Yoshihiro Shiroko High Carbon Steel Kasumi Yanagi Magnolia Handle Sushi Sashimi Chef Knife (11.8" (300mm))

This is a superior, Japanese style sushi knife/sashimi knife. It holds a keen edge, and is made of great materials. You will need to use a whetstone, or send it to a sharpener as it loses its edge. If you are looking at this knife, you probably know a thing or two about knives. Just to be safe though, these knives are single bevel. That means that only one side of the edge is sharp. In America, you are used to having a double bevel, a knife sharpened on both sides. It takes a little, but not much getting used to. It's the best for cutting sushi and sashimi. Considering the prices of other high end cutlery, this is actually a steal. If you treat them right, (don't put them in a dishwasher, wash by hand, dry,) you will be handing this down to your children. This said, there are far superior knives to this, such as this Yoshihiro- Damascus "Kiritsuke" Yanagi Sushi Chef Knife Japanese Sword Type 11.7" 300mm - Made in Japan or THIS Yoshihiro- Ebony Damascus Sakimaru Takobiki Sushi Chef Knife with Ebony Saya13" 330mm in Wooden Box - Made in Japan ! Also, you should not be afraid of getting this brand, as they are much more popular and reputable than you would suspect. Generally, you see other brands, the big German and Japanese at most of your local stores. There are two really excellent cutlery shops which service local butchers, and chefs, and they have a plethora of these knives. These are the go-to knives of sushi chefs. No need to be a kitchen snob to use one of these, just someone that loves making sushi at home that is not mangled by a good knife which was not designed to delicately cut raw fish. Recommend. Pros: -Great Construction -Holds nice edge -Light, good hand feel -Single bevel Cons: -Pricey (although comparatively a good price) -Limited use in kitchen -Single bevel

I have quite a few nice knives in the $200 + range. This knife is the sharpest of them all. BUT you have to look after it. It's not stainless. If you don't clean and oil it after every use, it will rust. If you forget and get up the next morning, it's over. BUT if you know how to care and sharpen a quality knife, you will love it. It's the first knife I have ever had where steeling actually works. After sharpening, you can feel the steel remove the burr and then it's like a razor. This is NOT a knife you would EVER put in a dishwasher. I LOVE this knife. You could spend $500 or more and get a fancy name but not a better knife.

A lot of professional chefs and kitchen cutlery enthusiasts recommend this company's yanagiba (well, Gesshin Uraku...which is the same company) for a starter yanagiba. So far, for sushi and sashimi once a week, it's been fantastic. Mine came sharp enough to do what I needed it to do, and I haven't had to resharpen it yet (but it's been mostly tuna and salmon for me, both of which have pretty soft flesh). Anyone who has chipping issues, I don't know if they're hitting bone or the board or something, but yanagiba have very thin and fragile cutting edges. The edge on a yanagiba is a bit complex. It's a single bevel at the very end of a the cutting edge, but it's also concave. Sharpening a yanagiba can be easy to mess up, if you're a person who doesn't know how to do uraoshi sharpening properly, like myself. But, that's why I chose to buy an entry level yanagiba to start. The blade is white steel #2, which is a carbon steel that takes on a very fine edge. So anyone who has rusting issues, just stop reading what they have to say. They clearly don't know how to take care of carbon steel knives. As long as you 1) know how to take care of carbon steel knives, 2) know how to do uraoshi sharpening (well, and the shinogi line too, I guess), 3) know how to _not_ abuse a knife, you'll be pretty happy with this. Also, if you think this is an expensive knife, please do some research on yanagiba or take a look at some others on japaneseknifeimports.com to compare prices. This is an entry-level yanagiba; if this looks expensive, maybe reconsider getting a yanagiba at all. It's mostly a one-trick pony, so please ask yourself why you even want a yanagiba.

This knife represents a great value in a Yanagi, particularly considering how wildly expensive some are. The fit and finish are quite good. The grind, while not perfect shows flaws that would yield usability problems. Mine came a bit overground at the heel and concaved toward the tip. From the factory the knife was sharpened, but not "sharp". With a little work, this yanagi can take an insanely sharp edge. Normally, I'd have awarded 3 stars for the issues mentioned, but the price point makes this knife a solid value.