Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion The Water Cooler SS Cookware?

The good ol' Watercooler. Place for manly men to discuss vacuum cleaners, bath towels and chainsaws. I need to buy some cookware now. Figured I might as well start a manly cookware thread......

During a ridiculous display of juvenile antics, lacking any and all thought about what in the hell I would do afterwards, I pitched a bunch of cookware. I have been 'thinking' about getting some nice cookware for a few years, but every time I look at just how expensive it is, I move on and end up in the tool section. But over the years my collection of crap from Costco and other chain stores has degraded to mostly unusable and disgusting to look at. So I figured that if I just pitch the crap, I'd be forced to buy some new stuff. Smart!! - Not....

A couple hours researching this has me pondering the wisdom of my motivational tactics. Sonofabitch this stuff is expensive!!! Ya, they make some cheap stuff, but then I'd start the cycle all over again. So I'm not going cheap. We have one saucepan that I splurged on last year. A Le Crueset SS pan. Cost me almost $200. It is very nice, and has enough heft to bludgeon a water buffalo to death. I figured I'd buy some more. Then I found out that my nice SS "French" Le Crueset sausepan is actually manufactured in China, unlike the coated cast iron Le Crueset stuff we have - go figure. I've been in a mood lately to do my best to not buy stuff from China. It's my feeble little war against the inevitable economic world takeover that China is conducting. I'd prefer to stick to that flippant course of action, but may just have to cave. So that leaves All-Clad and a few others. All are downright disgustingly expensive. Crap, what did I get myself into.

Well we do like to cook, and I figure I have a good twenty years left before I kick the bucket, unless I do something stupid, so I might as well splurge a bit.

I hate the handles on the All-Clad. They put my wrist an an unnatural angle. So made in the USA All-Clad stuff is off my list of contenders.

I don't like rivets in pans either. I just don't have the patience required to clean all around the damn things.

I really like the look of those pans on the majority of the cooking channel shows. I found out the ones that I thought looked really cool are Demeyere: Atlantis line. Made in Germany. Seven ply stuff. I can buy a car for what a set of this stuff costs. I might have to sell the vette. Probably should, before I do something stupid in it, well 'stupider' than I've already done.

Mauviel is made in France (Really is this time), again expensive. I can't tell if they use rivets though. About the same price point as the Demeyere stuff. I did find a set on clearance for about 30% off though, tempting. But it's French! ...so I should be able to burn plastic in them and it'll taste good with some butter and cream.

Anyone one else have some first hand experience with some high end cookware?? I kinda need to buy something pretty soon. You can only do so much with a microwave and a glass cup.