New knives, need a new board advice, around $60-70. Always have used plastic.

Hey everyone, my mom just bought her first "real knives" you will probably rip on this decision, but she bought Cutco. Mainly because she's always had these cheap Chicago Cutlery knives and never really sharpened them, so even these are a huge upgrade to her. Even if Wusthof/Henckles/Shun knives are better. Anyway I want to get her a real cutting board for christmas so the knives aren't ruined on a cheap plastic board. The board I'm considering is this 12x18x2.25 Maple Boos Block: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0018XTD6A/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

In the very little research I've done in the last 10 minutes or so, I heard Boos Boards were good boards, but when I got into the more "hardcore" user forums I heard about Boardsmith and Brooklyn Butcher Blocks. I'm thinking these are a little out of my price range though. My mom will probably be using the board like 3-4 times a week, for Saturday and Sunday dinners and cutting some fruit during the week. What would your advice be? Like I mentioned I'm trying to keep my budget at $60-70.

Thanks!
Sean

Welcome!

I think the knives she has will damage the cutting board more than the other way around. I would get her old knives (much better than her new ones) sharpened before getting her a nicer board.

Cheers!

Welcome aboard Sean - I would go with this one instead it's end grain where the Boos is edge grain. I have one and it's a great board for the money. If you do a search you might find it cheaper else where. I got mine for $45 shipped on a special somewhere.

http://www.amazon.com/Catskill-Craftsmen-19-Inch-Grain-Chopping/dp/B0002HE11U/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_2?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1355519397&sr=1-2-fkmr0&keywords=catskill+craftsman+cutting+board

I've spoken to the owners and bought boards from Philadelphia Butcher Block and Board. Excellent bang for the buck. Not as thick as Boos but plenty thick enough for a home kitchen.

http://www.blockandboard.com/products/Maple-Cutting-Board.html

Let me play devil's advocate and ask you whether your mother is prepared to give a wooden board the care and maintenance it needs, or if she is like my mother, who puts her plastic board in the dishwasher to get it "really clean".

The serrated edges on some of those Cutco jobs will tear up a wood board pretty quickly.

Pensacola Tiger said:

Let me play devil's advocate and ask you whether your mother is prepared to give a wooden board the care and maintenance it needs, or if she is like my mother, who puts her plastic board in the dishwasher to get it "really clean".

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+1

I was thinking the exact same thing. A wood board requires care. If you're looking for something that does not require much care, I would recommend a Hi-Soft board.

It's not a looker, but it works great. It's easy to clean, low maintenance, and great on edges.

If she's using Cutco knives a piece of glass would be fine.

SpikeC said:

If she's using Cutco knives a piece of glass would be fine.

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Or slate

How old is your mother? Heavy wooden boards are not always people's favorite if they are on in age. Just throwing that out there.

k.

Haha I knew the ripping of the Cutcos was coming. The real story is my neighbor (a cutco rep) came over one day for hours, and convinced my mom she needed the knives. My dad bought the set for her as a Christmas gift. When I came home and heard she just blew $1500+ on Cutco I nearly dropped to the floor. If I was home I would have argued for Shuns or Henckels. But hey I guess she wont know any different from Cutco, so she'll think they're amazing.

Is it just the serrated knives that will tear up the board? Or will the plain edge damage boards too? We have plenty of plastic boards she could use for bread and serrated knives only. I think my mom is willing to take care of it, especially because of her new knives. @mano I don't think she would do that haha, I will be sure She is in her 50s and there's plenty of space on the counter, so I'm thinking she can keep it stationary and keep bread or something like that on top of it.

I just scored a 24"x18"x1.5" Walnut Boos board for $71SHIPPED on ebay with a minor chip (1/2") on the underside which wont matter. (Considered a factory second) The guy sells 5 a week on the bay...

$1,500on cutco? Must be 200-300 knives!

Just get her 1/2" thick Sani-Tuff. They are very durable and fit right within your price range:

12" x 18" ($40)
15" x 20" ($54)

http://www.amazon.com/Cutting-Board-Sani-Tuff-Rubber-Thick/dp/B001C434Z6/ref=pd_sim_sbs_k_2

it breaks my heart to hear that somebody spent $1500 on cutco knives.

I am going to suggest a sim0ple epicurean board. Easy to clean, light weight and should do fine with the cutcos. I am a daily user of my Boardsmith, but I also have three epicurean.

kalaeb said:

I am going to suggest a sim0ple epicurean board. Easy to clean, light weight and should do fine with the cutcos. I am a daily user of my Boardsmith, but I also have three epicurean.

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At work we used to use the Epicurean type board they held up well & were not bad for knife edges.When we switched to color coded plastic I brought one home to use.It finally ended up in the garage for other jobs.

I don't think your Mom wants to be moving around a thick heavy board.I agree I think a Epicurian plain thin board would be a good match for her Cutco's

Ok...we all "hate" Cutco, but realistically, they'll serve the OP's mother well and surely be something she is excited to use. That, right there, makes me not care how much was spent (we all know what could have been purchased, but there's a very good chance they wouldn't have made a big difference to the user, anyways).

Now, with that off my chest, I'd also say an Epicurean board, or a nice edge-grain board would more than do the trick.

Tell your mom to enjoy her new toys and get all the use out of them that she can! We all know food made with love tastes that much better