good info to heart, I finally took my knives to Northwestern today for their first-ever sharpening.

I have to say, one of the things I love about the big city is that you can go to The Real Place. Not some local store where they do a half-assed job, but the serious no-atmosphere knife place where the famous chefs go, and guys who look like Harley mechanics do the work, and they treat you perfectly fine and charge you a pittance for a world-class job. ($3.50/knife, to be precise.)

While there I asked the guy about a couple of special knife needs I had, one a long carver for slicing my pork bellies into bacon, one a cheap but big knife for hacking chickens apart without messing up my better Wusthof knives. Soon I had, for a pretty small piece of change, two very nice knives for the purposes at hand, and for good measure a Lodge cast iron pan for $21, which is seasoning at this very moment.

I highly recommend Northwestern Cutlery as a big city experience.

LTHForum,

My mother recently re-located to Hoffman Estates and she is looking for a place to have her knives sharpened. She admitted to me over the phone that she hasn't had them sharpened in almost three years. I'm having nightmares about her trying to chop an onion and slipping and taking a chunk out of her arm.

It seems like every knife sharpener is either in the city or due west. Does anyone know of any northwest suburban options for knife sharpening?

Best,
Michael

eatchicago wrote:LTHForum,

My mother recently re-located to Hoffman Estates and she is looking for a place to have her knives sharpened. She admitted to me over the phone that she hasn't had them sharpened in almost three years. I'm having nightmares about her trying to chop an onion and slipping and taking a chunk out of her arm.

It seems like every knife sharpener is either in the city or due west. Does anyone know of any northwest suburban options for knife sharpening?

Best,
Michael

My soon to be in laws live in Batavia. They need their knives sharpened pronto - Thanksgiving was fraught with danger. Any help out there?

For Batavia in laws...send them to Greg's Shoe Repair in Geneva. I know it may sound strange, but this guy sharpens knives and does a good job. Couldn't be a nicer guy.

Greg's Shoe Repair
722 E State St, Geneva, IL 60134
(630) 845-3284

Cathy2 wrote:I do have a stone to keep them sharp, which I use regularly. Storing them in a block, rather than knocking against each other, keeps them sharp longer. Handwashing over dishwasher cleaning keeps them in overall better condition, also.

it seems to me that keeping knives in a wooden block would dull the edge rather than keep it sharp. is this really a good storage method? what is the best, most preferred knife storage method? what about sticking them to a magnet strip mounted on the wall?

Rachel B. wrote:

Cathy2 wrote:I do have a stone to keep them sharp, which I use regularly. Storing them in a block, rather than knocking against each other, keeps them sharp longer. Handwashing over dishwasher cleaning keeps them in overall better condition, also.

it seems to me that keeping knives in a wooden block would dull the edge rather than keep it sharp. is this really a good storage method? what is the best, most preferred knife storage method? what about sticking them to a magnet strip mounted on the wall?

I own one of the above mentioned magnet strips and I love it. I personally think it's the best thing about my kitchen next to my polished chrome pot rack. I truly enjoy it for the following reasons:

- it doesn't take up any counter space
- My knives don't take up any drawer space
- my knives are easily accessible.

The only thing I don't like is that the ceramic knife I want to buy won't stick to it.

Flip

Rachel B. wrote:it seems to me that keeping knives in a wooden block would dull the edge rather than keep it sharp. is this really a good storage method? what is the best, most preferred knife storage method? what about sticking them to a magnet strip mounted on the wall?

That's precisely why the better blocks all store the knives horizontally rather than vertically.

Flip wrote: I truly enjoy it for the following reasons:

- it doesn't take up any counter space
- My knives don't take up any drawer space
- my knives are easily accessible.

ditto

The only thing I don't like is that the ceramic knife I want to buy won't stick to it.

Don't buy it. (see I just save you a bunch of dough - spend it on something else)

sazerac wrote:

Flip wrote: I truly enjoy it for the following reasons:

- it doesn't take up any counter space
- My knives don't take up any drawer space
- my knives are easily accessible.

ditto

The only thing I don't like is that the ceramic knife I want to buy won't stick to it.

Don't buy it. (see I just save you a bunch of dough - spend it on something else)

S,

Have you had any unpleasant experiences with the ceramic knives? I am a big fan of my peelers, and was hoping to have a similar experience with the knives.

Flip

Cathy2 wrote:Hi,
Some years ago, my Dad bought a manual rotary slicer like you see in butcher shops. I got rid of it after having a dream about my blithely slicing my thumb in half before realizing my mistake. I never used it plus it took up valuable counterspace.

Not an unreasonable assumption. I remember the big news story from several years back, when Jean Banchet lost a few fingers in a Robo-Coup. Of course, the cut was so clean (one advantage to sharpness) that they were able to reattach the fingers -- after hours of microsurgery -- but it remains my reminder that swiftly moving blades pose certain hazards.

Of course, the two things from the story that I have been left wondering: who had the job of retrieving the fingers from the food processor, and was "Robo-Coup" the inspiration for "RoboCop."

electric mullet wrote:For Batavia in laws...send them to Greg's Shoe Repair in Geneva. I know it may sound strange, but this guy sharpens knives and does a good job. Couldn't be a nicer guy.

Greg's Shoe Repair
722 E State St, Geneva, IL 60134
(630) 845-3284

Thank you!!

ralpho wrote:That's precisely why the better blocks all store the knives horizontally rather than vertically.

Don't ya have that backwards?

I like my Sabatier Glass Knife Block. I grabbed mine on eBay ages ago and it is darker wood than the one in the link.

Knives are held between two pieces of glass, so the blades never touch anything, they are held up by the handle. Also makes it very easy to know what you are grabbing. In back level I have a MAC Mighty Chef, MAC Mighty Santoku and Henkels Serrated Slicer, and front holds a MAC utility and paring. Slot for scissors on the side post as well.

Jamie

KevinT, I divided my knives into two sets, each with enough variety to not be knive naked. UPSed the first set to Northwest cutlery. They sharpened them and shipped them back the the same day they received them. Sent the second set with the same turnaround. Start Monday, all back by Friday. That was about a year ago-I was thoroughly impressed with the service.

Jamieson22 wrote:

ralpho wrote:That's precisely why the better blocks all store the knives horizontally rather than vertically.

Don't ya have that backwards?

I like my Sabatier Glass Knife Block. I grabbed mine on eBay ages ago and it is darker wood than the one in the link.

Knives are held between two pieces of glass, so the blades never touch anything, they are held up by the handle. Also makes it very easy to know what you are grabbing. In back level I have a MAC Mighty Chef, MAC Mighty Santoku and Henkels Serrated Slicer, and front holds a MAC utility and paring. Slot for scissors on the side post as well.

Jamie

Jamie,

Do the knives rest on their points using the Glass Knife Block?

stevez wrote:
Jamie,

Do the knives rest on their points using the Glass Knife Block?

None of mine do, they all hang, not touching a thing. They are supported by the top of the glass on the bolster (the top glass edges have plastic caps on them so they are soft.

If you have any knives over 10" I'd check to see if it works first.

I really like it because it takes up such a small footprint on the counter. Only negative is it is limited in how many knives it can hold, but honestly can't see many knives I would use a lot that are not already in there.

Jamie

Jamieson22 wrote:

ralpho wrote:That's precisely why the better blocks all store the knives horizontally rather than vertically.

Don't ya have that backwards?

I assumed what was meant in ralpho's post is that it is preferable in traditional knife blocks if the slits are horizontal rather than vertical. For instance, this is preferable to this. Of course, there's always this for the burgeoning knife murderer or slasher film fan. I would say that the glass knife block approach where the knives don't touch anything is the most preferable, though.

And then there's "The Ex," which a friend of mine has in her kitchen.

http://www.thinkgeek.com/homeoffice/gea ... pg=froogle

Matt wrote: ...is preferable to this.

My old block was like the "unpreferable" one you linked and I simply put the knives in blade side up. That way they are not scraping on wood.
Jamie

HI,

It is always my plan on Culinary Historians days to drop off my knives to get sharpened on Lake Street. I just never quite get to it. MIA in my house for some months is the stone I have long used to sharpen my knives. Consequently my knives are about as dull as they have ever been.

I did a bit of googling to learn recommended materials for sharpening stones, when I found this tutorial on sharpening knives. There is even a sharpening system using automotive body grade sandpaper glued onto a mousepad. Some great ideas for regular maintenance and if you go full geek, then on maintaining your knives forever.

Regards,

A couple of questions:
1) Is there any place in the S.W. Burbs to get them sharpened?
2) I've had Henkel's for 10 years and my 8" chef's knife lost its tip...I was prying some frozen meat with it and it snapped off. What's the best way to get a replacement of should I send it to get repaired...if possible?
Thanks

HI,

Your knife is definitely repairable. While Northwest Cutlery on Lake is favored since it caters to the professional. You do have to take care who is really sharpening your knives.

My Aunt used to have a crystal and cutlery shop in Lake Forest. When she was in business, she told me to bring my knives to her because she has a reliable service. She noted there were knives brought to the local hardware store whose poor sharpening technique took years (of metal) off their useful lives.

While my Aunt is discerning about technique and who her knives get sharpened by, a lot of places are not. If you don't get any recommendations from knowledgable people in your area, then I would arrange to ship them to NW cutlery.

Regards,

Does anyone know if any of the places suggested for sharpening can replace wooden handles on knives, or another place that will? I have a great 6" sabatier that's god knows how old (it was my parent's) and the wooden handle is disintegrating. It's hard to use it for too long because the first rivet is almost completely exposed and digs into my finger.