The Editors’ Cut: 11 Old-Timey Kitchen Tools for Hosting Season

Welcome to The Editors’ Cut, our monthly column dedicated to beautiful and useful finds for all over the house. In this installment: Happy cooking, baking, and hosting season to all who celebrate! When it comes to kitchen essentials, it’s probably no surprise that we lean more “old-fashioned” than “tech-forward.” Most of us on the editorial team eschew single-use appliances and gadgets where we can help it and find that, oftentimes, there’s a trusty, all-purpose tool that can do the job just as well. From our kitchens to yours, here are 11 beautifully made, buy-it-once cooking tools we love—and would happily leave out on the counter all the time. — The Remodelista Editors 

Copper Graters

Above: For a spicy ginger cake or an aromatic hit of winter citrus, pick up these hand-chiseled copper graters. Just watch your fingers. Shop now.

Tabletop Toast Rack

Above: Why not host breakfast? This stainless steel rack adds old-timey appeal. Shop now.

Peep Bowls

Above: Handmade in Portugal, these stoneware nesting bowls come in handy for prep—they’re dishwasher safe and have an easy-pour spout—and make the ideal vessel for family-style mashed potatoes. Shop now.

Timeless Tools

Undyed Paperless Towels

Above: These reusable cotton cloths are much more eco-friendly than paper towels. Shop now.

Alice’s Mortar and Pestle

Above: If you can’t have Alice Waters cook you dinner, you can at least borrow her go-to tool. Hand-thrown by California ceramicist Colleen Hennessey, this mortar and pestle is modeled after Alice’s much-used Japanese suribachi. Shop now.

Original Linen Pinafore Apron

Above: And a pretty, all-purpose cover-all for Thanksgiving day, afternoons spent baking, and dinners with friends. Shop now.

Also On Our Radar:

• Almost always the answer when we ask chefs their most reached-for cooking tool? A wooden spoon.
• A forever peeler.
• And a do-it-all pan.