Gift Certificate!

[Mezzaluna]

Thanks to some generous relatives, I have a gift certificate for $140 for Sur la Table. How to spend it?? My first thought is, "All-Clad!"

I have my eye on the All-Clad large braiser. It sells for $165, so I'll have to kick in a few bucks. Any thoughts?

[Jock]

I usually think of a gift as something you want as distinct from something you need.
I was lucky enough a few years ago to win a whole set of All Clad (stainless) in a raffle. As good as it is (and it is the best IMHO) I cannot justify the expense to myself. So if I had a gift certificate I would jump at the chance.
Lucky you

Jock

[mudbug]

Mezzaluna,

Thats fabulous! Congratulations.... You may have already answered your own question.... I know a couple of things which are lacking in my own kitchen or some things it would be nice to upgrade to, for example say a high end mandolin... Get something you need, want, or will will simply make you really happy and if it fulfills all of the above, than that's more than you could ever ask for!

[Kimmie]

Go for it!

[Isa]

What a great present Mezz!


I'm with Jock, get what you want, something extravagent that will make you happy!



I can't wait to find out what you decided on.

[Mezzaluna]

The All-Clad braiser is still in first place. I stopped in at my local Williams and Sonoma to take another look at it. Hard to walk out of there!

Incidentally, I've checked prices all over the net and have been unable to find a price lower than a few cents less. So I don't feel so bad paying that much, I guess.

[brreynolds]

Mezzaluna:

Allclad does seem to carefully control its retail prices, but if you haven't visited www. outletsonline.com, you might want to take a look there before buying something by Allclad. They might let you save your gift certificate for something else.

Someone mentioned this site in an earlier post. (Apologies for not giving proper credit, but I can't remember what thread I saw it in.) Since I had been salivating over a braiser myself, I checked it. The site is an Allclad outlet; it sells imperfects at fairly steep discounts (35-40%). The imperfections are advertised as being "minor" and "cosmetic." I bought a braiser and the one they delivered had only a barely noticeable, small dull spot, that I finally decided was the imperfection that made it an "imperfect."

The company also discounts some other lines of cooking products.

I plan to revisit this website.

[Mezzaluna]

Wow, brreynolds- it was $114 vs. $165- a savings of 30% if my math is right. That gives me pause, but I'll have to shell out only about $25 (plus shipping) of my own cash to make up for what the gift certificate doesn't cover, so I'd come out ahead sticking with it. But I will definitely bookmark that site! I think Kyle put posted it a while back, but I hd my Italian trip on the brain, and wasn't looking for cookware at the time.