Cookware stores in SF

[Dan97526]

Hello . Can anyone recommend some cookware stores in SF? I am really hoping to find a place that carries French imports, but any nice store recommendations would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Dan

[annachan]

Cook's Boulevard

Le Sanctuaire

Culinaire

There are also chain stores like Sur La Table, Williams-Sonomas and Crate and Barrel.

[PamelaF]

What's the name of that place on Divisadero that has "vintage" cookware? They hads lots of older Le Creuset and copper pieces.

It's been a year or so since I've been in that neighborhood, is it still there?

[annachan]

Is Cookin' the place you're talking about? It's on Divisadero between Oak and Page.

[PamelaF]

Is Cookin' the place you're talking about? It's on Divisadero between Oak and Page.

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Yes, that sounds right, thanks Annachan!

[Carolyn Tillie]

Is Cookin' the place you're talking about? It's on Divisadero between Oak and Page.

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It is mostly over-priced, used goods. There is not much I have ever found there that wasn't available online and cheaper. I recently stopped by to buy baguette baking molds and they were $10 more than Amazon...

[Preserver]

Is Cookin' the place you're talking about? It's on Divisadero between Oak and Page.

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god that lady at that store is an ass. she takes a look at you and if she thinks that you don't live in pacific heights she would not even talk to you.... i don't go there anymore... i get most of my wares online.

[Margaret Pilgrim]

FWIW, I've known Judy for more than 20 years and have watched her shop grow. She makes multiple trips to France every year, works the Paris antique markets as well as visits some of the biggest antique and flea markets in France from which she hauls home very singular and no longer made pieces. She has a knack and the contacts for ferreting out deascensions from top restaurant kitchens and dining rooms. It sounds like fun, but, trust me, it's a lot of hard work. It costs money to have someone do this kind of legwork.

If you want readily available, current styles and colors, use Amazon or Macy's Cellar sales. If you want really cool stuff, Judy has some.

[tim]

FWIW, I've known Judy for more than 20 years and have watched her shop grow.  She makes multiple trips to France every year, works the Paris antique markets as well as visits some of the biggest antique and flea markets in France from which she hauls home very singular and no longer made pieces. She has a knack and the contacts for ferreting out deascensions from top restaurant kitchens and dining rooms.  It sounds like fun, but, trust me, it's a lot of hard work.  It costs money to have someone do this kind of legwork. 

If you want readily available, current styles and colors, use Amazon or Macy's Cellar sales.  If you want really cool stuff, Judy has some.

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So, who is Judy?

[Margaret Pilgrim]

So, who is Judy?

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The owner of Cookin'/lady refered to in a previous post.

[melkor]

So, who is Judy?

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The owner of Cookin'/lady refered to in a previous post.

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Is she actually mean to people who aren't from pac heights and the marina?

[Margaret Pilgrim]

So, who is Judy?

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The owner of Cookin'/lady refered to in a previous post.

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Is she actually mean to people who aren't from pac heights and the marina?

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Hardly.

People wander into this shop thinking that it is a second-hand or thrift shop. Or simply a cookware store. It is actually neither. It is a specialty shop that offers cookware from previous eras, most often pre-owned but occasionally what is termed "new old stock", or new merchandise that has been rat-holed in storage for some reason. She is not "mean" to anyone, although I'm sure that it gets tedious when people stumble in in search of something that is easily found new and cheaper elsewhere and then question the fact that something is "used" and that it is priced more than new. This is the nature of the antique and collectable market, but explaining this repeatedly gets old after a few years.

Is she expensive? Yes. But the fact that she has been in business for so long, and that well known food personalities regularly buy (and request) interesting pieces from her tends to support her prices. To be honest, she and I frequent the same marketplaces, and I most often refuse to pay prices that she will. But her eye and knowledge of her potential customers are keen and she buys accordingly. As I wrote, her customers include well known local and visiting chefs as well as cookbook and food writers and simply people who are stocking a fabulous kitchen and love beautiful things. Well, yes, and seasoned cooks who enjoy using traditional or historical cookware.

A tip for people looking for good, serviceable and cheap used kitchen ware: garage sales and estate sales. I have bought extraordinary and brand new things that were put away decades ago and never used because they were "too good to use", or were more in tune with the owner's imagined lifestyle than her reality.