Good Quality Kitchen Knife Set Recommendation, Reasonably Priced?

[tatfiend]

Looking for a reasonably priced kitchen knife set with block in the up to $350 range. Any recommendations are appreciated.

My current "set" is inherited miscellany including several Japanese "Mac" knives that my mother bought via mail order about 40 years or so ago and some inexpensive genuine Chinese cleavers.

Are the Kershaw/KAI kitchen knife sets decent quality?

 

[Peak_Oil]

What I did is buy an empty block and fill it up with knives that did what I wanted to do. I bought a couple of Foreschner stamped Fibrox-handled knives and have been completely satisfied with their ability to do the job. They are available from many mail order places and from restaurant supply stores. I happen to like Oneida paring knives and will be buying another handful to be used as steak knives at $8/throw. Oneida paring knives are perfect for my hand and perform very well. I have an anonymous forged Asian style chef's knife that just amazes me with its edge retention and sharpness. It was about $10 at Ross Dress for Less. I doubt my whole setup cost more than $200.

I use a Spyderco Sharpmaker with the diamond sticks to keep my kitchen gear sharp. The sharpmaker plus the diamond sticks is about $100 and IMO is worth every penny. My knives are nice and sharp, soft tomatoes are no match for a sharp knife.

Good luck!

 

[HwangJino]

I was also going to say 'build your own'.

figure out which knives you'll need and start from there.

as a chef, I can do most things with one knife.

id say you will need at least 2 chef knives, petty, and maybe slicer.