# CUTCO Petite Chef



## littleladychef (Jun 12, 2009)

Someone talked me into buying a CUTCO Petite Chef tested and recommended by members of the Cooking Club of America. It works great, The handle grips well because of the wedge-lock design. This knife is better than these professional chef knives I've used in the past like one made by Slitzer. For a little over a hundred dollars, CUTCO Petite Chef is worth the investment with forever sharpness and performance guarantee. CUTCO makes pastry spatulas, ice cream scoops, shears that can cut pennies and trimming knife that cuts paper-thin slices of tomatoes.


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## gourmetm (Jun 27, 2011)

Always wanted to be able to cut corners and pennies/img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

Cutco is not quite mediocre, but sold at very high prices. Cutco's advertising is extremely misleading without quite crossing the line into "false." Take for example, how they brag about the miraculous properties of their blade alloy -- which is actually very low end. They have a very few good points -- made in America, free lifetime sharpening, comfortable (for some hands) handles -- but considering the low overall quality and high tariff, those points aren't nearly good enough.

Cutco probably is better than _Slitzer_. But that's not saying much. Slitzer is in no way "pro." It's one of those companies marketing 20 pieces for $25 on ebay and Amazon. You'd have to look hard to buy worse.

Don't buy either.

BDL


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## Iceman (Jan 4, 2011)

Come on now _*BDL*_. I sold _Cutco_ stuff for over a year. You can't say that after I cut a nickel up for you, and then shave paper and food items using just the weight of the knife that it's completely garbage. LOL. I bought my first car, with my own money _($600_), a '74 Ford Maverick, with what I made selling the stuff. If I would give _Cutco_ stuff a particular quality, it would be that you can't hurt it. Any stupid thing you could do will be covered under warranty. I mean you could put a knife blade in a vice, and bend it 90***, and the company would send you a new one _(back then anyway)_. Every product has a market, _Cutco_ has lasted for a long time. Their customers seem happy, I think. It's not any fault of _Cutco_'s that they service a generally not-too-brite market.


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## capsaicin (Jan 16, 2011)

I sharpened a straight edge Cutco knife once and was expecting absolute crap.  It actually surprised me given what I had heard about Cutco over the years.

The steel seems to be something in the neighborhood of a 440 stainless.  It does take a decent edge -- I took it to 15* as with most non-Japanese knives I sharpen for my friends -- and from what my friend has told me since, keeps the edge reasonably well with a microbevel at about 25*.

But when he told me how much these things go for, I bust a gut laughing.  It's not absolute crap but it is just not worth the money that they charge.  For the same money, you can get far, FAR superior knives.  I would not bother with them, especially the serrated edge ones that shred your food.


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## chefedb (Apr 3, 2010)

As BDL says Cutco is very overpriced salesman s commission is extremely high. and they are really not that good.


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

It's 440A. So it is 440, but the cheap kind. It's fairly fine grained and can be made reasonably sharp if the knife has the right geometry. Cutco knives are stamped fairly thin, and thin is good for many knife things. 440A is a "value" but not a high quality steel. Better than 420J I suppose, but not by much.

And Ice, I never said they were bad knives, just way overpriced. The OP's "Petite Chef" is a straight edged, wide, 7-5/8" chefs. It retails for right around $100 (although you can find them discounted on ebay and a few other auction sites). You can buy a pretty serious 8" knife for a hundred smackers.

What Cutco's "straight edged" (aka fine edged) knives won't do is hold an edge very well. That is they dull profoundly after very little use. For a lot of cooks that's not a big deal because they expect knives to be dull.

Cutco's "Double D" edges are a different story. Not much happier, but different. Serrated knives don't cut the same way as fine edged blades do. They're really more saws than knives, leaving a ragged kerf rather than a smooth, fine cut. The Double Ds aren't sharp in the same sense as... say... one of my knives, but they will efficiently cut. Lots (most) people like serrated knives for cutting tomatoes for precisely that reason. Like steak knives, the Cutcos don't cut well, but they cut at all. And since those people can't sharpen, can't use a knife well, and have never used a good one, that works for them.

Now, I don't know about you but cutting nickles is not a big part of my prep. Mirepoix yes. Small change, no.

I can't tell you how many houses there are where the only usable prep knife in the house is a steak knife or Cutco Double D. The homes of otherwise good cooks too. That's the backstory behind why I'm so active talking about knives in Chef Talk. You can do things with a sharp knife you can't with a dull or serrated one which make your food better. Both the BDL _persona _and the real me are much more about _cooking better_ and teaching others to do the same than hardware -- granted though, you can't always tell.

BDL

PS. Just like your Ice's first car, my current ride is a Ford. Different year and model though.


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## capsaicin (Jan 16, 2011)

Thank you for letting me know.  I was just going by how it felt on the stones and how it sharpened, both of which seemed to me exactly the same many other knives I've sharpened, stamped with "440" but generally did not specify which kind of 440.  I certainly was not going to take time looking up the specs online -- Cutco knives are something that I probably would not throw out if I already owned it (but would definitely give away or eBay if I did), but I would absolutely never buy.  Just not worth the money.


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## capsaicin (Jan 16, 2011)

btw it is technically illegal to cut up legal tender currency, is it not?


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## gourmetm (Jun 27, 2011)

Capsaicin said:


> btw it is technically illegal to cut up legal tender currency, is it not?


It is a felony /img/vbsmilies/smilies/cool.gif


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## chefedb (Apr 3, 2010)

Why not it's worth nothing anyway.


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## foodpump (Oct 10, 2005)

Awright, both of you, BDL and Iceman, stop and read the OP's post again.

Can ye both not hear the entire crew of Monty Python merrily singing "spam, spam, spam, spam, and spam"? 

Beware the auto mnfctr that brags that their gasoline engines never needing an oil change

Beware the knife mnfctr that brags that thier knives never need sharpening......

It's a freaking hacksaw blade, and everything you cut with it, the blade will leave scars and scraches on the surface.

It is waaaay overpriced, possibly 3rd party mark-up?


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

foodpump said:


> ...It is waaaay overpriced, possibly 3rd party mark-up?


Naw, 20% sales person commission, 20% manager over-ride, 20% distributor over-ride, 20% reserve for lifetime warrantee, pretty soon you're into real overhead /img/vbsmilies/smilies/laser.gifBINGO $$$$$


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

Pump,

Could be, but I don't think it's that clear.  If she is spamming us she told us a lot about herself and waited a few posts before doing it.  I'd prefer to take her at face value  and chalk it up to the fact that some people just like them.  Even if mistaken, I haven't lost anything by assuming the best of motives on her part. 

BDL


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## foodpump (Oct 10, 2005)

littleladychef said:


> Someone talked me into buying a CUTCO Petite Chef tested and recommended by members of the Cooking Club of America. It works great, The handle grips well because of the wedge-lock design. This knife is better than these professional chef knives I've used in the past like one made by Slitzer. For a little over a hundred dollars, CUTCO Petite Chef is worth the investment with forever sharpness and performance guarantee. CUTCO makes pastry spatulas, ice cream scoops, shears that can cut pennies and trimming knife that cuts paper-thin slices of tomatoes.


I don'tknow bout you, but for meit sure walks and quacks like a duck.........................


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## Iceman (Jan 4, 2011)

Let's all just maybe give the benefit of the doubt and, you know, live and let live. OK? So come on now people. Let's stay on topic here.

Let's be serious too. I'd be willing to guess that over 95% of the basic home-type people using knives for the regular type food preparation of their daily meals would be all sunshine and butterflies with _Cutco_ knives. The greatest percentage of people (>95%) are not geeks. Knives is knives, and what they got pretty much gets the job done. I have absolute faith that the people buying _Cutco_ knives will be just happy with them.


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

IceMan's point is excellent. *If* you compare Cutco to the average American kitchen knife, they *are* superior.

My daughter sold Cutco while in college. Every thing was hunky dory until she came home one weekend and we compared Cutco and MAC.

/img/vbsmilies/smilies/laser.gifShe quit Cutco the following week.


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

Ice and Pete -- I agree with both of you;, but purely to push the conversation along would like to point out that what's in most peoples' homes is not the point of CT's "Knife" sub-thread. While Cutco may be better than the very worst, there are much better choices. People come here for advice, and deserve to be pointed towards those better choices and warned away from Cutco.

Meanwhile I'll try to pull the honing rod out of my [pop!]

BDL


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## petemccracken (Sep 18, 2008)

Oops! Didn't look at the forum title, my bad!


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

Originally Posted by *PeteMcCracken* 


> Oops! Didn't look at the forum title, my bad!


/img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif

BDL


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## Iceman (Jan 4, 2011)

Point taken *BDL*. I guess however, that since my persona is not well enough known, I need to be more explanatory a little bit when I'm not being as serious as I might be taken. I'll try to forward more clues next time when I'm in a joking attitude. Compared to stuff I would suggest, at a fraction of the price _(Victorinox Forschner)_, _Cutco_ blows. I made a good buck selling the stuff a long time ago. Nobody was hurt in or by the transactions. The people that have purchased _Cutco_ from anyone else probably are very happy, and don't know any better anyway. Hey, it is what it is. I'm not sayin', I'm just sayin'.


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## panini (Jul 28, 2001)

I'm not sayin', I'm just sayin'.

Hey Ice,

If the shoe fits? If it's good for The Cooking Club of America and a Little Chef Lady from Pennsylvania, It might be right up you alley./img/vbsmilies/smilies/crazy.gif

After so many years in the business, knives are basically like insurance. It's a good thing to have, unless you need it. If I break out my personal

knives in the kitchen, something going to get ruined.

a '74 Maverick??? Sure it wasn't a Pinto?

I keep a Cutco in the ranch truck. Great for changing tires and cutting radiator hose stabbing feral hogs and open Shiners.

In the kitchens, I've always been a bigf Dick guy.


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## capsaicin (Jan 16, 2011)

lol @ "bigf Dick guy"


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## foodpump (Oct 10, 2005)

I happen to be a big fan of F. Dick as well. Even have a large promotional poster from the early 1900's.

Wonder if the moderators will let me post of picture of my big Dick poster?.........../img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif


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## chefpigman (Jan 23, 2012)

I'm a former chef and an avid home cook, and I have used a lot of High end Cutlery and, while Cutco isn't the best out there and is a little overpriced, It certainly isn't total crap either.  To make some things clear about the blades, handles and overall quality, Brand new straight edges from Cutco, like the French Chef, are very sharp.  They aren't forged, or the top of the line steel, but they do give you a terrific edge to start with.  They hone up pretty well too.  They, of coarse do lose their edge over time and do need sharpening, but they hold an edge a bit longer than something like a Wusthof of comparable price with regular home use.  The "serrated" edge actually does cut pretty cleanly and doesn't rip or tear through food as long as it's used right.  If you glide the double d edged blades through the food with the full length of the blade and don't press, they work great.  The design also protects the cutting surface of from dulling over time.  I personally like the handle design and prefer it to other more traditional designs, but that's just a comfort thing.  I also like the balance, especially with the chef's knife and the santoku.  

     They are a very popular brand and have a very high customer satisfaction rating.  Again, they aren't perfect, but they are a household name and they have been making essentially the same product for 70 years now.  As far as steel quality and stamped vs forged, unless you're a professional chef who needs the perfect balance of feel and performance and are actually skilled enough to tell the difference, (and I don't mean against the basic home cutlery) there isn't much performance difference at that level of cutlery.  I've seen Cutco blades from the 70's that look like new, and if well maintained, perform like it too.  If you have some high end Japanese steel forged, hand crafted super knife, sure that will be superior, but at the home consumer level, it's a pretty well made, reliable and well performing line.  They also have a ton of options available for all kinds of knives and other tools.  Their fine flatware is pretty good and their gardening tools are really good quality.

With all of that said, I know they have college kids who know nothing about knives going around selling that stuff to friends and family at inflated prices, but you can get deals if you're smart and know how to find them, and any salesperson is going to try and tell you their stuff's the best and it's your job to be an informed consumer and know how to deal with tricky sales people.  (and trust me, those kids are by no means tricky sales people.  They're lucky if they can look up from their cheat sheet long enough to do a demo.  They also like to cut themselves a LOT at those demos because they have absolutely no knife skills training whatsoever!...And yes, Along with being a chef, I did used to sell the stuff, and I was pretty good at selling Cutco to people who already had high end knives)  

Anyway, I won't give Cutco a 10 out of 10, but for the home consumer, for the price and quality level they're supposed to be competing with, I say they're a solid 8.  Try and find them for a deal and you won't be disappointed, especially after continued use.


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

Pigman,

I'm going to assume you're sincere... but even so a lot of what you're saying is BS and almost none of it is germane to this thread which died a few months ago -- until you sadly revived it.  The best thing about Cutco is their free, lifetime sharpening (assuming they still offer it), the worst things are the way Cutco exploits its college student sales staff, the mis-information disseminated by that same staff (with the best intentions), and the pressure those kids exert on their innocent relatives to spend way too much on knives they don't want or need and which aren't really very good anyway. 

Bottom line:  Cutco's are low-mid quality knives, made from an alloy which was never very good and is now well past its sell-by, sold at a high-mid price.  3/10, tops.

BDL


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## knifesavers (Oct 5, 2011)

I've had a few Cutco blades come through and to me the steel sharpens like the steel on the ultra cheap Kiwi knives.

The Cutco handles are not my thing but then again I'm a big F Dick fan too in the handle department.

Jim


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## rhinodb (Feb 15, 2012)

these knives suck a$#. my son worked for cutco for 5 days i checked out one of the knives, a petite carver and i tried a bend test tosee how flexible. i barely bent it  and 7t snapped in my bare fingers. i then tried to see how sharp the blade was and i ran it across my finger with no cut until i had to press down hard, then barely a slice. i checked the price for this knife, $88. kiss my a$%. its not worth $10. this crap sucks.


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## mano (Dec 16, 2010)

The OP is a shill.  Cutco has legions of sales people who start and maintain threads like this.  Even a lot of customers are true believers.

We have about five Cutco knives bought from my kids' friends when they were freshmen in college.  I know people who run Cutco operations in two states and have too many friends who own complete sets and love them.  The average home cook and a surprising number of professionals are naive about cutlery.  Give them a good gyuto and they're bothered by how sharp it is.  If they use it long enough, they might possibly appreciate what a good knife is all about.  My wife, who is a good cook prefers the Cutco handles and the serrated blades.  

People love that they're made in America and offer free sharpening and replacement.   Cutco can their lifetime warranty only because the knives are inexpensive to make.  We've received brand new knives instead of the resharpened ones we sent them because it's more cost effective for Cutco.  

Bottom line is they're average, at best, but are perceived as much more.


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## zhazelmyer (Feb 7, 2012)

The very first knife I have ever owned was gifted to me by a fellow cook. His grandfather passed and at his grandfathers estate sale, he found a 9 3/4 petite french chef knife. Brass rivets, walnut handle. You have to admit, this is a beautiful knife. It's functionality is limited from any standpoint, but I've attached a lot of sentimental value to my cooking journey with this knife. I paid no money for it, and I've never had it sharpened. I've used it to practice knife sharpening, and because of how often I had to do it, it has been a pretty crappy knife that has taught me well. 

 It's a part of this countries shabby and short history, and I celebrate it like people celebrate carnival chintz on a first date. 

 If you paid for it... uh... 

 sucker.


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## duckfat (Aug 7, 2008)

foodpump said:


> I happen to be a big fan of F. Dick as well. Even have a large promotional poster from the early 1900's.
> 
> Wonder if the moderators will let me post of picture of my big Dick poster?.........../img/vbsmilies/smilies/lol.gif


LMAO

I have set of the Cutco DD steak knives that I received as a gift. Nearly fell of my chair when I saw what they cost. The only good thing I can say about them is if I send them back I get a new "free" set that lasts a few more months.

Dave


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## chefedb (Apr 3, 2010)

Friend of mine used to sell Cutco  50% of selling price is salesmans commission. They are ok and pretty but for a house, and a housewife , not commercial applications.


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## chefknivestogo (Mar 24, 2012)

It amazes me how many of these knives are out in the world. They produce huge quantities of knives.


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## duckfat (Aug 7, 2008)

It amazes me how many people actually think they are great knives. It's probably not a stretch to say you could buy better/equal knives at Wally World for 1/5 the price.

Dave


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## willbkool (Jun 14, 2010)

They have some of these at my lodge, some with the serrated edge and some with regular edges. When I took my Edgepro Apex there and sharpened some of the knives people donated, I tried shapening a cutco chefs knife. I got a decent edge on it, but I didn't want to waste too much time on it. I also sharpened some Chicago Cutlery knives, and they seemed to be made with better steel than the cutco. There was one old butcher knife that was almost brown with age, and it sharpened up quite nicely. But the cutco's seemed cheap and I wouldn't waste my time on them. And I think some of the posters in this thread must have worked for them, for giving them so much praise, Even the old ginsu knifes weren't much worse than them.


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## anamouse (Nov 10, 2013)

I'm a cutlery knife collector and have more knives than I can display including several from Cutco that I bought to satisfy my own curiosity.  I don't form opinions until I've had a chance to use them, sharpen them and use them again because how well they hold their edge and how well easy it is to sharpen them has a lot to do with my opinion of the knife.  

The large slicer is as well made as any $15 knife, and so is the large Chef's knife, but nether is in the same class as any $60+ knife I own including other stamped knives like many made by Mac or even old Gerber's.  The serrated slicer might beat out almost every other knife in Cutco's "cutting layers of sandpaper" test, but I can't think of a kitchen use that simulates that abuse, and its performance in the kitchen does not surpass lots of other knives that do only cost about $15.  I suspect there are many hacksaw blades that would beat Cutco's serrated performance, and that fact would not make them any more superior in the kitchen, than their serrated knives are just because they do a good job cutting sandpaper.  That's a lousy way to test a fine knife.

I have used and resharpened the large Cutco Chefs knife a few times, and it's nothing special but rather mediocre at holding an edge and not particularly easy to sharpen because the metal is more malleable than I prefer.  I'm not saying it's a total piece of junk, but it's a long way away from a fine knife in design and quality.  Serrated Ginsu knives have many of the same qualities at a tiny fraction of Cutco's price.

Cutco brags about their handle design and I don't think it's anything to brag about.  It's not comfortable for any long task like a real chef might have done in their kitchen, and perhaps that's one reason I don't think I've ever seen one in a professional kitchen.  Most commercial kitchens and butcher shops have an abundance of knives, and they usually make their selection on two factors, cost and quality.  The top chef might have a few expensive knives that no one else touches, but the help who do most of the work usually use low cost medium quality knives like Victorinox or Dexter because they work, are indestructible, and don't cost a lot.  I understand why many people, myself included, who actually do less work with their knives are willing to pay far more to have much higher quality knives, but I don't pretend their necessary if you're going to be a good cook.  I own many fine knives, but do not consider the Cutco knives I own to be in that class.

Cutco knives are great for knife sobs like me, but with one small difference, they who know nothing about knives, and couldn't put a good edge on a real good knife even if they owned one.  Of course they like the Cutco slicer, it's an expensive knife and they can probably prove it to you by showing you their receipt, so it does have snob appeal.  They also have physical proof because it cuts their meat, fruit and veggies every time, proof enough for anyone who's never had a real good sharp knife in their hand.  No use arguing with people who have never used a better knife and by better I don't just mean one with a better name, but one that is also sharp.  I've been in countless homes where all their knives regardless of quality or brand, were dull as butter knives because they never sharpen them.  

Fact is that a Cutco owner who can't sharpen a good knife is probably better off with a serrated blade than they would be with the best un-serrated blade on the market.  It's also a fact that they would be just as well off with lots of other serrated knives that cost a fraction of what they spent on their overpriced Cutco wonder knife.  You can't enlighten them by telling them about the difference, the only way they will become convinced is if they actually have the opportunity to use a very good knife that has been appropriately sharpened for the task their about to perform.  I have done that with a few Cutco fans and surprised them.  None dumped their Cutco knives but a few did acquire better knives and I help them keep them sharp.


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## anamouse (Nov 10, 2013)

Cutco's prices are at the top and their quality way below what I would expect at that price.  I own several and they don't compare to real quality knives around the same price.

Pro's

Extremely durable, thanks to the low temper and malleable metal used in their blades.

Snob appeal, great if your showing off the receipt to people who don't know much about good knives.

The factory will sharpen them for a small shipping and handling fee, that is a bit less than what a comparable knife might cost.

Con's

Their extremely overpriced

Their fancy handle design isn't comfortable for long use

Their serrated blades are not easy to sharpen at home

Their soft blades don't hold an edge very long, Chefs knife comment


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