What's worth it at Williams-Sonoma?

I thought I was going on a shopping spree when I received a $250 gift certificate from Williams-Sonoma. Then I looked at their prices and it's more like a shopping spurt.

I rarely shop at places like that. For one thing, I have more cookware than I have room for already and can only really justify buying something really great or replacing something worn out. When I do buy something, it usually comes from an off-price store, a hardware store, a restaurant supply or somewhere else like that.

My last purchase was a new spatula to replace a nylon one I melted. I think it cost $3 at Marshall's for a high-temperature version good up to 500 degrees.

So I'm looking at the Williams-Sonoma catalog online and thinking, well, maybe I could use a good roasting pan. And I see this. Yikes! Who pays over $1,000 for a pan to cook fish in??? If I had that kind of money, I'd hire a personal chef to cook it for me.

So, given the idea that I'm fairly well equipped with kitchen standards, what kind of things does Williams-Sonoma sell that are worth giving kitchen space to and aren't priced lots higher than you can get them somewhere else?

Riedel glasses.

Croissants! They come raw & frozen. You take out the number you need and let them rise overnight. Then bake. Then enjoy!

The Breville Panini Press is one of the few "single-use" appliances I use regularly.

If you have bakeware that needs replacing, their (slightly expensive) Goldtouch bakeware is terrific. We received some as a gift and the cookie sheets are extremely sturdy and really are a dream to bake with and clean.

Best,
Michael

You may be able to stretch that $250 further at one of their stores. It's possible to catch some great deals on items the stores place on clearance. I got a Wusthof bread knife for $15 and picked up a cheap spatula (on clearance because of the color - orange) at the WS at Old Orchard last year. I'll second the suggestion for the bakeware. Also, their Silpats are priced about the same as other places if you're in the market for any.

Wedding presents for other people

I get pantry staples there - that I can't find at TJ's yet : Maldon salt, CastelaS olive oil, Guittard chocolate pistoles, flageolet beans. How about splurging on aceto balsamico tradizionale?

I'll second the Goldtouch recommendation. Their loaf pan is so much better than the one I have already that I plan to replace it with a second Goldtouch.

Maybe these:



or a new knife, who can't use another knife?

They have a nice Cuisinart electric pressure cooker too, if you don't have a pressure cooker. I also really like the Keyocera vegetable peeler I purchased there. I never have a hard time finding something to buy at Williams-Sonoma, just a hard time finding where to put it when I get home.

leek wrote:Wedding presents for other people

Or just regift the card! Ha!

I'll fourth or fifth the "go to a store" rec: while I rarely buy anything at Williams-Sonoma for exactly the reason you just stated, ($30 for post-easter easter baskets? Who has that kind of money?) a couple years ago I got a full set of really nice BBQ tools, including a chimney starter and one of those thermometer/fork thingys for less than $10 all told. (it helps that the 'spouse's birthday is in August)

I often take a gift certificate to the local outlet store for that company, but unfortunately the closest WS "marketplace" appears to be in Jeffersonville, OH. You probably can use your certificate at the other stores under the WS umbrella (namely Pottery Barn and West Elm, not that that helps much)

They do have a lot of interesting pantry stuff that I would never buy at full price: personally, if a $250 GC dropped in my lap, I'd buy the caviar sampler and some truffle salt...

I ran into a similar thing when I returned a bunch of stocking stuffer kitchen gadgets I received from my mom for Xmas. Was shocked to see I had a gift card for $95, but even more shocked when realizing how little it would get me.

I ended up with an All-Clad LTD double burner non-stick griddle that came with a pair of red All-Clad oven mitts and a pancake mix for $100. It was the one thing I actually needed in my kitchen that wasn't too horribly overpriced.

If I had $250, I'd eBay it and end up with 95% of the value in cash.

As a side note I did keep the $16.95 jar of Niman Ranch pork sausage marinara that came with the gadgets. If $16.95 for pasta sauce isn't enough of a sin, it was also pure crap.

Jamie

Not sure if its still the case (and your gift card may be restricted), but you used to be able to use Williams Sonoma gift cards at Pottery Barn, which is part of the same corporate family. So you may have more options by way of housewares and the like if you really are overstocked in the kitchen.

Apilco dinnerware - timeless, elegant and versatile. But I second (or third) the recommendation of going to the store, a greater selection of items.

I really don't see the problem here - many individual pots, pans, knives, roasters, specialty items are under $250. I had a $200 gift certificate from there and was able to buy quite of bit and upgrade some well used tools from the old Don Outlet store.

In these situations, I often justify a larger purchase that I wouldn't make without the $250 "credit." For instance, you could purchase a Le Creuset large and small baker for $30 ($280 total, minus your "free money").

Or, if you really can't make up your mind, send it to me and I'll buy a Le Creuset grill pan, All Clad griddle, and the All-Clad universal steamer - all things on my "to get" list and all for about $250.

W&S is a bit expensive but many of the products are of high quality and besides, it's a "gift."

I would ask them if they will price match to another store.

tyrus wrote:I really don't see the problem here - many individual pots, pans, knives, roasters, specialty items are under $250.

I know, but many of those items are priced so much higher at WS than at other places that using the gift cert. for them seems like squandering it. I'd rather use it for one of their exclusive products, something for which their prices are competitive, or something like Mhays' caviar that I wouldn't otherwise buy.

brandon_w wrote:They have a nice Cuisinart electric pressure cooker too, if you don't have a pressure cooker.

I was actually looking at that. Does anyone have one of these? It looks like it might be easier to use than a standard pressure cooker, but the idea of finding a place for another appliance in my kitchen is a bit daunting. For example, there's no way I can plug it in without unplugging something else. And how is it to clean?

Jamieson22 wrote:If I had $250, I'd eBay it and end up with 95% of the value in cash.

I never would have thought of that!

I will take a look at a WS store first, though. Thanks for the suggestions, everyone. Other ideas are welcome.

If you buy caviar, call me!

Let me second Bill/SFNM's recommendation of the Breville panini press. I've got the (slightly) larger sister of the SW ex, and it's a wonderful thing to have around. I never would have thought "hey! let's have a panini". But now I do, and it's a happy thought, one easy to carry out.

Geo

brandon_w wrote:They have a nice Cuisinart electric pressure cooker too, if you don't have a pressure cooker.

I was actually looking at that. Does anyone have one of these? It looks like it might be easier to use than a standard pressure cooker, but the idea of finding a place for another appliance in my kitchen is a bit daunting. For example, there's no way I can plug it in without unplugging something else. And how is it to clean?

I do not have the cuisinart one, but I do have an electric pressure cooker and I like it a lot. It is not something you can keep on the counter all the time, it's just to big. I keep mine in the storage closet.

Being able to set the exact cooking time is nice, and the searing feature works really, really well on mine (and it is a cheaper brand than Cuisinart).

I use it a lot more than I thought I would.

Geo wrote:Let me second Bill/SFNM's recommendation of the Breville panini press. I've got the (slightly) larger sister of the SW ex, and it's a wonderful thing to have around. I never would have thought "hey! let's have a panini". But now I do, and it's a happy thought, one easy to carry out.

A while ago, I was wandering the appliance aisle at Costco or somewhere like that, and thinking, "I wonder if we'd use a sandwich press?" but I resisted the impulse. A few days ago, I went into the cupboard where I keep rarely used bakeware and discovered, still in its box, completely unused, one of these we got as a Christmas gift probably five years ago.

I'm afraid I persist in thinking of panini as "grilled cheese sandwiches" and make them in a frying pan. What advantages does the press contribute?

LAZ--

If you use genuine panini bread (here in Montréal it's called cibattini, but I think it's different from standard cibatta dough), the heat and pressure give a wonderful crusty veneer that you just can't get in a frying pan.

Up until I used one at a friend's place, I was with you in the '¿ so who needs one?' camp. But the paninis come out so much nicer in the press, I'd prefer to do standard grilled-cheese in the pan, and genuine paninis in the press.

But you'd need to get the special bread.

Geo

A few years ago, on a trip to Brazil, I fell in love with the idea of having freshly squeezed juice inn the mornings, especially in summer when the farmers markets are full of so many unique fruits and vegetables. I invested in a Breville juicer, which is very competitively priced at Williams Sonoma.

I bought my husband a rice cooker, at his request, about 4 years ago. He has used it twice. I use it every week, as soon after I had a baby and became a SAHM...i.e. head cook.

It is fuzzy logic, and it means I can ignore the rice completely, and focus on the stir fry or other food and child. I love it, and it was worth every penny.

The panini heats the top and bottom at the same time, plus it presses it.

I'm still going through some of their kitchen candles that I got years ago. They last forever. I see they've changed the scents and only a couple sound appealing to me now, but I'll be getting some when I'm done with this batch.

They have Banyuls vinegar in the store, sometimes some decent sherry vinegar. Agree on the Maldon salt. Also, some of the confections sold through the catalog are good. [/url]

I had a WS gift card once and ended up getting a Global chef's knife which I use all the time and an All Clad Griddle. Both are expensive wherever you go, but they are really top of the line and worth the investment.

One class of things I typically look for at W-S is stuff that could break. They guarantee everything they sell (like, forever), so for some items that justifies the price for me. For example, we got a blender there once and it broke and we must have exchanged it three or four times before we finally gave up on blenders (must have had some kind of electricity problem at our old house) and exchanged it for some other gadget. Another time, we got a Chantal (enameled cast iron) kettle as a gift, dropped it (chipping the enamel), took it back to the store, and were given a new one.

In Chicago they're not always as willing as the Columbus, OH, staff were, but policy is policy, and the manager always takes stuff back.

debo wrote:One class of things I typically look for at W-S is stuff that could break. They guarantee everything they sell (like, forever), so for some items that justifies the price for me. For example, we got a blender there once and it broke and we must have exchanged it three or four times before we finally gave up on blenders (must have had some kind of electricity problem at our old house) and exchanged it for some other gadget. Another time, we got a Chantal (enameled cast iron) kettle as a gift, dropped it (chipping the enamel), took it back to the store, and were given a new one.

Let me second this. A friend of ours consistently put pots received as a wedding gift that were not dishwasher safe in the dishwasher and eventually returned the damaged pots to W-S and received a replacement set. I know it's not necessarily a great business practice to reward stupidity, but it is a very liberal return policy.

I worked at W-S for a holiday season a couple years ago and we really did accept anything back. One day this couple came in with a very expensive, very large, thick wood cutting board that they had gotten for a wedding present 2-3 years earlier. The board had a big split in it and they claimed that they never used it until only a couple of times recently and after washing it (by hand, they claimed) the split occurred.

It was obvious to anyone with more than a couple of brain cells that just from looking at the wear, they'd used this way more than a couple of times and it was clearly washed in the dishwasher a few times.

My manager interrogated them as politely as possible, but honored the company's policy of letting them return it.