This is an outstanding set of knives, especially for the price. Amazon shipping packaging was great, appropriate size and protection for the heavy block and 17 pieces (the 9 major knives are made of German steel and the 8 steak knives were made in Spain) that came in the box from J.A. Henckels. I'm not a chef, just a regular guy, but I like to cook occasionally and use good-quality kitchen implements. These knives are extremely high quality and are perfect tools for slicing and dicing food. Two paring knives, a Japanese santoku, a bread knife, a couple of utility knives - plus eight Spanish-made J.A. Henckels steak knives - and best and most useful of all: the eight-inch chef's knife! I use the eight-inch chef's knife all the time for a lot of cutting and slicing (it's one of the most versatile kitchen knives, in my opinion), and using it to cut a pound of frozen bacon edgewise to make bacon bits is like heaven; the quality of the steel and the sharpness of the blade right out of the box made it a delight to use. Same for the paring knives: the best darned knives for slicing apples - or anything else that needs paring. I wish now that I'd bought a larger set, but I'll certainly be rounding out this set as I find that I need particular knives. The block has about four empty slots that need filling, including one slot for a meat cleaver! I must admit, I'm kind of iffy on the meat cleaver.... I bought a set of similarly styled stainless steel knives about three years ago made by an American company, Chicago Cutlery, or at least with Chicago Cutlery's name on them, and they started rusting the first time I washed them! I couldn't believe it. I assumed the knives were made in the U.S. like a much older set that I owned from the same company (I never checked the packaging or the manufacturer's on the blades when I bought them - unusual for me), but no, it turned out those new knives were made in China and the "stainless" steel wasn't, well, stainless - it was horrible. The knives not only rusted but they wouldn't hold a sharp edge. I kept them for the past few years because they were expensive, but I finally decided I'd had enough with Chinese-made stainless, with the rust and the dull edges, and purchased German steel. I'm extremely satisfied: no rust and sharp edges! Pretty basic expectations from a knife. No brainer. Great purchase, I highly recommend these German-made, J.A. Henckels Twin Pro-S knives. UPDATE, 14 December 2011: Just over two years later, I still love these knives. Edges keep their sharpness - of course, one must sharpen one's knives occasionally because they do dull after frequent use - and NO RUST!!! Only one problem: someone in my family "borrowed" (read: "lost") the scissors that came with the set and they have been missing for over a year. Annoying. I need to order another pair.... UPDATE, 27 November 2012: Still love 'em! But I still haven't found that damned pair of scissors... UPDATE, 16 November 2018. Knives still going strong. FWIW even though they might be dishwasher-safe, I never put my knives in the dishwasher, the edges can get banged up. They stay sharper longer if washed by hand. Because of a later comment on my review by someone else, I changed the first sentence of my original review to correct the comment about "17 German-made". Though I did mention it in the body later in the comment, the eight steak knives are made in Spain. 24 January 2024 Update: Okay, the knives are still going strong, no issues whatsoever. They do require occasional sharpening, of course, but they hold an edge very well. This was the best knife purchase I’ve ever made, and I’ve owned a few different brands. Oh - btw, I’m totally independent from Henckels, I’ve received nothing from them for my review and I paid the full listed price at the time of purchase. And I’m not an investor in their company. I just love their knives! Read more
I am not a chef, but have desired a nice high end knife for some time now. I did considerable research and went to some high end stores to compare the feel, weight and balance of various knives (one of the few things you can’t do on Amazon). At the physical stores I specifically compared the Zwilling J.A. Henckels Professional “S”, Four Star II and Wusthof Classic Ikon. Both brands (Wusthof and Henckels) and all three product lines are all wonderful and would make most people very happy. After reading many reviews on many different shopping sites and cooking forums I concluded that most of the differences come down to personal preference. My preference after holding and examining the various knives was to go with the Pro S. I like the handles better than the Four Star II and the overall feel better than Wusthof. I would, however, never criticize someone for preferring the Four Star II or Wusthof Classic Ikon. They are all great knives. I know some of this is already included in the product description, but I found the way they displayed it difficult to read, so here are some specifics about this knife set. This set includes the following: 2.75-inch Bird's Beak Peeling Knife 2.75-inch Trimming Knife 4-inch Paring Knife 5-inch Serrated Utility Knife 5.5-inch Flexible Boning Knife 6-inch Utility Knife 7-inch Hollow Edge Santoku Knife 8-inch Bread Knife 8-inch Chef's Knife 9-inch Sharpening Steel Eight 4.5-inch Forged Steak Knives (these are actual Pro S forged knives, not the lower end knives) Twin L Kitchen Shears (the only thing that isn’t and doesn’t need to be Pro S) 22-slot Hardwood Knife Block (there are three open spaces for additional knives, including one large slot for a cleaver or Chinese Chef’s knife, etc.) The knives are all made in Germany and come with a lifetime warranty. They are forged from a single piece of high-carbon stainless steel. These are full tang and the design of the handle (traditional three rivets) allows you to see the steel from tip to the end of the handle. This is one of the features that I liked better than the Four Star II. The steak knives in this set are actual Pro S forged knives just like the rest of the set. Henckels sells another Pro S set that is $400 less, but the steak knives in that set are a lower quality. It also is an 18 piece whereas this is a 20 piece. These are the real thing. They are not serrated and are so sharp that they don’t need to be serrated. I have only had the set for a few days now, but I absolutely love them. They slice through vegetables and meats with ease. I especially like the 7-inch Santoku, but all of the knives are wonderful. We had steak the night these arrived and everyone was amazed at how the steak knives effortlessly sliced through the meat! If anything changes or if I gain any other insights I will update this post, but for now I am very pleased with this purchase. Read more
I was very tired of purchasing average knife sets that even as new could barely cut through a piece of butter! A dull knife is a dangerous knife. I had heard about J.A. Henckels but didn't think I would ever spend the money for them. I recently decided I could keep spending money looking for that less expensive knife set that would never be sharp enough or I could invest in a great quality knife set that would last me a lifetime. I did some research and decided to purchase the Zwilling J.A. Henckels Professional S Knife Block Set, 20 piece, Black/Stainless Steel. I absolutely love this knife set. Not only are they sharp but they feel good in your hand. I hand wash and towel dry immediately after using them. I will never need to purchase another knife set as long as I live. This is something I will pass down to my children someday. Read more
The main knives in this set are advertised... from the Pro S line, beautiful and excellent quality. However, nowhere in the product description does it say that the steak knives are not Pro S knives, but in fact serrated much lower quality knives from the Gourmet line. I had gone back and forth in my mind between buying Henckels or Wusthof knives, and was incredibly impressed with some non-serrated Wusthof knives the other night at a nice steakhouse. To find out that I had inadvertently bought a set of lower-end serrated knives was a disappointment. I would have willingly paid more for an all Pro S set of knives, so this is unfortunate. Read more
