A high quality sharp knife at a reasonable price.
I have quite a few more expensive knife brands such as Wustoff, Shun, etc. and have been finding that some of the less expensive brands are every bit as good and sometimes better. So often the cost of a knife is determined by name rather than quality.I recently decided I needed a new paring knife, and decided to try this Misen knife since I have read some good reviews about this brand. I bought it in blue so I could easily identify it from my other knives. Since I have so many knives, I have learned what to look for in a quality knife. The angle of the blade and the materials used are all important considerations in choosing a knife that will hold the sharpness for a reasonable time (all knives need sharpening eventually). In addition the tang and the weight help in the comfort in using the knife.So, what do I like about this knife?1) As small as this knife is it has some weight to it that makes it more comfortable to hold.2) The tang of the knife is curved which make it easier to hold.3) This knife was super sharp out of the box.4) The blade on this knife has the Asian 15 degree angle which is much sharper than the Euro blades of 20 degrees. This angle can be more delicate and dulls more quickly than the wider Euro blade, but I prefer the sharper blade.5) The blade is made of AUS-10 steel which keeps the blade sharper longer. AUS10 steel is a high-carbon stainless steel known for its toughness, good level of hardness, and easy sharpening. It’s deemed as the strongest among the AUS series steel grades.6) You won't beat the price for this quality.As for so many products, keeping up with current technology can be difficult. This is also true of knives and the metal compositions currently used to maintain sharpness and the quality of the blade. In my experience, the 15 degree angle of the the blade and the AUS-10 steel provides qualities rivaling the more expensive knives in addition to other qualities mentioned previously. Although one reviewer described the Japanese knives to be brittle, I have a number of high end Japanese knives and haven't found this to be the case.I have used this knife to cut a few different vegetables, but the tomatoes are the most impressive. This knife can cut thin slices on even ripe tomatoes without squashing them. This also my go-to knife for coring tomatoes.At this point, I am impressed and entirely happy with this knife and plan to buy more knives of this brand. I hope this review was helpful for you and I will update this review if my opinion changes.