This is a Anolon Imperion Damascus Knife Block Set Review, based on 2 weeks of everyday use in the Steamy Kitchen. Review includes both PROs and CONs. – jaden

Anolon Imperion Damascus Knife Block Set Review

The Anolon® Imperion™ Damascus Steel Cutlery 5-Piece Knife Block Set has been in our kitchen for 2 weeks. The two cooks in my house, myself and my 13 year old son, have been using this set as our main knife set for prepping everyday meals.

The knives are made of 67 layers of steel and iron, you can see the beautiful damascus pattern on the blade. These knives feature a full tang, 2 rivets and a stainless steel cap at the end of the handle.

PRO: The included wood block is made from beautiful acacia wood. It only has room for the 5 knives, and I enjoy the smaller, sleeker footprint on my kitchen counter.

PRO: I often find with larger knife sets, that you are paying money for knives that you’ll hardly ever use. This Anolon Imperion Damascus knife set only contains the essentials, knives that you’ll use for 99% of cutting tasks.

Anolon Imperion Damascus 8″ Chef’s Knife

PRO: The workhorse knife is 8″ long, fits perfect in the hand. It’s comfortable, thanks to the rounded handle (Some of my knives have an odd shaped handle, which makes it uncomfortable to hold.)

It’s one of the heaviest chef’s knives I’ve used. A heavy knife gives more stability, and more oomph into cutting large foods like squash, cabbage, potatoes, meats.

In contrast, my Japanese Global Chef’s knife is featherweight t 58 grams. However, I only use this knife when cutting leaves like lettuce, herbs, spinach. I’m lightening fast with this knife, but I could never use this for bigger, denser foods.

Another favorite knife of mine is the Wüsthof Uber Chef’s Knife, it’s in the middle between the Global and Anolon. This is the chef’s knife that I reach most often for.

PRO: The Anolon Imperion Damascus Chef’s Knife is hefty – good for large, dense foods. I can cut through potatoes with such little effort. Last night, I cut through butternut squash like it was nothing! This would be my knife of choice for cutting a roast into cubes or a few potatoes.

CON: This is not the knife I would choose if I had TEN pounds of potatoes to cut into french fries. The weight would tire your hands. Also, this knife is a little too heavy for my 13-yr old son to use. Probably not a knife for weaker hands or elderly.

Anolon Imperion Damascus Serrated Bread Knife

PRO: Love this knife. Perfect size for cutting a croissant in half and for paper thin slices of ripe tomato. I have two other bread knives that are too long – longer bread knives are great for getting through a big loaf of bakery-store bread, but too awkward for slicing tomatoes or other delicate soft foods.

Anolon Imperion Damascus Santoku Knife

This little guy has a 5″ blade and I found myself grabbing for this knife more often. It’s great for fruit, vegetables, mincing garlic, slicing shallots. This is also the knife my son used the most.

PRO: Easy to use, love the slightly curved blade, so that I can mince easily. Great for garlic and herbs.

Anolon Imperion Damascus Paring Knife

This knife is my FAVORITE knife in the set.

PRO: It fits my hand so well. It’s a little heavier than my other paring knives, but that extra heft makes cutting so much easier. Peeling an apple is so effortless as the blade just glides.

PRO: The blade is super thin and incredibly sharp. The blade comes to a very sharp, shallow point.

The set normally sells for $299. Macy’s sells it for $299. The set is currently on sale on Amazon for $209. Absolutely worth it for that price.