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New Pots and Pans

Hoping to get some help here. I'm looking to replace my old pots and pans. I'd like to get good quality stainless steel, stuff that will last for a long, long time. I've heard that one can go to a restaurant supply store and buy there. Can just anyone go? How would I go about finding a store near me - Google? What should I expect to pay? Thanks.
 

Tirvine

ancient grey sweatophile
Yep. Check Google because your restaurant stores and mine are totally different. There are also several new lines you can buy online. I am very intrigued by Misen.
 
All Clad are excellent. We have a large set of the d5 pots and pans. Probably last a lifetime or two but they are definitely a bit pricey.
Came in to suggest the All Clad D5 series myself. If the D5 series is not within budget the D3 series might be. A little less metal (three-layer construction vs five) and hence a little less expensive.
 
I have a fair amount of commercial pots and pans purchased from local restaurant supply stores. While they fit my needs just fine, an d I am happy with the price I paid for them, I am not sure I would recommend them for home use. For starters, some brands will not have a warranty for non commercial use, which can be a problem potentially. Not to mention the fact that they are all performance and no looks for the most part. There si also the fact that you will probably end up with a mishmash of styles. While that is perfectly fine by my standards, it is not always acceptable to some...
If you have the time to browse for sales, there are several quality brands to choose from.
As has been menttioned: All Clad is excellent quality, but a bit pricey for some. Tramontina, while not my favorite provides decent quality for the price.
 

Tirvine

ancient grey sweatophile
IMO as a die hard cookware junkie, the Cuisinart stuff you can get as sets or open stock at BBB is a great alternative to All Clad. For high heat fry pans nothing I have found beats carbon steel pans. DeBuyer Mineral B are a fine high end representation.
 
Keep in mind if an induction cooktop is in your future, stainless steel won't work.

I'm mesmerized by this thing:

 
Keep in mind if an induction cooktop is in your future, stainless steel won't work.

I'm mesmerized by this thing:



We have the 30“ version of the Thermador and love it ( or maybe an older version ? Our screen isn’t quite as fancy ). My favorite part about that model is the fact that it is agnostic to pan size and placement, so you can put your pans wherever you feel like and it figures it out.

The all clad copper core are compatible with it as it has a magnetic layer somewhere .. but the LTD was not.

The other randomly cool feature is you can attach a wireless thermometer and the stove will maintain the temperature of the pan to your choosing rather than use a constant heat output setting. That gives you perfect temps independent of what is in the pan or noodling with the heat output by eyeballing the contents of the pan.
 
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I bought a Tramontina (Brasil) set in 1997 and I am sure they will last another 25 years. Nothing fancy but heavy gauge stainless.
If you can afford buy multi ply for sure. All Clad or similar brand will bring joy using them. The ones I have are fantastic and heat up much faster than everything else in my kitchen.
 

kelbro

Alfred Spatchcock
We use All-Clad 5 layer but there are many good options out there for less $$. Tramontina, Farberware, and Cuisinart sell tons of stainless clad pots and pans and most of them look pretty good to me. You can often buy stainless on FB Marketplace cheap. Some people never learn how to cook non-stick and they go out and buy coated stuff.
 
The d5 pots and pans I have are magnetic so they do work on an induction cooktop. We have used them on an induction cooktop before. As long as a magnet sticks they should work just fine.
 

Intrigued

Bigfoot & Bagel aficionado.
Unless everything needs to match I would pick up individual pans based on what/how I cooked.

⬆ This!!!

I started out with a stainless steel set years ago. Now, I only have a couple of couple of different size sauce pans with lids and large pot that I use to boil water for pasta & corn on the cob in stainless. The rest is a mix of nonstick, carbon steel, cast iron, and enameled cast iron.
 
Oh, you evil people... putting videos (face it, sales promos!) of induction ranges on a thread! I just, I never! Now if you want to have induction, or your house was just built with it, All-clad Copper Core will do induction, gas, electric very nicely indeed.

In fact, you could say Copper Core finishes were MADE for induction glass-smooth tops as they will not have to face Mr. rough&ready cast iron grill. (All the scratches and wear on Mine are just 'experience' and "great meals!" /fans face with oriental paper fan).

Seriously though, you could do a lot worse getting anything but / er, I mean getting a set of All-clad. Yet, if you're really a chef who knows his work, a kitchen workspace filled with mismatched just the right this, and the right that, is not a sign of bad upbringing, it's the sign of inspiration and great food!

*** Oh, by-the-way, the Breville Control Freek is to just die for! Seriously, find one and try it out!
 
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Oh, you evil people... putting videos (face it, sales promos!) of induction ranges on a thread! I just, I never! Now if you want to have induction, or your house was just built with it, All-clad Copper Core will do induction, gas, electric very nicely indeed.

In fact, you could say Copper Core finishes were MADE for induction glass-smooth tops as they will not have to face Mr. rough&ready cast iron grill. (All the scratches and wear on Mine are just 'experience' and "great meals!" /fans face with oriental paper fan).

Seriously though, you could do a lot worse getting anything but / er, I mean getting a set of All-clad. Yet, if you're really a chef who knows his work, a kitchen workspace filled with mismatched just the right this, and the right that, is not a sign of bad upbringing, it's the sign of inspiration and great food!

*** Oh, by-the-way, the Breville Control Freek is to just die for! Seriously, find one and try it out!


I see .. shall I be an enabler ? I did not realize it at the time (we went with the stacking stupid number of William Sonoma sales / coupons approach ) but Costco online has really well priced all clad copper core sets (7 piece and 14 piece) which are even cheaper if you consider you get 2/4% cash back you get w/ the Costco credit card / cash back policy.

We are mismatched to be honest - cast iron / enameled cast iron and the copper core. Its all good :)
 

Old Hippie

Somewhere between 61 and dead
I've heard that one can go to a restaurant supply store and buy there. Can just anyone go? How would I go about finding a store near me - Google? What should I expect to pay? Thanks.

A lot of restaurant supply places are going to have more aluminum pans than stainless, in my experience. Still, you may get lucky so it's not bad to go looking. Be aware they may have restrictions on who can buy, or minimum orders. Ask; they'll tell you.

Where I see the most stainless at my local supply house is in the steam-table goods. I've got a few sizes of table insert pans that work great for things like lasagna pans. All their pots and skillets are aluminum, however.

Good quality stainless, allclad or cast iron cookware is going to be easier to find in a kitchen shop. Be prepared to pay what it takes. I used to like Farberware back in the '80s. You don't need the high-end, just a good middle-of-the-road pan. I ran across a very useful pot at Bed, Bath and Beyond in their "Salt" house brand. It's all stainless with a tempered glass lid, 12 litre capacity, aluminum bonded bottom. It somes with a deep strainer insert that works a treat for blanching vegetables for canning, along with a shallow strainer insert that can accommodate a dozen shell eggs for steaming.

I use it for everything from brining cuts of meat and whole chickens to blanching, steaming, making custard, stocks, etc. I originally bought it intending to use the large strainer in a larger pot for blanching. Only after that did I realize the rest of the outfit was so useful.

O.H.
 
Oh, you evil people... putting videos (face it, sales promos!) of induction ranges on a thread! I just, I never! Now if you want to have induction, or your house was just built with it, All-clad Copper Core will do induction, gas, electric very nicely indeed.

In fact, you could say Copper Core finishes were MADE for induction glass-smooth tops as they will not have to face Mr. rough&ready cast iron grill. (All the scratches and wear on Mine are just 'experience' and "great meals!" /fans face with oriental paper fan).

Seriously though, you could do a lot worse getting anything but / er, I mean getting a set of All-clad. Yet, if you're really a chef who knows his work, a kitchen workspace filled with mismatched just the right this, and the right that, is not a sign of bad upbringing, it's the sign of inspiration and great food!

*** Oh, by-the-way, the Breville Control Freek is to just die for! Seriously, find one and try it out!

Re-doing our kitchen now. My initial suggestion did not go over well with the SWMBO.

I didn't want a cooktop. Just a slightly lower counter (baler's height) with 20A outlets in the back where we can plug in individual induction stoves, griddles, etc... basically re-configurable to whatever we are cooking for the day. Very rarely are we using more than 2 burners and on those busy holidays, we can relocate the stoves to spread out. IMO, it would have been far more functional but it my wife wouldn't have it.
 
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