M20707 Genesis 7-Inch Santoku Knife,Black

Amazing bang-for-buck. I waited 2 years to review this knife. I had always wanted a Santoku, but wasn't sure the shape would fit my needs, and when I first got it, I was almost convinced that it didn't (not dissing the knife itself). My go-to knife for years has been an 8" forged Zwilling Chef's knife with which I have always done more of a chopping motion. I kept trying the Santoku and it is now my go-to except for heavy chopping. The blade is quite thin making it a great slicer: veggies, meat, and it also handles my lighter-duty chopping: celery, kale. Carrots and potatoes mostly go to my Chef's knife, but when sharp it handles those fine. I was very surprised when it went butterflied/spatchcocked a chicken with much more ease than my German chicken shears - which I think I will just get rid of as unnecessary, actually. The handle is comfortable and grippy enough, and large enough diameter to be easy to hold (I have very small hands and some more modern design knives I find too small to hold well). It also has pretty good heft for a light knife. I see some review complaints about it dulling quickly, but that's pretty much how it goes with stainless steel and especially such a thin blade...and really, this tool only costs <$35. I touch it up very briefly before starting a session with it, but really it takes a only few strops on the rod and it's very sharp. I haven't "sharpened" with a stone it at all, yet. 0 regrets.

A few things. The steel that's used with the Mercer Genesis is a very good quality steel and other supposedly higher end knife companies including Wusthof have used this steel. Maybe they get theirs a little harder because there's variation. The hardness in a type of metal has a range. It's not a big range of course but there is a range. So, as a comparison a Wusthof Classic Chef Knife is around $150 USD for an 8" chef. It's hardness rating is a little higher so it holds its edge a little better. This has a 15 degree bevel and the other has a 14 degree. The other knife has a pull through sharpener you can buy for that line. It's sharpening angle is 14 degrees. I have the other knife and the other sharpener and that sharpener works great with this knife. It means I make it a little sharper than the factory (30 degrees factor, 28 degrees using the pull through). The pro is it's very easy to sharpen, the con is it dulls faster. But since it's easy to sharpen with that pull through I don't care that it dulls faster, what I care about is how the knife works in my hand and it's absolutely perfect for my hand. I love the balance, the handle material which will last decades from what I can tell allows my hand to grip these knives very well and that's important since it's more rounded. The advantage of a handle that has sides like the Wusthof Classic line is it won't roll in your hand. Round handles can, but this isn't round, it's oval and the material on the handle is anti-slip. And actually it's not really oval because there are corners there and that also helps with grip. What I know is this is easy to work with and easy to sharpen with a quality pull-thru. Because of this I do almost all my cutting with this Santoku, and if I don't it's because I need something more hefty or something for fine cutting like a paring knife. Or, I need a filet knife or boning knife. It's rare I ever need a chef knife because this replaces that for most anything with rare exception. This is my workhorse, been using it for years, I've probably sharpened off a good 0.5mm from it over time so I still got a good 30 - 40 years with it, but since I'm not lasting that long someone else gets it. Oh, and after a decade no rust spots and even the polished finish on the steel looks excellent even with the tiny imperfections that exist now due to all the use.

I bought the Mercer Knife to replace my other two knives I've have for 10+ years. I only used it once, to cut some parsley. It's very nice to have a knife that cuts herbs, and not squish and bruise it. Even after sharpening my old knives, they still wouldn't cut parsley the way the Mercer knife does. It is definately a good entry level knife to hone in your knife skills and pinch grip, without killing the bank. I'm no professional, but I do love to cook. I like that it gives me the confidence to better my pinch grip. Not gonna lie, I was a bit skeptical about the handle, not being wood, boy I was wrong. It feels great in my hand and the balance is great. It is light in weight, but has enough weight to slice easily through herbs, and still have complete control. I can see it slicing through potatoes and other harder root vegetables eith ease. There's enough weight so you won't have to press hard, just let the knife do its job. I highly recommend this knife and I know what knife I'll get when I have to replace mine. I'm hoping I won't have to for a long while. Thank you for my beautiful knife.

LOVE this line of knives. I ended up buying several and all of them are just fantastic. I’ve been contemplating spending $2k on a good knife set for myself this Christmas as I meal prep every week and am a big time foodie. This santoku knife is my go to knife. It is crazy sharp and slices just about anything as smooth as butter. The price is unbeatable. It has a no slip grip and it looks FAR more expensive than it is. Lasts a really long time. I bought a knife sharpener as this is my second of this knife and used the sharpener to sharpen the first one I got and it’s good as new. I bought a second one because I use several knives each Sunday during my meal prep days and had been using the knives I already had and thought I’d hold out until I got that 2k knife set. Boy do I regret holding off on buying more! I no longer feel the need to buy that knife set. Just need a block for these. The first knife I bought lasted for nearly 2 years without needing to be sharpened. I literally use these knives everyday and for HOURS of slicing and dicing every Sunday. A wonderful knife that is perfectly weighted and razor sharp. Buy! You won’t regret it!

Great knife. Great value. I have high end Japanese knives, Wusthof knives, K Sabatier, Zwilling, you name it. Some reviews claim that it doesn't retain its edge long and to get a Japanese knife. Well... It does retain its edge but this is GERMAN steel. Rockwell hardness is on the medium side so you need to know how to use a honing steel. The edge will roll under normal use so you must hone it. 5-10 quick strokes and it will be razor sharp again. You can keep the edge sharp for 6 months to a year of normal use before needing to take it to a stone. People that say it is dull after being sharpened obviously don't know how to sharpen blades. This blade sharpens very easily. It takes me 15 minutes on my wetstone or 10 mins on the Spyderco sharpmaker to bring it to a razor edge at 20 degrees each side. Japanese blades are cool, and yeah they hold an edge longer without honing but they are also fragile and can chip if you cut into a bone or something hard. They also are harder to sharpen, and in fact, a novice will find Japanese knives difficult or perhaps impossible to sharpen correctly. This blade is a fantastic value because it's steel is identical in composition to Wusthof's steel. I use my knives every day and I am hard on my Mercer knives because I know they can take it. I can whack the counter and it won't break. If I dull it up, I can hone it ten stokes on my honing steel and it's back. I only need to sharpen it on a stone every 6 months. Don't use a pull sharpener. Those set the angle but leave the edge looking like barbed wire.

Most reviews will state this knife is good for the money. That is accurate. It is not a great knife, but it is good for the money. Out of the package it was sharp, but nothing compared to the Henckel or Tojiro, or Cang knives I have. All of them cost more...but not that much more. You can often catch a Henckel (not the Zwilling) Pro line on sale for a few dollars more, and it is in every way a far superior knife. However this lines up very nicely, and in many ways is better than their synergy line. The soft grip handle is unique among makers. It feels good in your hand.

(Written by the cook of the house: the wife): I bought this Santoku knife after some research online of what makes a good knife. Many of the really highly rated knives that are super expensive are made from German carbon steel (as this knife is). The last Santoku knife I had was quite weighted in the hand and made the knife feel stronger and less likely to break or bend - I finally bent the blade on it when stupidly trying to chop through a thick piece of lamb leg bone (Don't try that with any santuko knife). Every cheaper santoku knife that I have found these days, tends to be too light weight for my taste.I was looking for a replacement that wasn't flimsy feeling and had some weight to it and came across customer reviews on the Mercer Culinary Genesis. Some people complained about how heavy the knife feels. However, I am a petite person and I don't find it too cumbersome to use at all. I actually find the blade to be sturdy and I am not worried that it could bend easily. I like that the handle is well attached to the blade but still has a comfort grip on it, making it easier to hold while cutting. It came in a nice sealed plastic package and was SUPER sharp upon opening it. It cut through thick fruit like nothing (ie. Watermelon, Cantaloupe, pineapple). Many of my friends that come over have said that they really like this knife and ask where it came from. If I had to make a complaint is that it took a very little bit of sawing motion to cut through the skin of a tomato; however, once the skin was broken it cut it very nicely and cleanly - not squishing the tomato at all. It gives clean cuts and the weight actually makes it feel like you have more control over the blade and what it's doing while cutting. I have had some flimsy knives at that just bend and seem to warp as I cut through something thick and leaving behind a very squiggly cut line - This DOES NOT do that! Overall, I really am enjoying this knife. Compared to other more expensive knives in the stores, I think this is worth getting and it will save you a lot of money compared to getting one for $100 at a large retailer. Definitely try this knife out, I think you will be happy with it.

Nice knife. Hope it stays sharp. It sure is now.

I've been using this knife, at least twice daily, for the past 3 weeks and now wonder, how'd I manage without it? The blade is quite thin and super sharp, slices even soft fruits and vegetables cleanly. The weight is good, not heavy, and the balance is perfect for me.

Faca muito boa! Corte liso e bem afiado! Vale comprar uma capa de proteção para o fio, dado que só vem a faca.

A bit bigger than expecting but came very sharp and is really well made for the price Great comfortable handle and excellent quality. 10/10 would blind buy again.

I've owned this knife since 2021 and it has been my go-to knife for food preparation in my kitchen since that time. The handle is extremely comfortable and doesn't slip when things get messy which can be very important. The blade has worn remarkably well (although the markings have long worn away) and most importantly it really holds its edge for long time between sharpens (I use a high quality whetstone and knife oil). Highly recommended for home chefs looks for a reasonably priced, high quality multi-use knife.

The knife was sharp right out of the package. The package is a basic plastic wrapping which protects the blade but exposes the handle. The handle has this rubberized material that makes it grippy even when wet. Right out of the box I cleaned it with soap and water and out to into a sharpness test by slicing a tomato. The balance was great on the knife, no slippage, and sharp out of the box. Got it for 53$ CAD. Can't and for more for 50$ bucks now a days.