84 PUNCHMAGAZINE.COM gained a deeper understanding of this kitchen essential. “Neither one tells the full story,” continues Tara. “If the heat treatment is off with one of the knives, sharpening will tell you which one.” Mike, once a butcher like his father, understands the value of an effective tool. “My grandfather was the first person who set me up with a tri-stone sharpener three-foot maguro boˉchoˉ blade. “We want to know what you’re going to cut on,” Tara notes, “what you’re going to use the knives on, how much maintenance you’re going to want to do, how much experience you have in using knives.” Your answers might very well determine where your knife originates. Always on the cutting edge, Mike and Tara’s business became one of the first to sell game-changing Japanese cutlery in the Bay Area. This was back in ‘98, when German knives reigned. “I think it’s fair to say that the Japanese knives were coming in sharper than the German and American-made knives,” Mike says. “It’s harder and more flexible, so you can make it thinner.” Later, celebrity chef Rachael Ray popularized Japanese knives by brandishing her favorite santoku on 30 Minute Meals. “Every time she would talk about it on her {home & design} to just mess around with,” Tara recollects of her after-school visits to the meat shop. Now celebrating Perfect Edge’s 30th anniversary, father and daughter continue to steer customers to the right knife through a series of questions. After all, the two-inch paring knife, while great for peeling apples, isn’t up to fileting hefty tuna like the
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