Choosing a kitchen knife set can be more difficult than you'd expect. You start your search online planning on finding a great deal on a good set of kitchen cutlery. Within an hour, your head is spinning from all of the possible manufacturers and block sets available. You've read dozens of reviews, and instead of helping, all they do is further muddy the picture. There are a lot of great manufacturers out there, and a lot of good knife sets to choose from. Read on for more information on finding a good knife set.

The search for your next knife set is made more difficult by the fact that, just because someone else likes a certain set, there's no guarantee you'll like the same set. It may be of benefit to you to go to a store that has the different sets on display to get a feel for the ones you're interested in. Some knives look nice, but aren't comfortable when you hold them. Others are ugly as all get out, but feel perfect when you pick them up. It all depends of how you feel about your kitchen cutlery. Do you value form over function?

Do your testing in-store, then return home to buy them on the Internet. No matter the in-store price, chances are you'll be able to do better on the Internet. I've found that the large retailers like Amazon.com offer the best prices on knife block sets.

Make sure the set you're buying has all of the blade types you'll need to do the types of cooking you plan on doing. Nothing is more frustrating than buying a set, then finding out it doesn't have the blades you need. Sure, you can buy the other knives you need separately, but that kind of defeats the purpose of buying a knife block set. Most people buy sets because they offer a huge discount when compared to buying each piece individually.

Buying a block set gives you another advantage over purchasing individual knives. A block set provides you a place to safely store your investment. The blades of expensive sets of kitchen cutlery feature fine edges that are damaged easily by metal on metal contact. Throw your nice set of knives in a drawer, and you'll soon find you can't cut butter with them. Keep them in a wood or plastic block, and its possible they'll last longer than you do. Keeping a block on the counter makes for easy access to your knives, allowing you to quickly find the blade you need.

The other benefit to buying a block set is the nicer ones add a touch of class to your kitchen. People notice a nice knife block set, and it's amazing how many conversations a handsome block sitting on the counter will start. There are some unique looking blocks on the market right now, made of everything from plastic to all types of wood imaginable. It shouldn't be a problem finding a block that will match your cabinets.