Customer Reviews

Oxo Good Grips Paring and Mini Chef Knife Set

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

This two piece knife set is one of the first knive sets I ever purchased. At first I thought the mini chef was great and the parer so so. In time, the handles came off both and I tossed them because the handles kepts slipping off and that's not safe.

Now, I love knives and have the finest forged German and French knives. I've come to appreciate knive quality and this is not it. These knives do not have a full tang or a bolster. They are pressed junk in an ergonomic rubber grib. It's like they stuck a cheap knife in a kitchen utensil handle.

Instead of this junk, look at a low end set of Farberware knives. Be sure and get the "FORGED" set. Most Farberware is not forged but the forged stuff seems to always win best buy in Consumer Reports. If you don't want to spend the 50-70 bucks for the Farberware Forged line go for some low end Sabatier pressed or drop forged knives (all made in China not France at this price range)or Henkels Eversharp (pressed but dishwasher safe) for probaby fifty to under twenty monetary units.

For the most part, I've enjoyed my Good Grips utensils. The mini chef knife was easy to handle and very sharp at first. However the blade became dull after a short period of very light use. Now it's even showing rust spots! I can only think OXO used poor quality steel in this knife for it to have deteriorated so quickly.

My Son, who is a Culinary graduate, purchased a set of OXO knives for me as a gift. I know they were not inexpensive. However, within a year, three of the six knives seperated from the grips during use. While the grips are quite nice, the knives are dangerous to use and can cause serious injury in the kitchen. They should be removed from the market. In all three cases, the blades flipped upwards during slicing.

I was helping my niece set up her new home and we were trying to buy a lot of things for not that much money. I think it's so important to have good knives - but when I went looking - the really good ones were SO much money. I decided to try this pair because of the name - OXO - I have loved every one of the products I have purchased from them - and the price. Well, I was so impressed, I had to buy a set for myself as well. These are the knives I reach for everyday. My expensive set of knives are on my counter, but the convenience, comfortable feel and the good job that the OXO knives do - they are the ones I use most often. At this price, I can't imagine any home without them!

The pairing knife is regular size, but the chef's knife is small. Personally, I like that. I have small hands and don't do a great deal of chopping. Watch out--this knife is sharp! So be careful. I would definitely recommend these knives to anyone who just needs a good kitchen chopping knife and doesn't want to spend a lot of money.

Sorry to disagree with other reviewers, but my experience of the paring knife was that it's perhaps the softest metal I've ever seen used in a knife, and as a result, it's not very sharp and doesn't improve if you try sharpening it. My friend, a fellow cook who got it as a gift, doesn't like it; I hated it and would never choose to use it. There's a reason the price is so low.

The only reason that I give the mini chef knife (I have not used the paring knife) one star is because its size has sometimes come in handy and the blade is extremely sharp.

WORDS OF WARNING - <1> the grip has a tendency to move/slide while you are using the knife... do not use this knife to cut anything that would require significant pressure! <2> The back side of the blade is also very sharp! I have better than average culinary skills and have cut myself twice on the back of this knife. <3> Though it is a small, cute knife, only a fool would think that this knife would be a good "junior" knife for a kid who wants to cut and cook like Mommy (or in my case, Daddy).

I love OXO products and own almost every product, but these knives are very poorly made. I had three sets, and the handles eventually came off on all six knives- very unsafe! Some handles slipped off, and some snapped off. I'm surprised OXO is still making and selling these knives, because the poor quality really tarnishes their reputation.

I have been looking for a mini chef knife for a long time, and was thrilled to find this one! It is spectacular. It cuts great with a sharp blade. The handle fits just right in your hand for ease of cutting. My husband loves it too. This is the first OXO product that I own, and I have already been looking at their other products --- they are so wonderful and made very well. The paring knife is a great product too.

The paring knife is fine, but I was moved to write this review by my love for the mini chef knife. Everyone I know who's tried it is now a convert... it chops everything (including large onions) easily without the unwieldiness of a larger knife, and it's very sharp, not to mention cute. As one of my housemates said, "Now I don't bother with any other knife, I just ask 'where's the excellent knife?'"