Two years ago I asked Sergio Menchaca, of Texas Sage Forge, to make me an eight-inch chef’s knife. For the blade’s raw material, I sent him the mid-century steel hoof testers that my father, who is ...

While the blade of a given knife is obviously the most important part — it’s the part that does the cutting, after all — the handle is only slightly less important, as you’re not going to do much ...

Over the last year I've gotten dangerously (for my wallet, that is) enthusiastic about Japanese kitchen knives, of which I now own seven. They all have octagonal wooden wa-style handles. One of my ...