Costco Kirkland vs. All-Clad in the stainless battles

[murd...@my-dejanews.com]

Is it just me?

I was lured by the looks and by the good word of mouth here to the All-Clad
stainless line. Even got a 12" fry pan from Cookware & More based on this
forum's recommendation (very happy with it).

Lately, TJ Maxx has had All-Clad pieces in stock, so I picked up the
following:

2 Qt. Sauce $59.99
3.5 Qt. Sauce $69.99
3 Qt. Sauté (LTD) $79.99 -- they also had Cop-R-Chef for same price.

All told, about $210 for the three items (somewhat less than Cookware & More's
prices).

Then, I started to take a look at Costco's Kirkland Signature Stainless set. I
picked up the set to take a closer look and came away very impressed -- I'm
convinced it's the better deal for me and here's why:

For $190, you get the same pieces above plus a 10 qt. stock, 8" and 10" fry
pans and an in-pot colander (all made in Italy, for what that's worth).

So I thought, sure you get more pieces, but the quality or functionality won't
be as good, but... (admittedly these are subjective comparisons)

1. All pieces have the triple cladding (18/10 stainless layers around an
aluminum core) on the bottom and sides.

2. The Kirkland and All-Clad are of roughly equal weight and when 'pinging'
the sides they seemed to be of equal density.

3. I liked the Kirkland handles far better than the All-Clad: they stayed just
as cool, could get a better grip, didn't have that annoying hollowed out top
that the All-Clad has (particularly difficult with the larger pieces full of
liquid), and, to my eyes, looked better.

4. I liked the lip design of the Kirkland: they flute the lip out which
greatly facilitates pouring of liquids out of the pot. I took the 3.5qt.
All-Clad and the 3 Qt. Kirkland, boiled water in both (both did a comparable
job with no apparent hotspots, no classic sputtering when the water is
sloshed above the water line in the pan (if you don't know what I mean, boil
some water in a Revere ware pot and then tilt the pan so the water go up the
side of the pan). Then, I poured the water back and forth from the KIRKLAND
to the ALL-CLAD -- the ALL-CLAD dribbled down the side every time creating a
mess, but no so with the KIRKLAND Now the ALL-CLAD 2 qt. had less of a
problem but still, I like the fluted design better.

Here I'm noticing small indications of quality:

5. The exterior of the Kirkland was better polished and more uniform than the
All-Clad.

6. The rivets on the Kirkland were better finished and more consistent.

7. The Kirkland set's sauté pan was, to my way of thinking, more practical:
12" vs. 10"; 5.5 qt. vs. 3qt.

You get the picture, now what am I missing -- other than the name? What other
considerations are there to this comparison. I was in the ALL-CLAD camp until
I did the side-by-side comparison. Now I'd have to say that the Kirkland is
my choice.

Please weigh in with your opinions and if you would, state which brand you
regularly use.

Thanks… Standard disclaimers and I am NOT trying to start a war, just
interested in other's thoughts.

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[sf...@my-dejanews.com]

In article <7fia9o$vss$1...@nnrp1.dejanews.com>,

The Kirkland sounds great. I have Calphalon myself, and have had it for
years, but if I were buying new, I'd go with stainless All-Clad or a clone
thereof. I do a ton of shopping at Costco, and I know that their stuff is
very high quality. They have a lot of clout with all of their suppliers, as
their buying power is enormous. As a result, you have tremendously reputable
manufacturers supplying Costco with their products at ridiculously low
prices. I recently saw Kirkland washer/dryers and dishwashers which were
made by Whirlpool. They have the Kirkland name but Whirlpool quality. I'm
sure that there is some famous and reputable manufacturer behind these pots
and that you can feel safe in your decision. After all, are you buying a
name or a product?

[Sheila Viemeister]

murd...@my-dejanews.com wrote:
> 1. All pieces have the triple cladding (18/10 stainless layers around an
> aluminum core) on the bottom and sides.
>
> 2. The Kirkland and All-Clad are of roughly equal weight and when 'pinging'
> the sides they seemed to be of equal density.
>
> 3. I liked the Kirkland handles far better than the All-Clad: they stayed just
> as cool, could get a better grip, didn't have that annoying hollowed out top
> that the All-Clad has (particularly difficult with the larger pieces full of
> liquid), and, to my eyes, looked better.
>
> 4. I liked the lip design of the Kirkland: they flute the lip out which
> greatly facilitates pouring of liquids out of the pot.

> Here I'm noticing small indications of quality:
>
> 5. The exterior of the Kirkland was better polished and more uniform than the
> All-Clad.
>
> 6. The rivets on the Kirkland were better finished and more consistent.
>
> 7. The Kirkland set's sauté pan was, to my way of thinking, more practical:
> 12" vs. 10"; 5.5 qt. vs. 3qt.
>
> You get the picture, now what am I missing -- other than the name? What other
> considerations are there to this comparison. I was in the ALL-CLAD camp until
> I did the side-by-side comparison. Now I'd have to say that the Kirkland is
> my choice.
>
> Please weigh in with your opinions and if you would, state which brand you
> regularly use.
>

I have some All-clad, and recently bought the Kirkland. I am very
pleased with it.
The handles are much better on the Kirkland, but otherwise the quality
and performance seem to be pretty equal. The price is certainly good.
The only problem I see, is that there is no open stock available.

Sheila Mackay Viemeister

[Steve Lee]

While on the subject on Costco and cookware I saw this at the website instead of the
Kirkland series which I have seen in stores.

http://www.costco.com/frameset.asp?trg=product.asp&id=262&prodhierid=208

Even though the above it close to the Kirkland set. This one isn't, it seems to be
a 2.5m copper set at a good price.

http://www.costco.com/frameset.asp?trg=product.asp&id=644&prodhierid=208

Anyone have any comments on this set?

Also to whoever asked I've seen Kirkland Stockpot and even Kirkland stockpot/steamer
at my local costco that matches the kirkland SS set. They even have a anodized
black aluminum (whatever you call it) set.

-Steve
change .com to .net to reply.

[Ducchi Quan]

The stainless steel cookware you mentioned on the site looks quite good, and
I bought myself a set - it's in the mail. I asked a question on it a week or
two back, but no one responded. I do know that the Sitram brand is well
recognized and respected, although their fame seems to come from their pro
series stainless cookware, which has a copper base, rather than the aluminum
base that costco sells. Do a search on Sitram to find out. Stuff is made in
France.
As for the copper Bourgeat stuff, I also believe it is made in France. The
set is a deal, as I've seen a 10" frypan go for ~150+ alone! Of course this
may not be the best pricing on the open stock item; since it was way out of my
league economically, I wasn't truly looking hard. I do know that Jacques
Pepin puts his name on a set of Bourgeat copper cookware, for whatever that's
worth to you. Hmm.. $729, how long until christmas again?

Later,

Ducchi Quan
Northwestern University, Evanston, IL. USA
spin...@nwu.edu

[Michael Harp]

And does his endorsement affect performance?  Well, of course not - it only makes it more expensive.

Bourgeat is made from Falk Culinair's bimetal...

Do a search for Copper Cookware...