Northwestern Cutlery

I would give 4.5 if I could. Took my straight razor in to be sharpened and when I got I back it was sharper than when I bought it. Everyone was very nice and they called me when it was ready to let me know. The only reason I say 4.5 stars is the sharpening was $ 20. Not a lot of money, but there is a sign that says sharpening starts at $ 10 so I assumed a blade that small would be $ 10. Maybe I should’ve asked for a price when I dropped it off? In hindsight the shave is probably worth $ 20, just a little sticker shock when I went to pick it up.

These people rock. My knife had a broken handle and they offered to fix it for me at no cost. I had taken my knives in to get them sharpened. One guy gave me a hard time because I guess I was being too loud when I was taking out cooking pans and racks to see which ones fit which. Im not sure how I was supposed to do this making no or little noise but maybe he was just hormonal. Either way he offered to fix my knife and I thought that was pretty great!

Last week I brought them 8 knives that I had inherited from my grandmother. They were heavily worn. A few had small chips and most no longer had a point. Some folks might suggest hand sharpening for these (mostly vintage Wustof) knives, but given the heavy wear and my very limited budget I opted for machine sharpening.
I’m really pleased with the result. The knives came back sharp as a razor and they all have points again. Additionally, they all came back with little plastic sleeves on them too! If you look closely, you can tell from the finish that it was a machine job, but these are tools for cutting, not display pieces. I also had them sharpen my wife’s 2 year old Victorinox Fibrox chef’s knife that had a couple of chips. The chips are gone and she was shocked at how sharp it is.
One little mystery. One of the old paring knives (an Ekco vanadium) had an extremely battered handle that I had crudely repaired with epoxy. It looks like they put a replacement handle on it! The handle is clearly not new, and maybe I (or they) accidentally switched the knife, but think they just went above and beyond on a whim. Thanks!
Lastly, that they have a parking lot is really wonderful. It can be a real pain to find parking down there and being able to get in and out when you have kids along is a real selling point.
Though I’ve only been there once, their friendly staff, great service and affordable prices will definitely have me coming back.

It really is a candy store for chefs like their cheesy radio ads claim!
I used to come for small things that I keep losing, or pants if I forget mine, and everything is very reasonably priced. One time, I found myself closer to Sur La Table in LP, and I went there instead — and everything I bought cost 2x more than here. Not sure about literally everything in the store, but most things are really affordable.
The only thing they didn’t have was a giant like 4ft whisk, which is what I first went in to look for :(
They also do really speedy knife sharpening if your knives, but not by hand, though if your knives aren’t super expensive it’s worth the $ 3 and convenience. If you insist on hand sharpening, you have to leave the knives with them for a few days to a week. Prices vary but I ended up paying $ 30 for 3 knives so it wasn’t bad.
Also, there’s a parking lot!

I have known Marty and his staff for as long as I have been here in the West Loop, 27 years I own Prairie Production we are a photo studio and production stage doing private and social events so my needs coincide with Northwestern on many points I have always been more than satisfied with the service and selection of what they provide. being a business owner I appreciate the consistent way that I have been serviced and treated over the long haul.

I found myself in need of some cream whipper recharge cartridges, and didn’t want to wait for Amazon.
Found this place online, and was concerned (like always) about parking. Turns out they have their own private lot. Already a plus.
This store obviously caters not just to the public, but to the trade as well. Huge selection of chef knives and other pro equipment. Most everything looked well-​made and I love kitchen gadgets. This was kitchen-​gadget heaven.
Great experienced staff and it looked like on-​site knife sharpening.
I’ll be back!

Quick and affordable. Can’t say anything bad about these guys. The store is pretty fun to poke around in too.

I live in the neighborhood, and only 5 years later saying that I’m going to stop in I finally made it. I must have hit the right time of day because I was helped immediately and got my knives sharpened without having to wait after anyone else. In fact, 10 people must have come in after me. It was early afternoon, and I think it was done in 20 minutes so I had the opportunity to browse the shop while my knives were getting a new cut. The products are a little pricier than some of the chain kitchen stores, but it’s a part of convenience and location in the city. The have a little area in the back for chef coats and aprons and hats to try on. There’s a whole bakeware section with plenty of cookie cutter shapes to choose from, and of course knives of all shapes, sizes, and brands on the back wall near the register. There’s also a small Le Creuset section as well. I believe it’s $ 3.50 per knife to get sharpened. I’m not sure where else I could go for a price comparison on this, but I already cut myself after using them for the first time. So, I can assuredly say that they are definitely sharp and to handle with care.

I can’t even begin to describe how much I love this place. They advertise themselves as the «candy store for chefs», which is the perfect description. It’s so hard walking in without walking out with a whole bunch of new kitchen toys.
The staff is experienced and knowledgeable. I don’t know of any other store that has near the range of knives and other kitchen equipment that they do. I bought a chef’s knive and cleaver from here and couldn’t be happier. When I lived in Chicago, I used to bring my knives here to get sharped.
Only quip is that their hours are a bit odd (e.g. they close at 2pm on Saturday). I’ve traveled to the shop more than a fair share of times only to find it closed, so be sure to check the hours before you head out!

This is an amazing place with experienced and patient sharpeners. The young man and the girl I dealt with were exceptional with taking care of honing my $ 320 Dovo straight razor. This place honed it right!
I bought mine from Art of shaving and even after they had it honed and then by Merz Apothecary, it was still dull and caused me go through hours of painful shaving with no result. I almost regretted dumping my Gillette but thankfully found this place on google.

They were so helpful! Fixed my badly chipped knife perfectly. They also helped me find a great machete for coconut chopping! Thanks!

This place is the truth! Great prices on knife sharpening as well as all kitchen needs. Definitely recommend if you are in the industry

This is a great place wonderful people find what you need for cookware customer service excellent I invite everyone to come and experience a store like no other

I can’t brag on NCS enough. I took my knives down (thankfully they are down the street from me) to get sharpened. I expected to have to return later but within 15 minutes and $ 17 later I walked out with my entire knife set sharper than sharp! Of course that wasn’t the total bill… I had some shopping to do!
I was happy for the wait time so I could check out all of the awesome cooking/​baking supplies! I was like a kid in a candy store as an avid hobby-​chef.
Everyone on staff is friendly and knowledgeable and I highly recommend NCS to everyone!!!

This is an excellent resource for pots, pans, cutlery, kitchen paraphernalia of all sorts!
In addition, the absolute best place in Chicago to have your good knives and scissors sharpened at a terrifically economical price.
Service can’t be beaten!
Everything is not shown on their website, this is a place you must visit to believe.
Stuffed to the rafters and beyond with everything anyone who works in a kitchen, professional or home, could possibly want.
I highly recommend Northwestern Cutlery!

Early last week, I ended up placing a special order for a pair of Mozo shoes because my size was out of stock.
As promised by the person who helped me, early today I received a phone to let me know that my shoes had arrived this morning. They arrived a little over a week due to the long 4 of July weekend, though I am very glad because my first day to wear my full uniform at The French Pastry School will be this coming Monday. (Phew…)
Thanks Northwest Cutlery!

It’s nice to find someplace that doesn’t rip you off on basics for a change.
I’d been meaning to go here for some time, mostly for knife sharpening. I was also in the market for a honing knife.
They do have hundreds of honing knives, but I found something better: the best baking sheet in the market. And unlike Amazon, it’s nice to know as I’m holding it that I’ve actually found the right one., because it’s the only baking sheet they sell. :-)
They also had a wire rack that perfectly fits this baking sheet. Crispy baked chicken cutlets, here I come!
All this for roughly $ 20, tax included? Bargain basement prices. It helps that they these wares to nearby restaurants, who are likely go through cookie sheets (even 13-​gauge ones) pretty frequently.
I’ll be coming back for another one sometime later this summer, and maybe I’ll even be able to pick up my honing knife then too.

Northwestern is great for kitchen knives, but they’ve shined at helping me with my fabric scissors, woodworking chisels and hand planer blades, and leather working knives. They also helped me pick some reasonably priced water stones so I can put a mirror finish on the new edges they set me up with. No nonsense prompt and friendly service at good prices. I couldn’t recommend these guys more.

OMG! If you’re searching for a cutlery place, where the staff is way knowledgeable, experts, trustworthy, and reliable advisors — you just found it! I drove from Oak Park and loved this place the minute we walked in. Knives are only $ 3.50 each to sharpen — for real!!! I was in awe. And what totally did it for me was I brought in my expensive Wüsthof knife which had a large crack in the wood handle. We’ve lived with it thinking it couldn’t be repaired, and didn’t want to have to spend more to replace it. The minute I asked if they could do anything before sharpening, they told me they’d do one step better. Wüsthof’s policy was to replace it, sooooo, I’d be walking home with a new one! At that point they hit rock star status!
I can’t stress this point any further — you need to be here. In fact, stop searching for more reviews to validate them, just go NOW.

Want one of those metal circular things to make perfect eggs or ceviche tower? A great littlle shop to find all your little kitchen doodads for reasonable prices. It looks like the Kendall students get an extra student discount.
What impressed me here was the intricate knife sharpening stations. Serious stuff.

I love this place and I can not believe I’ve never written a review for it. (Opps…I just saw I reviewed this place in Feb 2010… okay its time for a re-review…you would think with only 650 reviews I could remember this!)
Recently I stopped in to get a tortilla press. I hit a few stores in the Little Village but they were over priced and looked like they would break the first time I used them. I went to Northwestern’s website and found exactly what I was looking for plus the product seemed like it was strong and wouldn’t break at all. It was also $ 5 cheaper then the stuff I was finding at other stores.
While there I met Jerry, who helped me find the tortilla press on the shelf and we had a great conversation about food. We even started exchanging restaurant recommendations. Funny us talking about food in a place that sells the tools to make amazing food. Ironic!!!
This place is a one of a kind store and it is located in the heart of the wholesale district near Randolph Street. One of the reasons we come here all of the time is that they will sharpen your knives for you while you wait (for a fee). I have no idea any other place in the city that sharpens knives. As I’m waiting I always see a constant steam of chefs and future chefs bringing in there knives and getting them sharpened.
It is also fun to walk around and see all of the gadgets. It is hard not to buy everything in here. One day I’m buying those mini cast iron skillets there only $ 12.95 and so cute but I’m gonna need 4 to 6 to use them to serve to company. I saw a restaurant use these in Milwaukee.
They also have a parking lot next door which makes parking easy. I also was able to get 10% off recently with my check in on Unilocal!Yeah Unilocal check in offer!!!
I love this place and I hope it never goes anywhere because it would be a loss to the Chicago Food Industry including my kitchen needs!!!