Customer Reviews

WMF Manaos / Bistro Dinner Fork, Set of 4

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

About two months ago, I decided to upgrade my flatware and purchased the 50 piece WMF Manaos/Bistro flatware set. I was very happy with this purchase, as the utensils are high-polish, clean easily and are the right weight - not too heavy, not too light. They are also made with no sharp edges, so they feel good in your hand when using them. I wanted to add on to my set and decided to buy a set of 4 dinner forks, 4 salad forks, 4 teaspoons and 4 large spoons. The moment I handled them, I could tell they were different from my original set. They looked identical to the original, however, were thinner at the handle upon closer inspection, lighter weight and pretty easy to bend. It made a difference in how they felt during use. To be sure I wasn't nuts (because after all, the two side by side utensils looked identical), I weighed a utensil from my 50-piece set and then weighed the 4-piece version with my digital scale. Sure enough - they were different! The teaspoon from the 50-piece set weighed 1.06oz/30 grams. The 4 piece version weighed .85oz/24g. The dinner fork from the 50-piece set weighed 1.98oz./56g, the 4 piece version weighed 1.27oz/36g. This may not be a big deal for some people, but for me it was. The 4 piece versions are not as sturdy and feel light weight, which to me feels cheaper, especially when I can bend them with my hands. I am disappointed, since the product descriptions for both the 50 piece and the 4 piece versions give no indication there is a difference. They are overall okay utensils, just not the quality I wanted or expected.

Good fork for everyday but if you prefer a fork with a little "heft" to it, this is probably not the one for you. Not so light weight that it will bend easily though.

I am fussy about my forks. I figure life is too short to use ugly or ill-designed utensils. Most of my favorite forks went missing over the years so I was looking for replacements and I took a chance on these forks. I love how they look and how they feel in my hand.

I was hesitant on spending ~$3 per fork, but I'm pretty glad I did. These things have a nice chrome like finish that's really shiny. You don't get a steel taste b/c of the coating I guess. All that stuff above in the description about how every detail was made by some chef sure does seem to count.

As far as I can tell, the 'ergonomics' of this fork is pretty good. I'd buy some more if I ever needed them.

I'm glad I didn't get the cheap ones available elsewhere here at amazon.

One note, the pictures make the fork look stubby/short at the poking end, but in actuality it's rather slim and long looking and the spacing b/t the prongs are good too. Just trust the description that's provided above.

I actually thought they were going to be average but they are well worth it. Love the design and they are super sturdy! Will buy more soon since I already bought 2 sets to see if I liked them. Definitely recommend.

I purchased these forks in October 2011, and despite claims to the contrary, they were still made of 18/10 steel. 18/10 steel is far preferable to 18/0 or 18/C steel since it includes nickel in the steel mixture. Nickel drastically lowers the metallic aftertaste that cheaper silverware can impart to food. If you are very sensitive to aftertastes coloring your food, you should use 18/10 steel at the very least. They were manufactured in Vietnam.

The fork is mostly well machined except where it counts. Yes, the handle is smooth and well polished, but it's the tines that deny these forks their fifth star. The tines are not perfectly machined which means that some food may or may not get stuck to them. I am being overly critical though. These forks are VERY well machined; just not perfectly machined where it counts. The machining on these forks is VASTLY superior to what you would find in your local supermarket or discount store. I repeat, they're made quite well; just not perfectly. You would have to pay three times as much to have forks with perfect tines, and even then, you'd have to inspect them closely to be sure. After using these for some weeks, I have not found that food sticks in between the tines at all. I have not taken excessive care while hand washing them, but I still have not found any food residue left behind. I am quite pleased with these forks.

Perfect tines would have guaranteed a fifth star, so I wavered between 4 stars and 3 stars. Ultimately, the price made this a solid 3 star product: very serviceable, but not outstanding in anyway. These represent a significant improvement over the forks that I was using before, and I would certainly buy these again. Note that many WMF items are eligible for Amazon's 4-for-3 promotion, so you can outfit your kitchen in WMF for a very competitive price.

WMF's Bistro series is the perfect price and quality level.

Cheaper forks all look like they were stolen from a diner, and have imperfect surfaces which never really get clean in a dishwasher.

But these beauties have a subtle unique appearance and a perfectly polished surface which drops grime in a hurry and ALWAYS come out of the dishwasher looking new.

I understand the hesitation to pay more than a few dollars for a full set of flatware, probably because so many horrible discount store brands are out there shave set our expectations low. But 3 bucks each for a well-made steel implement really isn't that much if you want it not to be junk.

These dinner forks are very good quality for the price. Not really heavyweight, but not too light either. They are a nice, simple, classic "bistro" design. Perfect for everyday. I bought 4, then ordered 4 more, as well as 8 each of the salad forks, knives, tablespoons and teaspoons.

These forks are beautiful. They are very shiny and have not shown any rust or tarnishing. I have a very, very sensitive sense of taste and I can not taste any metallic flavor.

I ordered 4 each of the knife/spoon/fork and noticed how much lighter the fork was from the spoon. I got out my scale and noticed that the fork was nearly half the weight of the spoon. I really am not a stickler about weight but when they are so different, it really stands out when you use them. The fork was in a slightly different packaging which was suspicious, as if it was a new batch. It's too bad, I really like the design of these flatware but the fork feels decidedly cheap compared to the spoon so I can't recommend the set.