I don't know if Famous-Barr stores are stricly a midwestern THANG -
but if there's one within driving distance you might want to check
them out. Yesterday and today they had a big 7am to midnight 2-day
"sale" on. Picked up a Henkels Classic no-stain (not stainless!) 7
inch Sankuto and 4 inch paring set - regular $99.99 for 50 bucks. I
know knife debates start a whole thread, and everyone seems to be
pretty pasionate about what they have - to me it's just a tool, and I
like Henkels. I wanted the Sankuto, but the paring knife was just a
bonus. Cool.

On Sat 09 Apr 2005 06:31:30a, AlleyGator wrote in rec.food.cooking:

> I don't know if Famous-Barr stores are stricly a midwestern THANG -
> but if there's one within driving distance you might want to check
> them out.

Mid 20th Century, Famous-Barr was only in Missouri, centered around St.
Louis. At the time it was a subsidiary of The May Co. Department Stores
headquartered on the West Coast. Famous-Barr is now in three other states,
Indiana, Illinois, and Kentucky.

More recently, there was a merger between The May Co. and Federated
Department Stores, making it the largest conglomerate of department stores in
the country. They are represented in all but two of the Continental US.

The various stores are Famous-Barr, Filene's, Foleys, Hecht's, Kaufmann's,
Lord & Taylor, L. S. Ayres, Marshall Field's, Meier & Frank, Robinsons-May,
Strawbridge's, The Jones Store, David's Bridal, After Hours, and Priscilla of
Boston.

--
Wayne Boatwright *¿*
____________________________________________

Give me a smart idiot over a stupid genius any day.
Sam Goldwyn, 1882-1974

"Wayne Boatwright" > wrote
> More recently, there was a merger between The May Co. and Federated
> Department Stores, making it the largest conglomerate of department stores
> in
> the country. They are represented in all but two of the Continental US.
>
> The various stores are Famous-Barr, Filene's, Foleys, Hecht's, Kaufmann's,
> Lord & Taylor, L. S. Ayres, Marshall Field's, Meier & Frank,
> Robinsons-May,
> Strawbridge's, The Jones Store, David's Bridal, After Hours, and Priscilla
> of
> Boston.

Let's not forget how Federated turned Macy's into a second class store.
Amazing Bloomingdale's stays in business under their tender loving care.
Federated is Canada's revenge on the US.

On a related note, Canada's latest ad campaign is something like ...
America! come on up!

nancy

AlleyGator at wrote on 4/9/05 9:31 AM:

> I don't know if Famous-Barr stores are stricly a midwestern THANG -
> but if there's one within driving distance you might want to check
> them out. Yesterday and today they had a big 7am to midnight 2-day
> "sale" on. Picked up a Henkels Classic no-stain (not stainless!) 7
> inch Sankuto and 4 inch paring set - regular $99.99 for 50 bucks. I
> know knife debates start a whole thread, and everyone seems to be
> pretty pasionate about what they have - to me it's just a tool, and I
> like Henkels. I wanted the Sankuto, but the paring knife was just a
> bonus. Cool.

Famous-Barr is a May Company store.
They bought up a bunch of local/regional department stores and kept the
local names but they are all basically the same store, with the same sales
chain-wide at their "mid-range" stores. I have bought things for people in
other parts of the country at my local Filene's, with a gift receipt, and
they've been able to exchange them for size or color at their local store,
such as Foley's or Kauffman's.

In New England, it's Filene's.
In Eastern PA, it's Strawbridges.
In Western PA, it's Kauffmans
In Texas, Foleys.
In the mid-west, it's Famous-Barr.

There are other names in other parts of the country, this is just off the
top of my head.

They also own Lord and Taylor, which has different merchandise and different
sales than Filene's/Foley's/Kauffmans/Etc. Not sure if Marshall Fields is
it's own thing, a la Lord and Taylor, or if it's lumped in with Filene's,
etc.

Unfortunately, May Company is merging with Federated, and most of their
stores will be converted to Macy's. Which stinks for me, because I really
enjoy shopping at Filenes and I hate shopping at Macy's. We're losing a
shopping option and I HATE that!

www.mayco.com

On Sat 09 Apr 2005 09:44:21p, Sheryl Rosen wrote in rec.food.cooking:

> AlleyGator at wrote on 4/9/05 9:31 AM:
>
>> I don't know if Famous-Barr stores are stricly a midwestern THANG -
>> but if there's one within driving distance you might want to check
>> them out. Yesterday and today they had a big 7am to midnight 2-day
>> "sale" on. Picked up a Henkels Classic no-stain (not stainless!) 7
>> inch Sankuto and 4 inch paring set - regular $99.99 for 50 bucks. I
>> know knife debates start a whole thread, and everyone seems to be
>> pretty pasionate about what they have - to me it's just a tool, and I
>> like Henkels. I wanted the Sankuto, but the paring knife was just a
>> bonus. Cool.
>
> Famous-Barr is a May Company store.

Yes, Famous-Barr has been part of the May Company group for many decades,
but back in the 1950s, at least, it was considered one of the jewels in the
crown. Things have changed, for sure.

> They bought up a bunch of local/regional department stores and kept the
> local names but they are all basically the same store, with the same
> sales chain-wide at their "mid-range" stores. I have bought things for
> people in other parts of the country at my local Filene's, with a gift
> receipt, and they've been able to exchange them for size or color at
> their local store, such as Foley's or Kauffman's.
>
> In New England, it's Filene's.
> In Eastern PA, it's Strawbridges.
> In Western PA, it's Kauffmans
> In Texas, Foleys.
> In the mid-west, it's Famous-Barr.
>
> There are other names in other parts of the country, this is just off
> the top of my head.
>
> They also own Lord and Taylor, which has different merchandise and
> different sales than Filene's/Foley's/Kauffmans/Etc. Not sure if
> Marshall Fields is it's own thing, a la Lord and Taylor, or if it's
> lumped in with Filene's, etc.

Mergers and buyouts have been going on for a long time. Up until the mid-
1970's in Cleveland there was a family owned department store chain, The
halle Bros. Co., that had been considered one of Cleveland's premier
stores. It was bought out by Marshall Field's and promptly run into the
ground, finally closing altogether after an 80-year history. The May Co.
stores in Cleveland closed, and a few re-opened as Kaufman's.

> Unfortunately, May Company is merging with Federated, and most of their
> stores will be converted to Macy's. Which stinks for me, because I
> really enjoy shopping at Filenes and I hate shopping at Macy's. We're
> losing a shopping option and I HATE that!

The saddest part is that all the really glorious old department stores are
either gone altogether, or exist in name only being shoddily merchandised.

There were two other department store chains in St. Louis that once reigned
supreme, Scruggs, Vandervoort, and Barney, and Stix, Bayer, and Fuller. I
believe they still exist, but I have no idea what their stature is now.

--
Wayne Boatwright *¿*
____________________________________________

Give me a smart idiot over a stupid genius any day.
Sam Goldwyn, 1882-1974

(AlleyGator) wrote:

OK, I found out why I like the santuko style better than any of our
classic "chef's" knives. It's slightly convex in the middle, which
lets you chop garlic and herbs like a sinkin' machine. I was "rockin
the blade" like fury on some garlic last nite - my wife passed through
the kitchen and said "Oh- I thought Jacques Pepin was here".

AlleyGator wrote:
> I don't know if Famous-Barr stores are stricly a midwestern THANG -
> but if there's one within driving distance you might want to check
> them out. Yesterday and today they had a big 7am to midnight 2-day
> "sale" on. Picked up a Henkels Classic no-stain (not stainless!) 7
> inch Sankuto and 4 inch paring set - regular $99.99 for 50 bucks. I
> know knife debates start a whole thread, and everyone seems to be
> pretty pasionate about what they have - to me it's just a tool, and I
> like Henkels. I wanted the Sankuto, but the paring knife was just a
> bonus. Cool.

I don't think you got any great bargain. I would say you bought the
*Budget* model, what amounts to a Knock-Off. There's Four-Star,
Five-Star, and Professional "S". The "Classic" is made in Spain. And
it should be spelled "Henckels", with a "c".... actually should be
marked "J. A. Henckels"... if yours is marked "Henkels" you definitely
got ripped off.

Here someone paid $35:
http://www.epinions.com/content_173897125508

Sheldon

"Sheldon" > wrote:

>I don't think you got any great bargain. I would say you bought the
>*Budget* model, what amounts to a Knock-Off. There's Four-Star,
>Five-Star, and Professional "S". The "Classic" is made in Spain. And
>it should be spelled "Henckels", with a "c".... actually should be
>marked "J. A. Henckels"... if yours is marked "Henkels" you definitely
>got ripped off.
>
>Here someone paid $35:
>http://www.epinions.com/content_173897125508
>
>Sheldon
>
To me it's a bargain because I was unable to find it cheaper anywhere
else, and always prefer to walk home with a box rather than mail-order
if possible. It says "no-stain" (I can't abide Stainless steel
knives) but the last time I used it, I rinsed it off, forgot to dry
immediatlely and now it has a bunch of stain marks. BTW, I spelled it
wrong. And also BTW I take the posted review with a real small grain
of salt, since she even gets the blade form wrong :
<quote>Unlike curved Western blades, that you can rock over your food,
Asian knives have a flat, straight edge, and must be dropped down
through the food like a guillotine</quote>. And she compares it to a
LARGE (sic) chef's knife - wrong again. So I have serious doubts she
paid what she states. For me, I would have had to pay the store's
list, which is $99.99. Anyway, I like it OK. But yeah, I think
you're right about it being a budget model. It chaps me though that
any serious knife-maker would even produce stainless steel models - I
certainly wouldn't buy one - after the poor luck I had keeping the
first one sharp.

AlleyGator wrote:
> "Sheldon" > wrote:
>
> >I don't think you got any great bargain. I would say you bought the
> >*Budget* model, what amounts to a Knock-Off. There's Four-Star,
> >Five-Star, and Professional "S". The "Classic" is made in Spain.
And
> >it should be spelled "Henckels", with a "c".... actually should be
> >marked "J. A. Henckels"... if yours is marked "Henkels" you
definitely
> >got ripped off.
> >
> >Here someone paid $35:
> >http://www.epinions.com/content_173897125508
> >
> >Sheldon
> >
> To me it's a bargain because I was unable to find it cheaper anywhere
> else, and always prefer to walk home with a box rather than
mail-order
> if possible.

Now that's just plain silly... I'd much rather shop from the comfort of
home and get *exactly* what I want rather than brave the hordes at the
maul and still have to settle... and shipping is always less costly
than driving an automobile. I can shop hundreds of stores on my PC
before you even get to one maul, and other than groceries I've yet to
find a lower price for anything at a brick and mortar store than I can
find on the net.

Sheldon

On 10 Apr 2005 12:15:52 -0700, "Sheldon" > wrote:

>
>AlleyGator wrote:
>> "Sheldon" > wrote:
>>
>> >I don't think you got any great bargain. I would say you bought the
>> >*Budget* model, what amounts to a Knock-Off. There's Four-Star,
>> >Five-Star, and Professional "S". The "Classic" is made in Spain.
>And
>> >it should be spelled "Henckels", with a "c".... actually should be
>> >marked "J. A. Henckels"... if yours is marked "Henkels" you
>definitely
>> >got ripped off.
>> >
>> >Here someone paid $35:
>> >http://www.epinions.com/content_173897125508
>> >
>> >Sheldon
>> >
>> To me it's a bargain because I was unable to find it cheaper anywhere
>> else, and always prefer to walk home with a box rather than
>mail-order
>> if possible.
>
>Now that's just plain silly... I'd much rather shop from the comfort of
>home and get *exactly* what I want rather than brave the hordes at the
>maul and still have to settle... and shipping is always less costly
>than driving an automobile. I can shop hundreds of stores on my PC
>before you even get to one maul, and other than groceries I've yet to
>find a lower price for anything at a brick and mortar store than I can
>find on the net.
>
>Sheldon


Sheldon...its "mall"

Allan Matthews wrote:
> On 10 Apr 2005 12:15:52 -0700, "Sheldon" > wrote:
>
>>
>> AlleyGator wrote:
>>> "Sheldon" > wrote:
>>>
>>>> I don't think you got any great bargain. I would say you bought
>>>> the *Budget* model, what amounts to a Knock-Off. There's
>>>> Four-Star, Five-Star, and Professional "S". The "Classic" is
>>>> made
>>>> in Spain.
>> And
>>>> it should be spelled "Henckels", with a "c".... actually should
>>>> be
>>>> marked "J. A. Henckels"... if yours is marked "Henkels" you
>> definitely
>>>> got ripped off.
>>>>
>>>> Here someone paid $35:
>>>> http://www.epinions.com/content_173897125508
>>>>
>>>> Sheldon
>>>>
>>> To me it's a bargain because I was unable to find it cheaper
>>> anywhere else, and always prefer to walk home with a box rather
>>> than
>> mail-order
>>> if possible.
>>
>> Now that's just plain silly... I'd much rather shop from the
>> comfort
>> of home and get *exactly* what I want rather than brave the hordes
>> at the maul and still have to settle... and shipping is always less
>> costly than driving an automobile. I can shop hundreds of stores
>> on
>> my PC before you even get to one maul, and other than groceries
>> I've
>> yet to find a lower price for anything at a brick and mortar store
>> than I can find on the net.
>>
>> Sheldon
>
>
> Sheldon...its "mall"

You been to one with a crowd? Maul sounds about right.
<eg>

BOB

Allan Matthews wrote:
> On 10 Apr 2005 12:15:52 -0700, "Sheldon" > wrote:
>
> >
> >AlleyGator wrote:
> >> "Sheldon" > wrote:
> >>
> >> >I don't think you got any great bargain. I would say you bought
the
> >> >*Budget* model, what amounts to a Knock-Off. There's Four-Star,
> >> >Five-Star, and Professional "S". The "Classic" is made in Spain.
> >And
> >> >it should be spelled "Henckels", with a "c".... actually should
be
> >> >marked "J. A. Henckels"... if yours is marked "Henkels" you
> >definitely
> >> >got ripped off.
> >> >
> >> >Here someone paid $35:
> >> >http://www.epinions.com/content_173897125508
> >> >
> >> >Sheldon
> >> >
> >> To me it's a bargain because I was unable to find it cheaper
anywhere
> >> else, and always prefer to walk home with a box rather than
> >mail-order
> >> if possible.
> >
> >Now that's just plain silly... I'd much rather shop from the comfort
of
> >home and get *exactly* what I want rather than brave the hordes at
the
> >maul and still have to settle... and shipping is always less costly
> >than driving an automobile. I can shop hundreds of stores on my PC
> >before you even get to one maul, and other than groceries I've yet
to
> >find a lower price for anything at a brick and mortar store than I
can
> >find on the net.
> >
> >Sheldon
>
>
> Sheldon...its "mall"

Where I live it's MAUL.

Sheldon

"Sheldon" > wrote:

>Now that's just plain silly... I'd much rather shop from the comfort of
>home and get *exactly* what I want rather than brave the hordes at the
>maul and still have to settle... and shipping is always less costly
>than driving an automobile. I can shop hundreds of stores on my PC
>before you even get to one maul, and other than groceries I've yet to
>find a lower price for anything at a brick and mortar store than I can
>find on the net.
>
>Sheldon
>
Actually Sheldon, I hit the "maul" at 7 am on the second day (I wake
up at 4 or 5 am even on days off!) and I don't think I saw more than 5
customers besides me. They cleaned the place out on day 1. Don't get
me wrong, I buy a fair amount of stuff over the internet, but with the
health probs I don't get out much lately - we were visiting friends
overnight and I got up, headed for their local maul all by myself and
had a lot of fun. Picked up some other "necessities", broke my diet
with a junk breakfast, and had a good time. So this time, I
considered the experience of getting out and messing around by myself
worth more than saving a few bucks to have it delivered. BTW, I
thought I was going to get pulled over for DUI - my driving skills
aren't back up to par yet. I looked into my formerly empty mirror to
find a county cop on my ass. He followed me a while and gave up.

Allan Matthews > wrote:

>
>Sheldon...its "mall"
>
No, in this case he's right on a normal day - it is indeed "maul". <G>

AlleyGator <x-no-archive: yes> wrote:
(AlleyGator) wrote:
>
>OK, I found out why I like the santuko style better than any of our
>classic "chef's" knives. It's slightly convex in the middle, which
>lets you chop garlic and herbs like a sinkin' machine. I was "rockin
>the blade" like fury on some garlic last nite - my wife passed through
>the kitchen and said "Oh- I thought Jacques Pepin was here".

But chef's knives are convex-edged.

Unless you grind them straight...

--Blair
"It could happen."