Customer Reviews

KitchenAid KG300 Box Grater, Black

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I have to give this grater only 4 stars due to a design flaw. More on that later, but first, the good news:

-- The main reason I was so happy to find this greater is that the two main grating surfaces are COARSE and MEDIUM, not COARSE and FINE like virtually every other grater in the world. Why not more MEDIUM graters? I don't know. All I know is that I prefer to use a medium grater for most everything, and this is one of the very, very few MEDIUM graters (there's also one known as "the Greater Grater", which is pretty cool but is not as sturdy as this one and falls apart too easily.)

-- Yes, it's big. My other box grater fits comfortably *inside* this one. Which makes storing the two together rather convenient, actually. Anyway, a bigger grater means more grated cheese more quickly, right? I like the size just fine, but don't expect to stick it in the back of your silverware drawer...

-- Seems built like a tank. I'm sure it will last a long time.

-- The Empire Red color is really cool. If you don't get the red grater, you're missing out.

-- Yes, the rubber rim on the bottom *would* collect junk and be hard to clean, if I hadn't ripped it off and thrown it away immediately. Who needs it? The handle on the top is so big and sturdy, it's not like it's difficult to hold the grater in place or something... unless you like to grate cheese on top of greased glass?!?!

-- Can't comment on the tupperware catch-bin that comes with it. Seems fine, but I don't really use it as that's not how I operate.

Now for the bad news: On the first trip through the dishwasher, the tubular handle became filled with water. This water did not drain easily at all, in fact it's pretty much impossible to get out; however, just enough leaks out that you'll get grungy dishwater dripping into your grated cheese if you let it. Yuck!

However, the problem was easily rectified by two minutes with a power drill -- I just drilled a small 3/8" hole in each end of the plastic frame that's holding the handle in place. Now the water drains out just fine.

However, this is a phenomenally stupid design oversight on KitchenAid's part. Didn't they even test thing thing after a trip through the dishwasher? The handle could get water trapped in it even with hand-washing, I suppose, unless you were extraordinarily careful.

So, I would not advise you to get this grater unless you have a drill and some drill bits and don't mind making a slight modification to it after you receive it. Once the modification is complete, it's truly a great grater.

The tupperware-like container that you can stick onto the bottom of the grater to store grated cheese, zest, etc. is a good idea, but the hard plastic is very brittle and an edge broke off just from the pressure of grating some cheese on the grater. It's a sharp edge, I might add. The container still functions, but it's dangerous.

My second complaint is that there's a somewhat flimsy rubber piece that goes around the bottom of the grater, which fills up with cheese, vegetable pieces, or whatever else you've been grating, and after only putting it through the dishwasher 2 or 3 times I noticed how all the gunk in there had gotten REALLY gross. Luckily it comes off easily and I just rinsed it off, but I'm not a fan of things like that, which just make this thing more of a pain to clean. I'd like to find a grater that looks this nice and works this well but doesn't have an issue like this.

This thing would be worth 5 stars if it weren't for the strange plastic ring around the bottom and the easily-broken plastic storage container that it comes with.

This is an attractive and easy to use box grater. Love the container which goes with it (under and in the grater for storage) for storing cheese, etc. The container sits under the grater when in use and also serves as a knuckle saver, as it raises the grater surfaces about 3 inches off the countertop.

This is just a great grater! High quality materials, has not rusted, and the plastic container fits perfectly on the bottom to collect the shavings. Comes thru dishwasher nicely. I couldn't wait to trash my piece-of-junk rusted grater for this one.

This grater looks great and works really well. I'm a big fan of the containter that fits in the bottom to collect whatever it is that you're grating!

However, due to a couple of issues, I will most likey not be keeping it.

The rubber piece at the base of the grater collects cheese/veggies, etc. I have to remove the piece entirely after every use to clean it and it can be somewhat tricky to get back on.

I ran this through the dishwasher one time, when it came out, the handle was full of water, even though the item is supposed to be dishwasher safe. Most of the water drained out, but I don't like the idea of old water being left in the handle.

I bought the red one from Amazon in Nov. 2002 (I viewed my purchase history). I thought that it would help people to know that almost 4 years later, it is still in tip top shape. I use a grater a lot. At least 3 or 4 times a week on average. I never buy pre-grated cheese, I grate my own. I make cole slaw at least once a week & use it to grate the cabbage & carrots. It has no rust spots on it at all. And is is still very, very sharp! I wash mine in my dishwasher. I have had friends & family who have admired mine & ended up buying one for themselves.

This is the best grater I've ever used. It's considerably larger than many other box graters, which I find makes it easier to hold onto; it's also a bit heavier than others. The rubber gasket around the bottom keeps it from sliding around. The only thing I don't like is that if you use the tub, it will slide, so I save the tub for storage. The grater is too big for my gadget drawer, but it's so attractive I don't mind leaving it out on a shelf.

The major flaw is the curved design. The middle of the food grates down faster and the ends develop "points." As the points form and break, food litters the work surface. I bought the grater for the large slicing blade side, wide and high enough to slice a good sized piece of cheese. However, again, the shape causes oddly curved slices and lots of broken bits and ends. The gasket is a debri catcher. It isn't easy to fit the storage box onto the grater, though it can be done. However, the messiness caused by the curved design defeats the purpose of the container. All in all, a big and unexpected disappointment from KitchenAid.

WOW! This thing is big! Not that there is anything wrong with that. It is very sturdy and well crafted like most KitchenAid products. I bought this grater to replace a flimsy OXO grater that cracked after less than a year.

The grating container is a nice touch but the grater and container don't snap together. If you lift the grater the container stays put. the lid doesn't really snap on like you might expect either. I wouldn't consider either of these design choices as flaws.

To the reviewer with the crumbly cheese: To get better results when grating soft cheese, put the cheese in the freezer for a little while prior to grating.

This is an excellent grater. It is like the 4 sided graters from the past. It is larger than expected. It's 10 1/2 inches tall. I had to find a new place for it.