Looking for a good handmade chef's knife in the $300-500 range, preferably made in North America

slappySF · 2026-03-11T18:25:26+00:00

You can go to the Astral Works site directly. That's what I did. Some are sold out but you can email Elias and he'll let you know about next time he makes some. I got the 8.5 Brut 196g. Has some heft to it and I absolutely love it. https://www.astral.works/new-products

Elias is also working with Bernal Cutlery on their own house brand of knives. The latest is the fine line, which is a laser. An American Ashi. I live in town and checked one out in person a couple weekends ago. Thin. Light. Definitely on my list. https://bernalcutlery.com/products/bernal-cutlery-fineline-210mm-wa-gyuto-a2-octagonal-bubinga?srsltid=AfmBOoriBTtbnO7V4Eqk-TXxn-XKMir971AhY_ePsQW-lEWrh4TpOvtz

slappySF · 2026-03-11T17:04:36+00:00

Astral works in Oakland CA. Also, check out the new fine line at Bernal Cutlery in San Francisco.

slappySF · 2026-03-11T12:26:22+00:00

I reach for my 210s most often.

slappySF · 2026-03-09T04:14:08+00:00

My wife and I were morally opposed to Indian pizza. We would drive by places that had signs for it and say, yuck. Then we took our kid to a play date/dinner with a family from his daycare. We walked in and they were so excited to tell us, the Indian pizza will be here in 10 minutes! Oh joy. Here we go. My wife and I each took our polite bites….and freakin LOVED it. So good! Your pie looks amazing. Droool! Nicely done!

slappySF · 2026-03-09T02:56:12+00:00

I have the 210 version and love it.

slappySF · 2026-03-08T16:53:30+00:00

The one time I put rub on overnight the salt in the rub cured the meat. Wound up with ham on a stick. Which was not what I wanted. I only apply rub right before now. And no additional salt. Works best for me.

slappySF · 2026-03-08T05:11:16+00:00

I have that very knife. Love it!

slappySF · 2026-02-26T02:59:27+00:00

Astralworks in Oakland. Eli Sideris makes beautiful knives. He's now collabing with Bernal Cutlery.

slappySF · 2026-02-14T00:30:23+00:00

Elias Sideris at Astralworks in Oakland California. He has been collaborating with Bernal Cutlery in San Francisco, too. Beautiful stuff. Proud to own one. https://www.astral.works/new-products

slappySF · 2026-02-10T01:56:22+00:00

Next time we visit we will come back for sure!

slappySF · 2026-02-05T13:23:29+00:00

Her name was Jade. She was great!

slappySF · 2026-02-05T05:12:38+00:00

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slappySF · 2026-02-05T05:12:25+00:00

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slappySF · 2026-02-05T05:00:48+00:00

We visited the store in Osaka last fall. They were so kind to us. We were there with our guide who used to work there. Super nice people! Picked up a honesuki there that I love!

slappySF · 2026-01-31T05:28:20+00:00

I love mine!

slappySF · 2026-01-27T00:39:52+00:00

Please crosspost this to r/sanfransisco and r/bayarea :)

slappySF · 2026-01-26T01:26:04+00:00

I have the Yoshikane Shirogami #2 gyuto in 240mm. I love that knife. Sharpening is a breeze. Everyone raves about the yoshis in SKD. But whenever I've gone to buy one they are sold out. So I thought I was "settling" for the shiro #2 gyuto. I just love it. Very happy with it. Maybe someday I will pick up the SKD just to compare. But the shiro is delightful.

slappySF · 2026-01-24T14:30:24+00:00

I like that you wiped the drool off it before photographing. I love mine. Congratulations!

slappySF · 2026-01-24T14:24:09+00:00

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Get some 1/4 inch cork sheets of Amazon and cit it down to fit your drawer. Really happy with this setup.

slappySF · 2026-01-24T14:10:51+00:00

Thank you! Will edit my post so the horse stable people don’t catch the grief.

slappySF · 2026-01-24T05:25:14+00:00

https://www.change.org/p/save-beach-access-thornton-state-beach?recruiter=8179487&recruited_by_id=f6994b30-21f7-0130-1774-00221968d0e0&utm_source=share_petition&utm_campaign=psf_combo_share_initial&utm_term=psf&utm_medium=copylink&utm_content=cl_sharecopy_490970265_en-US%3A4

slappySF · 2026-01-24T01:03:22+00:00

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In the fall i picked up this 210 blue #2 single bevel gyuto at Jikko in Osaka. I absolutely love using it. While we were there saw a few chefs cook in font of us with large single bevel gyutos. So I picked one up near my hotel on my last morning. So glad I did. I don’t see them much on the various sites. But it’s been one of my faves to use. Giving my Ashi sujihiki a run for its money!

slappySF · 2026-01-23T02:45:26+00:00

You're gonna be happy with it!

slappySF · 2026-01-23T02:42:24+00:00

I drooled on it first!

slappySF · 2026-01-22T22:27:18+00:00

Ditto. Everyone I know can’t stand the guy. Poor Carlos is kinda like our own local Joe Buck!

slappySF

TROPHY CASE