Cook’s Pots & Tabletops

The owners are very rude. I cannot recommend this business to anyone.

DO NOT SHOP HERE.
They are liars, and will sell you something based on false information, promise you you can return it if it doesn’t work out, and then tell you to fuck off when you try to return your item.
Purely and simply shady and bad business, with apparently a reputation for this exact behavior.
Fuck liars, fuck sheister businessmen, mostly fuck this place.
Do not give them your money.

I have never posted a negative review for anything. I was in the store yesterday to ask a question about some French linen that I received. I was treated so rudely by the staff and what appeared to be a linen vendor that I will NEVER return to this store. Funny how well I was treated on another occasion when I purchased about $ 1000 in All-​Clad products.

What isn’t Cooks Pots and Tabletops? A smattering delight of gourmet kitchenware to cooking demonstrations and classes.
‘Cook’s, Pots & Tabletops, a locally owned Gourmet Kitchen Supply Store and Cooking School, features Gourmet Cookware, Fine Table Linens, Dinnerware, Cutlery, Glassware, Cooking Tools and Gadgets, Small Kitchen Appliances and Gourmet Foods.
Our Cooking School offers innovative and educational cooking classes for the community. Cook’s, Pots & Tabletops is a member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals, Women Chefs & Restaurateurs and the Slow Food Convivium.‘
If you’re looking for a fun night out, or simply want to brush up on your cooking skills, or even gain a new one, Cooks Pots Tabletops is a destination that will captivate you for quite some time!
I love that the employees there are incredibly knowledgeable about the products and are just as giddy about the products as you will be.
Happy shopping/​cooking!

I’ve shopped at Cook’s Pots & Tabletops for years but what I really go there for are the classes. This month I attended the most amazing class on Irish cooking complete with tastings of some rare and unique whiskeys. I’m not much of a whiskey drinker so didn’t expect to enjoy it so much. I guess I do like whiskey when it’s the good stuff!
Keith and Kathy (the owners) led this particular class though they often have guest chefs. They’ve traveled frequently in Ireland and their love and knowledge of the country was impressive. Kathy provided a terrific background before we started and Keith put together the dishes while giving us all the insider tricks one wants from a cooking class. Of course the best part was enjoying the end results. Trust me, the class was silent for several minutes once all the deliciousness was put in front of us.
If you’ve never taken a cooking class here before I highly recommend it. You will learn more than you expect and you’ll enjoy some of the best food ever.

I wrote a review that said that I thought their was a deceptive return policy from my experience with this store. I also stated that In my opinion the products that are sold there are cheap. Then the owner of the store defensively posted a comment on my comment. Unilocal is a forum for consumers to share their experiences with others. It is not a forum for defensive unprofessional store owners to try and engage in a debate with unsatisfied customers. I felt it necessary to further comment on the unprofessional conduct of this store. Because that store owner just took his poor service to a new level. I cannot believe a business owner would act in such a petty and unprofessional manner.

I’m all for purchasing at local stores to support the community. But this store’s markups are really high. I bought a pressure cooker set for $ 320. Turns out that the same set is being sold online with free shipping for $ 239. The store’s website offers a price guarantee yet when I contacted them, I heard nothing in response. I’m fine with a reasonable markup over online sales (5% or 10%) — but $ 81 on a $ 239 item seems like gouging.
Don’t make the mistake I did: check online pricing before you buy!
As for online pricing, it was NOT for seconds — it was available through at least a dozen sites, including those that offer brand-​new, professional cooking supplies. I sent proof of these other online offers to the store, but they refused to respond. (They didn’t want to reimburse the price difference.) I called, I emailed, and I messaged Keith, the owner, below, and he refused to respond.
As for the owner’s response that the manufacturers are forcing him to sell products at higher prices, I find that hard to believe. That would be price-​fixing and can be illegal under the antitrust laws.
Finally, just as a matter of feeling like a valued customer, I would have welcomed a response rather than having to post something online. That’s just poor customer service.

I was stunned at the owner’s rudeness and certainly will not return.

I love this store. Now, I can’t afford much in it, but they do have pretty good sales on dutch ovens and knives fairly often. The staff is always friendly, even when I’m just there to browse.

What a great experience. It’s like a kid-​in-​the-​candy-​shop kind of feel for me whenever I walk in your store. Whether I’m buying a gift, looking to expand my «collection» of tools, or attending a cooking class, Keith & Kathy deliver. You love what you do and it shows!

I have hesitated to write a review on Cooks Pots & Tabletops because I am really no expert on the category, but then again that doesn’t stop most Unilocal reviewers. Usually when I go to CP&T it is to purchase a gift for someone else. I always come away with something cool and useful relying on the professional advice I receive. This store is a fine example of the value a small locally owned retailer can bring to community.

Selection of general cookware, cutlery, and linens, is very good, and prices are reasonable. This remains a good choice to compare and choose items for the kitchen.
That said, the attitude (particulary from the owner and husband) is remarkable for a retail store. When I asked about whether they had a certain item, rather than a «no, but let’s find it for you,» or «let’s see if there’s a good alternative,» I got a «you don’t need that — we’re of the opinion…» and then a snotty comment about why my item was less than optimal. This has happened several times for different items (e.g., heat resistant tempered glass mugs for spanish coffees, etc.) and results in leaving with a feeling of somehow being ignorant. Certainly not the warm welcome feeling I get from any of the other stores in the area, and not what I would hope newbies to the cooking field would experience to encourage broadening their culinary knowledge.
I have attended several classes there, and generally they are worthwhile, with enthusiastic and knowledgable chefs. One class was presented as including a wine-​tasting to pair with the food choices, and a single bottle of chard was opened — each of us got about 2 – 3 oz total — that’s it. Not what I expected for a $ 75 class.
This store will remain for me an option of last choice, and good example of how a business with a terrible attitude can mysteriously remain open for many years. Others seem to like it; perhaps I have caught them on «off» days?

As a visitor to Eugene, I learned of this store only through Unilocal reviews. That’s the great thing about Unilocal if you’re a store owner — it can generate traffic and revenue from distant customers that your own marketing may not reach.
First some comments about the set up and contents of this store. Then I want to weigh in on the attitudinal /​bias in treatment of customers issues raised by a couple of other Unilocal reviewers.
As to the store itself, there are probably two main reasons there is no Williams Sonoma in Eugene and Cook’s Pots may be one of them.
The first reason is likely Hartwick’s, which seems to carry the breadth of items that Wms So does and then some and which is conveniently located in the 5^th Steet Market with ample parking associated.
The second reason may be this Cook’s Pots & Tabletops, located in a bit more out of the way neighborhood in an older shop complex but with a deep selection of cookware, bakeware, serving vessels, utensils, cookbooks and lovely table linens, all from top quality suppliers. We thought prices were competitive with others selling the same product lines.
The store itself generated literally a «cool» response from me the moment we walked in the door and I posted a photo of the «view from entry» that made it so. My husband made a beeline for the new Emile Henry ceramic cookware display near the door as he is «kicking tires» right now before purchasing some pieces. A very helpful saleswoman immediately asked what questions he had that she might help answer.
There is a cooking /​demo counter area at the back of the store and two cooks were working there, chatting, sharing jokes (some in either French or Italian) and the entire store smelled wonderful. The counter was set as if they were hosting a dinner that evening. (It was after 4:30 when we arrived.) Oddly, now that I think of it, we didn’t ask about the event or if classes were held there. Maybe because we were too caught up in «oohing and ahhing» over the great stuff in the shop. (I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a big selection of tart pans, of all sizes and styles, in one place ever before! ;-)) And also talking about the fact that the owners of Cook’s Pots are friends of the owners of a great little kitchen store in our town.
Now about the attitudinal issues raised by a couple of the other Unilocal reviewers. I trust that their experiences are exactly as they relayed them to be as it’s my belief that Yeeps don’t fabricate those things.
So, I was a tad apprehensive in advance of the visit to this store given others indicated they were treated in a way that suggested bias on the part of the owners towards people who are different in appearance or life status. Nothing would «sink» a rating for me faster than having people be rudely treated in a retail store, or anywhere, because of the way they looked or their life status, say as parents of small children or as aged people or as young people with tatoos… all are life status issues. And within the last ten years I myself have become a member of a minority population to which roughly one fifth of all Americans belong. As a result, although I am exactly the same person since entering this minority group as I was before, I am sometimes treated as if I am «second class now» when I was treated «first class then». I thought that could be the case here, my differences are visible based on the way I walk, but it was not. I was treated with the courtesy that all customers should receive.
Would we go back to Cook’s Pots next time we’re in Eugene? Probably not, unless we were on the hunt for something specific and hard to find that they carried. But it’s definitely a store for home cooks to consider if you’re looking for something for your kitchens.

When it comes to what they carry in-​store, it’s a great place for people who take their kitchen tools seriously. I’ve done some price comparing of things I’ve purchased at Cook’s have been the same or, in some cases, cheaper than other local outlets. Nice.
What I don’t care for is the way that I have been treated in the store. I am probably a bit younger than their usual crowd of shoppers and I also tend to dress more, I don’t know, urban? I have a nose ring and tattoos and wear hoodies most of the time. So when I’m in there, I typically get watched a lot, like they think I’m going to shoplift or something.
I’ve never been treated that way at Hartwick’s, but Cook’s is closer to my house, so I still end up there quite a bit. Besides, I feel that because they act like that, I have a duty to continue shopping there, to make them realize that you can’t assume what a culinarily-​inclined person looks like at face value. Or, if nothing else, to make them feel uncomfortable, because if they are going to treat people who look like myself like that, they kind of deserve to feel uncomfortable.

Nice looking store, well laid out, but the staff is stiff and even snotty at times. I was shopping for knives and I was told I shouldn’t get it if I have kids, «they could grab it and throw it around.» What? That I shouldn’t buy Lodge because they are made in China (only the enamel products are made in China).
They are also extremely proud to carry Nestle products and have no knowledge or care of the destructive cruel history of that corporation. I am not a corporation hater, but I do like to be aware.

All in all it was a negative experience and I will take my business somewhere else. There are other local kitchen stores. When I mentioned my experience to other people they said they hate going to this store for the very same reason.

Kathy and Keith run a 5-​star operation here.
What is it that you need? Shun? Le Creuset? Viking? Mauviel? Staub? All-​Clad? This store has it all, and it’s stuff stacked on top of stuff on top of stuff, yet it’s all easy to find. They’ve got table linens, dishes, barware and supplies, knives galore, gourmet foods, cheesemaking supplies, all kinds of cookware in all types of materials for baking, roasting, braising, sauteing. Et cetera. Not ONLY do they have everything for your cooking needs, but they also offer a wonderful cooking class series! I’ve taken the knife techniques course as well as the introductory cheesemaking class where we learned to make ricotta, mozzarella, and mascarpone. Check out their website for their class offerings (they also give you little coupons for the store when you take the class).
This is the sweetest shop.