Nikolaou Restaurant Equipment

I love how disorganized and messy Nikolaou Restaurant Equipment is.
Looking around is just so much fun as I could find something that I would say yes, I want one of those in my kitchen!
If you need any gadget for «Western» cooking, you would find it here…
I will be back!

When you think kitchen equipment, single pieces, strange little plastic ware, thermometers, restaurant supply —- really all your hard to find kitchen stuff, think Nikolaou.
This place has mom and pop charm to it. It’s like a labyrinth. Or the room in the little mermaid. The owners are great. Ask them for a discount and they’ll give it to you. But ask them to clean the store and they’ll probably kick you out ;)

And here I thought I’d have to buy a whole flat of canning jars!
I love almost all things kitchen, browsing kitchen stores especially, but this place intimidated me for some time. It’s a restaurant supply store, and is stocked as such, but many things those restaurant kitchen folk use aren’t too far off from what us regular folks use. As alluded to, it’s a smaller sized store with lots of aisles and lots of product, and is not large and open and necessarily inviting. But, it has the stuff! Very rarely have I gone in (since getting over that initial intimidation, mind you) and not found what I needed. It is dusty, yes, and the products aren’t displayed beautifully, but the staff have consistently been helpful if I ask for an item. Dust washes off, but quality stays.
The friendliness of staff is come and go: sometimes, the gentlemen who are there are extremely friendly, and we’ll have a chat about what I’m cooking, where I got this or that ingredient (I’m actually expecting a homemade vanilla recipe imminently!); others, they’re a little more reserved, keeping to the business of the transaction. However, anytime I have a question about products, where to find this or that, including when they don’t carry a desired item, they offer what they know or to order it in. So even if all aren’t friendly, all are certainly helpful.
A nice touch: buying in singles! I don’t have to go home with 8 ice cream dishes if I only want 2 (or 12 canning jars when I only need 3). Less of a dent in the wallet *and* my houses’ storage space.

Amazing service! Everything you want here.
They literally have EVERYTHING you’d ever want for your kitchen/​restaurant. The service is impeccable, very knowledgeable and friendly. If there’s anything I need ever, I’ll go there, hands down.

All the items were very dusty, prices were not too bad, employees were friendly, and they had a fair selection of items.
My biggest beef was the amount of dust there was on just about all items. I walked out of that store with my hands feeling extremely dirty. Also, the isles weren’t very easy to navigate as not only were they tight, but also there were carts in front of some of the items making it hard to reach them.
The prices there weren’t the best, but they weren’t bad either. M’lady and I were looking for a french fry cutter, and they had a fair selection of them both in terms of sizes and prices respectively. However for a number of the models, they only had one of each in stock, and I didn’t see any in a box.
The staff was trying to make conversation while walking along the isles past us and also wished us a nice day on our way out.
All-​in-​all, since hygiene is a fair concern of mine, and it affected the way I felt after leaving the venue, I wouldn’t return to this store again unless I absolutely had to.

I’ve been going to Nikolaou for many, many years and am never disappointed. Back in my past I owned a restaurant and they were my supplier, and these days I just go in as a foodie and cook and buy things, and get the same, great and funny customer service. The showroom is a bit tight and chaotic, but the best strategy is just to start at the front and ask for what you want. You will likely run into many of the owners of some of the best restaurants in the city if you hit this place up in the afternoon on a weekday.

In search of a great kitchen knife, I hit The Bay. Well, for $ 500 you can get a Made in China set of utensils that match, but will be sharp for months. It might also contain a bunch of knives you will never use. So, I head over to Nikolaou where they have a great selection of knives with funky yellow handles. Same knife, made in Germany or whatever country is masters of steel. Cost? about 30% less than the black-​handled version. Now, I love to just browse for ideas of how I could serve food restaurant-​style at home. Ketchup squeeze bottles, vinegar and oil glass bottles, pans and serving spoons. You’ll have to wash it well, it is a dusty place.

This is a great restaurant supply shop in the Queen West area. The aisles are packed from top to bottom of pots, pans, and supplies. This store nearly isn’t as big as Tap Phong, but there are definitely gems to be found, if not, they can probably order it for you.
Staff help is hit and miss. Some are very helpful and will help you right away, other times I’ve been browsing the store for 20 mins and then someone will ask if I need anything.
If you’re looking for an odd sized baking pan or some higher end cookware for cheaper (e.g. Staub), this is a good place to hit up.