Paris Pots & Pans

[VivreManger]

Is there anything available at, for example, E. DEHILLERIN (www.e-dehillerin.fr) that one cannot find in NYC or order on-line in the States? I suspect that with the Euro being what it is, piled on top of VAT and the trouble of shlepping the stuff back, it may not be worth the bother.

I have browsed the website and am looking forward to browsing the shop in reality, but, bottom line, I suspect I can find similar quality in the States.

I intend to help supply pots and pans for the kitchen of newly-weds. Since I am going to Paris just before the wedding I though it worthwhile to check out the stores there.

Dehillerin offers a variety of stainless steel clad aluminum Chef Inox and Extra Strength Inox Copper. Quickly googling Chef Inox I did not find the same variety in the States. For some reason Australian sites kept popping up.

I think I will get them a variety of copper clad, stainless steel clad aluminum, and iron pots and pans.

Years ago I remember a store near Union Square in Manhattan that had a tremendous selection of professional cook-ware. Does anyone know its name and if it still exists?

[Margo]

If you're in Paris anyway, Dehillerin has excellent prices on copper cookware. I purchased a 10" saute pan with lid, heavy-duty copper which turned out to be Mauviel, for far less than what I'd seen in the US at the time. If you spend enough, and they'll tell you how much, they knock off the VAT.

That said, when I looked into shipping cookware from Dehillerin, it wasn't such a good deal. I have dealt with My Chef's Favorites and was very happy with both the price and the service.

[Baggy]

I have looked both in Paris and NYC – depends what you’re looking for as to which is less expensive. Copper pans always seem to be on sale, but prices are similar both sides of the Atlantic. Some specialist baking kit, like proving baskets, is about half the cost in Paris.

I’m really not sure which retailer I used to visit in NYC, as I don’t remember their name. I used to know their location, but I think they moved. The stock carried by Bridge Kitchenware looks very familiar – maybe this is the one – http://www.bridgekitchenware.com/

But don’t you find it pretty testing that Dehillerin doesn’t have a more complete catalogue online?

If you have time when you’re visiting Paris, also try (and here’s my list – a couple of years old):

(1) A. Simon

48 & 52, rue Montmartre

75002 Paris

Tel: +33-1-42-33-71-65

Fax: +33-1-42-33-68-25

www.simon-a.com

Metro: Châtelet

Clean & bright; reasonable selection, not much stock; small selection of lined bannetons

(2) La Bovida

36, rue Montmartre

75001 Paris

Tel: +33-1-42-36-09-99

Metro: Châtelet

Clean; easy layout; not much stock; pastis glasses; saltpetre (potassium nitrate); part of chain

(3) MORA

13, rue Montmartre

75001 Paris

Tel: +33-1-45-08-19-24

Fax: +33-1-45-08-49-05

Metro: Châtelet

Crowded, older style; limited stock; small selection of willow bannetons

(4) Dehillerin

18-20 rue Coquillière

75001 Paris

Tel: +33-1-42-36-53-13

www.e-dehillerin.fr

Metro: Châtelet – les Halles

Crowded, dusty; basement; stock in depth; old fashioned

Happy shopping!

[VivreManger]

Thanks. It was Bridge in NYC.

By first checking the Bridge website I can have a basis for comparison for what Dehillerin offers in Paris.

I am curious about Inox which does not seem widely available in the States.

[Baggy]

Being a bit casual about the attention I give to pans (and hating to do the washing up), I steer clear of stainless steel (Inox) because food tends to catch and burn so easily (and eggs are absolutely impossible). I understand that stainless steel can be tempered in the same way as cast iron (heat with until smoking oil, allow to cool & repeat several times – never use soap etc).

For the same reason I avoid coppered pans except where heat distribution is critical (like sugar work or melting butter/gels etc). Instead I go for commercial grade non-stick aluminium.

[Margo]

I am curious about Inox which does not seem widely available in the States.

←

The "cuivre inox extra fort" piece I bought had a "Mauviel" brand stamp on it--cuivre inox would be generic stainless-lined copper. (As Baggy said.)

[paulraphael]

Thanks.  It was Bridge in NYC. 

By first checking the Bridge website I can have a basis for comparison for what Dehillerin offers in Paris. 

I am curious about Inox which does not seem widely available in the States.

←

Inox just means stainless steel. With copper your options are stainless or tin. I've never been attracted to tin linings, because they melt at under 500 degrees ... this makes them unusable for aggressive browning or high temperature roasting. They do supposedly offer even more responsiveness than stainless lined pans, though.

Mauviel now has a line of non-stick pans, the thought of which horrifies me. My guess is it's just a marketing ploy. I think of nonstick surfaces as being both specialized (for the few types of cooking where sticking is a problem, not a benefit, and where browning and developing a fond or seeing how well cooked the drippings are don't matter) and disposable (I have yet to hear of a nonstick finish that can hold onto its nonstick qualities for more than a year or two).

By the way, Zabar's used to have an excellent selection of Mauviel copper, at prices that were much better than Bridge's. Haven't been back in a while, but they're worth checking out.

Edited February 22, 2007 by paulraphael (log)

[Fat Guy]

You'll find some shapes and sizes of copper cookware at Dehellerin that you won't find in the New York stores. I was actually just discussing this issue with some friends the other day. But most of those shapes and sizes are only relevant to professional kitchens where, counter-intuitively, they need extra-small saucepots and tiny skillets and things of that nature. For the standard pieces of cookware that a home cook is likely to use, there's nothing at Dehellerin that you can't just pick up here. Also, as an owner of Mauviel stainless lined copper, I'll say that I think it's great but if I had it to do over I'd get Falk because of the brushed finish, which is just easier to maintain. There's much eG Forums discussion about the best ways to buy Falk in the US, just search for posts about Falk by slkinsey and you'll get the info.

[VivreManger]

Steve,

Thanks for the heads-upon Falk. i will check that out.

In the meanwhile, has anyone recently seen those great Chinese-made stock pots that Target had a few years ago? I bought the set and they have held up well, but I would like to find the same set as a present. Last I checked Target they did not have them in stock, but if anyone has seen them let me know.

They were stainless steal with aluminum botton, glass lids. The three sizes were about 6, 8,and 12 quarts, with no brand nameexcept "Premium Cookware".

[Baggy]

I have just come back from Paris with my latest acquisition – a small, all-copper sugar melting pan. Prices are definitely less if buying Mauviel pans in France.

For my acquisition I paid approximately 35 euros in Dehillerin. Searching around the internet, prices for the same pan are 40 sterling and 70 US dollars. After changing everything to the same currency this makes pans bought outside France around 50% more expensive (although I don’t know how prices compare in, for example, Belgium or Germany).

Of course, if you are visiting from outside the EU it is often possible to claim back the 19.6% TVA (GST equivalent), so the savings could be as high as 50% of US prices.

[Kahrs]

Let me add a vote for MORA. Many years ago, I bought all my UNstainless carbon steel knives at MORA. They couldn't have been nicer and more friendly. And when I showed them the article from the Times, they were all smiles. I hope to return this year and hope they still have those knives.

[_john]

Doesn't exactly answer your question but Villedieu-les-Poêles might interest you.