Kato Alert

Japanese Knives - by Tokushu Knife
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lagrangeL2 said:
Appreciate the assist Monte. Yah we heathens might've gave them a bit of a start. :biggrin:
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You have no idea ... I was at their door when it opened (slightly early) and the very first thing one of the sale / floor people said was "I hope you are not here about the Kato's" ... I said "Yes but No" then explained to them what had happened over the weekend on a certain web site ... he got the owner and we chatted ... then the knives came out just to "show me" - they were locked away (& these guys have a lot of other stock that isn't) ...

They were a bit shell shocked (to say the least) ... Super cool people (luckily they at least new my name from purchasing there so that helped a little bit) and I tried to explain the Kato disease/psychosis (on KKF in terms of "Kato Alerts") to them so they would be better aware in the future ...

Glad to see they have since followed up - from what I can see they seem to have a very good relationship with Kato-san and are extremely respective of him and his knives ...
 
MontezumaBoy said:
Ok Gentlemen & Ladies (?)

Good news is Kato's have been spotted & I even touched a 210 ... Magnificent work ...

Bad news is you all are crazy & have destroyed what little stock they actually had ... and many will get an email saying "sorry but no stock is left" ...

Very nice people whom were overwhelmed (to say the least) by the amount of attention &, unfortunately, orders received for these blades.

FWIW - they also know full well that their prices were "very, very good" but they have always strived to "supply the local chef industry with the best they can find at the most reasonable prices". Like I said very cool & good people.

I think they likely had one of each but I only really checked out the 210 ... very, very pretty craftsmanship to say the least.

Owner is hoping to get more (some day) but these were 2+ years in the working ...

Please stop PM'ing me now ...

Tom

PS Just the messenger here ...
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Tom - very nice of you to drop by and the feedback.
thanks!
 
Really cool people Anton ... you don't see it often (very Jon Broida like in that respect) and they way the owner talked of Kato-San and his art/health/family/etc. was pretty incredible. He is also very much into helping the local chef community (pricing) so I was very impressed.

Anton said:
Tom - very nice of you to drop by and the feedback.
thanks!
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When I spoke to Megan and David today they indicated that they wanted to get quality knives into the hands of cooks and when I cancelled my 210mm Gyuto they were very pleased that they could fulfill another customers request. If I had been earlier and was able to get the 240mm I would have gone ahead with the purchase but I really don't need two 210mm Kato's and a 210 Konosuke Blue#2 Fujiyama (and two 240mm Gyuto's) as a home cook.
 
Hah yeah I get a call just now and I was told I was 14th in line for the 210 gyuto. Store lady told me they were overwhelmed by the response and had never heard of KKF.. I laughed and explained it was a forum of kitchen knife nuts and she sounded excited by it and promised to check it out. Seem like super nice folks!

Also, I apparently got the santoku...

(P.S. Whoever passed on this knife originally, please make yourself known to me either here or via PM.)
 
tgfencer said:
Hah yeah I get a call just now and I was told I was 14th in line for the 210 gyuto. Store lady told me they were overwhelmed by the response and had never heard of KKF.. I laughed and explained it was a forum of kitchen knife nuts and she sounded excited by it and promised to check it out. Seem like super nice folks!

Also, I apparently got the santoku...

(P.S. Whoever passed on this knife originally, please make yourself known to me either here or via PM.)
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Looks like they had two Santokus as I got one as well. =D
 
TheCaptain said:
Just got off the phone with Megan from the Knife Merchant...

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...


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I got a Nakiri!!! Whoot Whoot!!!

Too bad I'm at work, can't jump and scream. Feel like I won the fricking lottery. I will FINALLY get to try a Kato Nakiri.

She was so apologetic that they couldn't ship the gyuto, but I DON'T CARE and told her how excited I was!!!

That is all folks.
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You are more than worthy of it Capt! Glad you got one :)
 
tgfencer said:
Hah yeah I get a call just now and I was told I was 14th in line for the 210 gyuto. Store lady told me they were overwhelmed by the response and had never heard of KKF.. I laughed and explained it was a forum of kitchen knife nuts and she sounded excited by it and promised to check it out. Seem like super nice folks!

Also, I apparently got the santoku...

(P.S. Whoever passed on this knife originally, please make yourself known to me either here or via PM.)
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Did you get the 210mm Gyuto today? I spoke with David this morning when he called to confirm my purchase and decided to pass on the knife. If you got that one - good for you!

Jack
 
Weirdly enough, I have heard of them before from a guy at a barbecue who was super stoked about getting his Shun from them as they cost about $350 here at the one store in the whole country that sells em. It's nice to hear they're good folk. We should extend them every courtesy & welcome if they sign up as vendors
 
TheCaptain said:
Just got off the phone with Megan from the Knife Merchant...

...



...


...


I got a Nakiri!!! Whoot Whoot!!!

Too bad I'm at work, can't jump and scream. Feel like I won the fricking lottery. I will FINALLY get to try a Kato Nakiri.

She was so apologetic that they couldn't ship the gyuto, but I DON'T CARE and told her how excited I was!!!

That is all folks.
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Glad you finally snagged one! Been waiting for you to get your hands on one for what feels like ages now. Also, I can finally stop feeling the compulsion to sell you one of the two I own...
 
Thanks guys. I'm thrilled beyond belief. To be honest I probably don't deserve this but will not complain. Still looking for a workhorse so if you get tired of yours please keep me in mind.
 
TheCaptain said:
Thanks guys. I'm thrilled beyond belief. To be honest I probably don't deserve this but will not complain. Still looking for a workhorse so if you get tired of yours please keep me in mind.
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So happy for you! It is always great to get those knives you have been hunting for so long.
 
I'm kicking myself that I have been on and off kkf the last few weeks, completely missed this new lot of stuff.. congrats to all those who nabbed some unicorns .. hope these come up more often
 
Sebastian - I did mean to say thanks earlier, still in a bit of shock. FWIW search engines work differently depending on physical location and, to some extent, what it's "learned" from the user. I've googled kato knives seven different ways to sunday and this site never came up.

So seriously, my thanks!
 
So are katos really the big fat Oprah **** that everyone makes them out to be? I mean will I put down my Toyama or kono if I buy one? Or is it just the brand to have right now?
 
You get a storied swordmaker with 50 years of experience making your knife and at 500 bucks, maybe worth trying out. Everyone's opinion may very, but for me I'll take one of his over much of what's available today!
 
ewebb10 said:
So are katos really the big fat Oprah **** that everyone makes them out to be? I mean will I put down my Toyama or kono if I buy one? Or is it just the brand to have right now?
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Nah, they're rubbish, leave em to us.
 
Definitely awful. Too much headache to pursue. Seem expensive. I'd just let other people fight about them
 
ewebb10 said:
So are katos really the big fat Oprah **** that everyone makes them out to be? I mean will I put down my Toyama or kono if I buy one? Or is it just the brand to have right now?
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I owned 3. They weren't for me. But that doesn't mean much. Watch some YouTube videos, it might help you decide if kato is something you would be really interested in.
 
Liked mine, but sold it because someone else wanted it more.

I've considered buying another, but probably not in the current market with the frenzy and highish prices.
 
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