Santoku Equipment Office

I live in yaletown, so when wandering around, I would see the sign outside this shop saying «Santoku Equipment Office». WUT? Is that some kind of office supply store? What a WEIRD name!
Later I realized a santoku is a Japanese kitchen knife, so, when I was looking for a new knife, I decided to check out the store.
It might have been a mistake.
When I saw how just many knives the Japanese proprietor had, I was a bit overwhelmed, so I just got a fairly cheap knife and got out of there.
But you know how it goes. At least with me. I was always tempted back to check out the nicer knives. And using them, you could tell they were NICE. Yes, in the end, I bought more than a few knives here.
I haven’t been back in a while because my wife got mad at me. But if you are looking for a really nice knife, this is the place to go. They even have those sashimi knives that look like mini katanas.
But, just to let you know, they only sell Japanese knives. And maybe a few kitchen accessories.

If you are that someone who frequently uses knives, whether you are a hobby cook or work in a professional kitchen, I HIGHLY recommend this place. During the two hour one-​on-​one knife sharpening workshop you will learn the fundamentals on the «how to’s» to taking care of your knives.
In the Japanese culinary culture, an amateur cook is first taught to take care and maintain his/​her knives. This makes perfect sense. If you can’t even look after your weapons and maintain the razor sharp edge, it ain’t matter if you can cook up a storm. Perfecting knife sharpening skill takes time. We’re talking about a year or two, according to the owner Take (pronounced Takei). A sharp knife not only cuts more efficiently, but enhances food flavors. I don’t know how much «better» the food would taste when a sharp knife is used but Take’s theory is that when you’re using anything other than the sharpest knife, you are pressing/​damaging food especially the area that surrounds the blade. As a result, flavor and texture suffer. This is apparently true when you slice sashimi with a razor sharp knife versus a dull knife or less than sharp knife. The same fish can taste like two different kinds of fish, the latter being obviously inferior, as referenced in the book Kitcho: Japan’s Ultimate Dining Experience published in 2010 and the forward written by Thomas Keller.
Truth be told, most of us pay very little attention to our knives unless they are so dull to the point they can no longer do its job. That’s when people send their knives to professionals for «tune ups». There is a risk in doing so and yes it happened to me. When I started taking cooking seriously, I didn’t know anything about knives. I took them to a guy who does sharpening in his dim van parked at the back of his house. The knives he sharpened was «sharp» but the finish was very coarse and rough. Needless to say the «edge» didn’t maintain for very long. That’s when I got very frustrated. I trusted a «professional» to sharpen my knives but at the end of the day I got ripped off. So yes, you can take your dull knives to «so-​called» professionals, or you can take 2 hours out of your life with just $ 40 and learn about the fundamentals on how to sharpen your knives properly. With knowledge (which comes with power), rest assured you can’t easily be cheated again.
During the 2 hours the first hour was spent on watching a video of how knives are made. This also includes a quick history lesson and different sharpening techniques for different knives. The second hour you get to sharpen your 2 – 3 knives under the supervision of a professional. Take will patiently take you through the techniques, the angles, the pressure, your frame (the way you stand), everything you need to know to keep your knives razor sharp using whetstones. Even though I still need a couple of years of practice to become better, there is no doubt I walked out of the workshop feeling more confident simply because I was taught some useful information.
If you’re interested in purchasing a knife or two for yourself, this is a great place to start. He’ll take you through his collection and find the one that best suits your needs. Be warned, the knives he sells can be on the expensive side. Other merchandises such as whetstones are available and are decently priced.

If you’re serious about knives. No, this is not the Hattori Hanzo sword. Rather kitchen knives from Sakai, Japan. When I stepped into Santoku Bocho. It gives me bliss.
There are the usuba santoku, deba, sakai kikutora. Prices are around $ 100 or higher. Even if you don’t like knives. You ought to visit this store. I own 2 Japanese knives so far. Why Japanese knives? They’re lighter and have better precision. I really love this deba knife that I saw in here. Perhaps next time.

This new shop is a kitchen knife lovers dream. They specialize in high quality traditional imported Japanese knives. The majority of the product comes from Sakai, Osaka which is famous for samurai swords, and now kitchen knives.
The selection is awe-​inspiring with santoku, gyuto, sujihiki, sabaki, yanagi, and several dozen other varieties all available and presented in a jewelers case like the fine precise items they are. Prices are quite reasonable for the quality of the product as well starting in the $ 100 range and going as high as $ 750 for a 300 mm shiro-​kagami which would make any sushi chef proud.
They also offer custom-​made for those that can’t find the exact perfect knife in their large stock.
Definitely worth a visit if you want to find a special knife of very high quality.