Editor’s Desk
The Best Of
Some things have a clear answer. Scissors. A vegetable peeler. The French press in every café window. There’s no top-10 here, no voting, no “it depends.” Just the one we’d buy.
Best Scissors
Craighill Chroma Scissors
Hand-finished Italian steel in an eight-color palette. The only scissors worth setting on a desk.
Best Vegetable Peeler
Kuhn Rikon Original Swiss Peeler
Three dollars. A blade so sharp it has a cult. The only peeler any home cook actually needs.
Best Tape Measure
Stanley FatMax 25-Foot
Eleven feet of standout, a magnetic hook, and the only tape that doesn't humiliate you on the second floor.
Best French Press
Bodum Chambord 8-Cup
The original, the icon, the one in every café window. There is no second.
Sharpie
Fine Point, Black
Best Permanent Marker
Sharpie Fine Point, Black
The category killer. Don't overthink this one.
Best Cast Iron Skillet
Lodge 10.25-inch Classic
Pre-seasoned, made in Tennessee since 1896, and a third the price of any boutique pan. The honest answer.
Best Dotted Notebook
Leuchtturm1917 Medium A5, Dotted
Numbered pages, a built-in index, two ribbon markers, and paper that takes a fountain pen.
Yes
Speed Opener
Best Bottle Opener
Yes Speed Opener
A flat, stainless wedge that lives on your keyring and pops caps without ceremony — the bottle opener you'll actually have on you.
Best Chef's Knife
Victorinox Fibrox Pro 8-Inch
The knife every culinary school issues. $35 and it outperforms blades ten times the price.
Best Corkscrew
Pulltap's Double-Hinged Waiter's Corkscrew
The one every sommelier carries. $10 and it's never been improved upon.
Best Cutting Board
Boos Maple Edge-Grain 24×18
End-grain maple, made in Illinois since 1887. The board that professional kitchens refuse to replace.
Best Mechanical Pencil
Pentel GraphGear 1000 (0.5mm)
Dual-action retractor, knurled metal grip, and a 4mm fixed guide pipe for drafting precision. $12.
Best Pepper Mill
Peugeot Paris u'Select 9-Inch
The same company that makes the cars. French-made steel grinding mechanism with a lifetime guarantee.
Best Nail Clipper
Seki Edge Stainless Steel Fingernail Clipper SS-106
Forged in Seki City, Japan — the knife-making capital of the world. The cleanest cut you've ever felt.
Best Dish Soap
Dawn Platinum Powerwash
The spray that replaced soaking. One trigger pull cuts grease that other soaps need ten minutes and hot water to touch.
Best Utility Knife
Olfa Heavy-Duty Ratchet-Lock (L-1)
The company that invented the snap-off blade in 1956. Still the sharpest cutter in any toolbox.