Hope everyone is having a great summer. I've started grilling again on the weekends and am on the search for a decent set of 4-6 steak knives. Thought I would ask the forum for some recommendations. Looking for something that will last more than a few years, and that hopefully look better than the cheap steak knives I currently own. I kind of like something with a little weight to it. Not looking for an entire kitchen knife set, I already own two of those. Just steak knives.

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Ephesians 6 (Armor of God)

These are pretty decent knives, the VG10 takes and holds an edge well.

I have a couple sets of Wusthof steak knives (Classics and Gourmet series) that are really nice, but brace yourself before looking at the prices.

I picked them up at estate sales, which is where I get virtually all of my kitchen knives.

The older USA made Chicago Cutlery steak knives were a good deal for the money. They're easy to sharpen and hold an edge.

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"I also cook."

Try AG Russell. I've had a set of their steak knives 8 + years. They don't get used often, and when they do they are washed and dried by hand, blade touched lite oiling and finally put back in box.
They still look and function like new.

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Always Stay Strong!

If you want to be really classy, get some old Gerber steak knives. They seem to be readily available on line at reasonable prices. My wife and I received a set of rose wood handle Gerber knives for a wedding present and they still look great and maintain their edge 50 years later.

I like serrated steak knives and they seem to cut faster and go longer without sharpening. I don't keep up with the brands any more because so many good companies have gone to China for their products it's hard to keep up. The Wustoff German knives are a bit over 30 bucks each on Amazon.

Benchmade makes a real nice four piece set. I've seen a set, but at $150 per knife, I don't own a set . . .

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

Dexter Russell made in Southbridge, Massachusetts

Dexter Russell Cutlery | Steak Knives

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Pete
I ain't no fortunate son

Hard to wrong with J.A. Henckel's serrated if you can find without the Made in China stamp.

With apologies for not offering a useful suggestion and just showin' off, I inherited this boxed set from my mother. I think they initially belonged to my maternal uncle or grandmother:



They're elephant ivory handles and carbon steel blades. When I initially got them maybe thirty years ago I was bit disappointed with the rounded tips, thinking they did not look very knifely.

But, in use, they are terrific. The blade is quite thin throughout and can be easily sharpened to a very fine edge. The rounded tip means you can slice easily with the tip.



The distributor:



The manufacturer:



I very rarely use them as the way I have taken to eating steaks is to cut them up into thin strips and use chopsticks. (30+ years in Japan — what can I say?) I do keep one of them in my knife block and use it when I want, say, a very thin slice of something.

Wicked sharp. I once cut myself while drying one carelessly.

Edited to add: Ya know, while my mother thought they were ivory handled, I am not so sure. I may do the hot pin test. I was looking at eBay and there are some very similar knives by this manufacturer available at very reasonable prices with the handles listed as yellow celluloid...

Here is something you might want to consider. Wusthof 4" Utility Knife. Synthetic handle and a somewhat thinner blade. Just call them steak knives: Wusthof 4" Utility Knife.

Of course you didn't say how much you want to pay or if you want serrated or plain edge. What I linked is a fairly inexpensive option for good steel but way cheaper than their regular lines of gourmet steak knives.

Who can afford the steak to use them on? Even chuck roast is now over $5/lb. I think our last steak was pre-COVID.

Way back when we were first married, I bought a cheap set of six steak knives in a wooden case from one of those cheesy NYC stores on Broadway while there on business. Paid a couple of bucks for them and they have held up well.. We still have and use them, but usually for other than cutting steak these days.I don’t remember ever needing to sharpen them. They have a fine serrated sawtooth edge.

I have eight of these, ca 7 yrs now. They are small, about 5" blade, not big like a Texas Roadhouse steak knife (do they ever sharpen those blunt instruments?) but cut like a razor, no effort. Most of the time I only need to strop them on my leather wheel to restore the edge. Otherwise, a few strokes on a 1000 or finer gritstone, then strop, and the edge is back. I also use them for paring knives.
No problems with rust or any kind of deterioration.
Buy ZWILLING Pro Steak set | ZWILLING.COM
You get what you pay for, and these aren't cheap @~$240 for a set of 4, but there is a set of 6 on Amazon for $125. If they are the real thing and not knockoffs, jump on it.

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Them rounded tips are for herdin’ your peas and carrots onto your fork!

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No school like the old school.

As far as I can remember, the only place I’ve purchased steak knives is at estate auctions. I have several sets that have never been used (by me or the original owners). They include sets made in Sheffield, Germany and the US. This includes the Gerber carving set i got for my wedding in 1973 ( which has never been used).

The set I’m working through now began life as a wedding gift (still wrapped and boxed). My granddaughter learned how to use a knife with them. She ran one through the garbage disposal several years ago so we’re down to 7 of the original 8 knives.

As a general rule, very high quality sets sell for very little at auction ($5.00/set). There’s relatively little demand for them nowadays: folks rarely entertain with sit down dinners anymore.

I certainly wouldn’t buy them at a retail outlet: you’d pay many times more than the auction price. All you have to do is hit the estate sales and auctions.

I generally just pick up the steak and eat it. Really, I cook the steak my way, not the way THEY say, and a butter knife with those groove things are good enough. Seriously, a good steak doesn’t need Samurai knives to eat it. I don’t entertain people at my house that don’t know how to use the utensils they get. It’s a ‘burgh thing.

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Waiting For The Sun.

I bought a couple of old USA made Chicago Cutlery steak knives (pictured in Post# 3 above) on eBay for about $10, put a razor sharp edge on them with the Lansky system and use them regularly. I like their old school quality.

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John

That scene in the movie Glengarry Glen Ross comes to mind when someone says "Steak Knives"

I'd post a link to YouTube but for the bad language .........

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.............SmithNut

Some of the steaks I've lately could have used a chainsaw.

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So many S&W's, so few funds!!

Open a new savings account.

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

I like Cutco knives. I don't own a set of their steak knives, but I have their serial killer AKA slasher movie model.

Buck makes a great steak knife. Made in the USA even!

Buck Kitchen Knives

My wife likes these from Cutco.
the salesman pressed one blade straight down on a dry section of leather and it went through it , like it was butter.
No sawing or anything, needed.

We got these Henckels from a friend for Christmas a while back. Very good steak knives, haven’t needed to do anything but wash them.

YARN | I tell you, this steak still has marks where the jockey was hitting it. | Caddyshack (1980) | Video clips by quotes | 6a3d02bb | 紗

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No school like the old school.

"If wishes were horses we'd all be eating steak."

Jayne Cobb

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The best I can with what I got

We have a set of Genzu steak knives, they live up to the hype.

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Live long and prosper

Wusthof for me. Buy them once and your grandkids will be using them some day. Yes they are expensive. Yes they are worth it. For a less expensive set CutCo is a local WNY company that makes outstanding knives with great warranty.

They're still at it...

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

We got this set of serrated Henkels over 40 years ago. They get used A LOT and are still going strong!

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Alden
Guns N' Rosés

we have had great luck with Rada Knives... find them locally at gun shows occasionally...

I am a straight blade fan, no serrated knives in the house except for a good 10” bread knife. I have a pair of folding steak knives from Keyshawn that are quite nice. At home we generally use the paring knives we have accumulated over the years.

As a sharpener, I get to handle many knives, including steak knives, every day. My suggestion? Get ones that feel right in YOUR hand. Cutco is a very good knife with a lousy handle, for me. Most makers think steak knives should have tiny handles. That does not work for me.

Try before you buy!

Kevin

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Unshared knowledge is wasted.

I have a set of 8 Wusthof Classic steak knives that I've had for 26 years now. They are excellent knives, hold up very well and are razor sharp. I also have a 23 piece Wusthof block set in the Classic line as well - all excellent.

They are a bit pricy but there are some sales and deals if you are patient. If you do go with the Wusthof I'd strongly recommend going with the German made forged Classic line rather than the less expensive stamped out line. They are NOT the same knives!

We frequent Capitol Grill Steak House often and last time we were there the Manager gave us a set of 8 of their house branded steak knives. They are very heavy, serrated and made in China. They do sort of work however IMHO they are way too large and bulky. They "saw" the meat rather than cut it like a good steak knife knife should. We use those mainly when we eat outside since I don't care of they get dropped on the ground. Hey, they were a gift.

The Wusthof Classic line of knives have served us quite well for the 26 years we've had them and I'd highly recommend them.

Actually their stamped blades are pretty nice. They sharpen quickly but hold an edge well. I have a good set of their classic line for the kitchen but I like the thinner blades with synthetic handles for steak knives. Dishwasher safe.

The kitchen set is given much more care. I started off with a large Wusthof chef's knife, paring and utility knives and steel back in 72 or 3 when I was a cook in Ca and Hi. They were considerably cheaper back then. Something a working cook could actually afford. I still have the chefs knife and steel but the others disappeared.

My old chefs knife is too big for most tasks in the home but I have a newer set now with a smaller chefs knife that's better for most home duties.

Actually I have a stamped Zwilling Henckles medium sized chef knife that gets the most use from my wife. She likes it that its lighter. It does sharpen easily and cuts well. It had wood scales and I couldn't get her to quit leaving it to soak in the sink. The scales eventually cracked and fell off so I replaced them with scrap teak which works well. After that she learned to quit leaving it in the sink to soak. Although the teak could probably handle that better, at least for awhile. But that's why I want steak knives with synthetic handles or scales. Sink, dishwasher, whatever!

Randall makes a nice set.

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USS Brewton FF1086
SWCA#3597

we really like our Wusthof set. that came in out kitchen set.

I will give you my experience regarding how I tell how good knives really are. One of my hobby's is sharpening knives. I always keep our kitchen knives razor sharp and ready to go and all our friends and neighbors have discovered that when they come over for dinner. I have been asked numerous times to sharpen their knives which I gladly do for them as I do enjoy taking a "butter knife" and turning it into a proper kitchen knife again. You can tell just how good a knife is by sharpening them properly and then seeing how they wear over time. Since I am at their homes on a weekly basis I do get to see. The better knives will usually last 3-4 months and after that require only a 2 minute touch up on the Arkansas Stones. Some of my friends as well as myself use a Steel on them weekly and extend the time between sharpening to 5-6 months. Cheap poorly made knives barely last a month and are a P.I.T.A. to resharpen! Of course how they care for them is also a big factor.

I own 3 "knife sharpening systems" but have not used them in a long time. My preferred method is to use my Dan's Whetstones brand of Arkansas Stones that I bought decades ago. Recently I had sent them back to Dan's to have them properly dressed again to be perfectly flat. They do belly after so many years of use. They came back in perfect condition and the fee to dress them was not all that much - worth the money! I find that after one masters just how to use them properly they do a better job than any of the systems do, quicker and easier. A lot can be told about good or poor steel by sharpening them.

I like the Victorinox line of steak knives--cheap, plastic handled (multi-colors if you like that sort of thing) but the serrated edges cut like nothing else! I started using them after Gary Randall sent me a pair as a gift and I haven't really looked at any other brand.

They are handy for slicing bagels, baguettes and tomatoes as well.

If/when they get dull I'll just buy a few more (I've been using the Randall-marked ones for 20+ years and they still cut but not as easily as the new ones, of course).

The Chicago Cutlery steak knives are also very good knives--I use them mostly for fruit, at which they excel.

and, of course:

I highly recommend Cutco. Made in U.S.A. Free lifetime sharpening. I sent mine in for sharpening and they sent me a whole new set FOR FREE. These knives are so sharp you have to be careful handling them.

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'Merica!

Cutco makes a few knives that are good for steaks.

These are their actual steak knives. $348 for a set of 4.



These are their "table knives", which are smaller. They work fine for steaks and chops. $199 for a set of 4.



I accumulated 6 extra Cutco "trimmers" at estate sales, so I put them in a block and use them as steak knives when we have guests. They have their "Double D" edge, which prevent people from trashing a conventional edge when they drag it across their plate.



I prefer a plain edge for steaks. They give a nice clean cut and you can sharpen them yourself. The Mrs and I use these Wusthof steak knives when it's just us. I've got her trained how to use them properly!

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"I also cook."

I would go to Ebay and find a set, or 2 of the Gerber steak knives.

I have used Chicago Cutlery knives for decades. Unfortunately, they are not made in Chicago any more.


My mother in law used Rada Cutlery for most of her adult life. They still make them in the USA. My Rada vegetable peeler is the best that I have ever used.



I have an old set of Case forged knives that will be used by my grandchildren.


Check out some of your local flea markets. You can sometimes fond treasures there that just need cleaning up.

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Corripe Cervisiam

I have this one collected a while back...

Never made in Chicago . . .

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

If it takes more than a plastic picnic knife then the meat's overcooked.

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Music/Sports/Beer fan

Again...All Natural Organic Grass Fed Montana/Wyoming Beef. Key word though is tough.

BTW those knives Onomea has are great. I had three with Ivory handles thin and easily sharpened. I did the tips on a straight razor stone...They got taken somehow. I too have a Gerber knife and fork set for cutting meat Work Great...but I mostly use the Old Chicagos. Bought one last week at the Cody Habitat for Humanity store...10 inch dull as the back side of a butter knife. Ain't now!...50 cents

BTW if you ever come across an old vintage butcher knife made of carbon steel - grab it! Not all, but many of them are very good quality steel and will clean and sharpen up just great! I have taken a few that were being tossed and worked them a bit to make them incredible knives.

In general I stay far away from serrated knives other than for cutting bread.