Hida Tool & Hardware

Fantastic place; drove from south bay to buy japanese knife. If you buy a knife he rebevels it and shows you how to sharpen your knife. His technique and choice of stones is different than what you see on the internet. The qualities of the knives he sells is much better than shun.
Bought a santuoku made from powdered steel. Got tired of not being able to shave deli meat; thinly sliced pieces of ham/​meat you can see through. The Santouku gives me better control than a deli slicer machine.
The thinness in shaved meat slices allows the fat to melt and the flavor to come out. Impt for high quality ham/​cured meat or else you are wasting money. Use on pizza or hot toasted bread. The heat from the bread/​pizza slice should be enough to melt the fat. If you put the meat in the oven; the heat cooks it and changes the flavor.
Shun is overpriced and hard to maintain/​use because of the type of steel they use. The vg10 steel is hard and the brittle metal is prone to pitting in the edge when it ages/​wears. These are hard to fix. The hard steel is hard to sharpen.
None of the knife sharpening services are able to bevel edges correctly to a mirror finish except here. Most knife sharpening services use machines which are designed for the softer german knife sets. Much different cutting action with this style of knife. Not as precise.
The bench grinding machines and wheels create a sharp edge which doesn’t last and doesn’t take advantage of the quality of the Japanese steel. The advantage when sharpened correctly is the slicing action allowing you to create much thinner slices. Different than the pushing/​chopping action.
Great learning resource.
They carry Japanese wood working tools.

Specialized Japanese tool shop with an impressive collection. Staff was very knowledge, helpful, and patient in describing the differences in traditional Japanese knives. Very unique place.

I’m working on an Ikebana installation for the Oakland Museum and needed advice about cutting slots in fresh bamboo. One of the workers at Hida spent at least a half hour with me. She not only recommended tools, she took me in the back, showed me how to use them and let me practice. Outstanding!

I brought a very dull serrated bread knife to Hida and they sharpened and re-​serrated it. $ 8! Sharp as new. And the knife guy at Sur La Table told me it wasn’t worth trying and I should replace it.

This is a terrific store specializing in Japanese tools. I am definitely happy with the carbon steel Hori Hori knife I bought at Hida Tools. It definitely does the trick as I’m able to easily battle the neighbor’s encroaching crab grass with my handy Hori Hori. On another note, the Hori Hori does make for a great (albeit a little heavy) backpacking trowel. I will definitely return to Hida Tools for my gardening tools.

I’ve always wanted a Fujitake chef’s knife, and this is the place to get them. My husband and I listed one on our wedding registry, and a good friend gifted us the cash for it so that we could come to the shop and pick out the one we wanted, along with the sharpening stones and a few other random accessories.
I’ve never driven a Ferrari, but I think chopping veggies with a Fujitake is as closest as I have come. I’d now compare chopping with my standard Wustof akin to driving a Ford Focus. Both will get you where you’re going, but the experience with a Japanese knife is beyond compare (Disclaimer: I drive a Ford Focus.)
I was a bit intimidated walking into the shop, even knowing what I wanted, but the young gentleman was very helpful without being overbearing, which can be a balance hard to strike. We were given a handy guide on how to use the stones to sharpen the knife, and an invitation to return to the store for some help if needed.
I am now slicing and dicing up a mess in my kitchen with my trusty (and super sharp) Fujitake!

Great place for japanese woodworking and gardening tools. Beats even the venerated Soko Hardware in SF’s Japantown. Great team of people, too. Very knowledgeable about their products.

awesome place for quality tools for gardening

These guys are the best when it comes to Japanese wood tools. I only come here when I need hand tools to buy for my business. Great service and very knowledgable staff.

Hilda is an absolutely wonderful shop for those who covet fine craftsman tools! Such selections are not available in conventional tool stores, and the staff are extremely knowledgeable.

Hida Website makeover is very complete for online ordering of everything they’ve got and works well.
I still like to go to their ramshackle store in Berkeley and hang-​out.
It’s cool.
They’re nice.

What can I say if you want quality gardening tools, knives or wood working tools this is the spot! The staff is very helpful and knowledgable about everything in the shop. Pro tip if you want your knife sharpened there is a waiting line out a few months so plan accordingly, but it’s well worth it.

Fun small store consisting almost entirely of sharp things. Also the best place to make a reservation to have a knife sharpened.

I love this store. I think I first went here to get a Japanese wood saw (thin blade, cuts on the pull stroke, simply awesome), and they have a bunch, plus replacement blades.
Since then I have replaced most of my kitchen knives with Japanese ones purchased here — even the moderately priced ones are better than the European ones. The cheap carbon steel ones are great for the price, and the expensive ones will make you drool with how beautiful they are.
Plus cool Japanese chisels and wood carving tools and gardening tools, and a cat that sits in the window.

For woodworking nerds, especially those interested in using traditional Japanese woodworking tools, this is an amazing and dangerous place. Amazing because they are so well equipped. Dangerous because the selection of high quality items is so tempting. The prices I thought were quite reasonable considering the very high quality of the wares.
The wait staff is very friendly and helpful, and more importantly for a place like this, they are knowledgeable and willing to share that knowledge.
They also seem to have a great selection of pruning and gardening tools.

I’ve been going to Hida Tool for probably 20 years. I don’t go often – while they charge very reasonably for their wares, the products are so outstanding that they cannot be cheap – but when I do I am always knocked out, again, by the sheer range, quality, and quantity of what they offer. Other reviewers here have pointed out that you can find wonderful things at Hida whether you’re primarily a cook, a craftsman, or a gardener – all true. They also have some unexpected things that are just fun or lovely – traditional heavy metal Japanese teapots, sun-​powered miniature strings of lanterns, Japanese workers’ bandanas (!), frogs for flower arrangements, various Ikebana implements, the occasional bowl, T-​shirts from time to time. .. Hida is, as somebody here has already said, one of a kind.
As for the knife-​sharpening – yes, yes, they have a long waiting list. This is because (a) they’re so good that people come from all over to get their knives sharpened there, and (b) they’ve been down a knife-​sharpener or two in the recent past. They are training at least one new person, and turnaround will be improved when that happens. I can’t imagine how to account for one or two reviewers below who say Hida did a poor job of sharpening their knives. People, these are traditional Japanese craftsmen who view their work as a dedicated art. Of *course* they’re not going to sharpen a knife in five minutes, and I’m also fairly sure they can’t raise the dead, either, so if you bring them a knife that’s beyond help, it’s probably beyond *their* help, too.
I can’t say enough about how wonderful Hida Tool is. I’ve bought knives, a teapot, clothes, scissors, frogs, a mortar and pestle, a pruning saw, a traditional twig-​type outdoor broom, clippers, shears, scissors, and who knows what all else there. There is simply no place better.
The ownership of the store has changed in recent years, but the new owners continue the outstanding expertise and courtesy of the founders.
While you’re there, pet the cat. His name means «Little Iron,» and he’s utterly unflappable.
Addendum: As it turned out, they managed to get this latest knife sharpened for me in three *days* despite their original statement that they wouldn’t be able to get it to me until March 15^th. They’d had a slow day one day, apparently, so they got it done more quickly.
Hooray for Hida!

Hida Tool is a great source for premium blades. I’m not talking about a wimpy steak knife set. I’m talking about sleek and razor sharp weapons of mass excitement. If you’re at all into cooking, do yourself a favor and invest in one of these babies. You’ll be slicing and dicing with the best of them. Though they offer knife sharpening services, you can also buy a stone and take a crack at it yourself.
In addition to kitchen knives, they also have an assortment of tools for woodworking and gardening. While I’m not that domestically inclined, this place really makes me want to keep a bonsai garden just to get a pair of those cute little shears.
So many amazing things all crammed into a little store. Fair prices, knowledgeable employees. Mob over here and spoil yourself.

I love just stepping foot into Hida Tool.
Wonderful helpful staff and an endless collection of fantastic knives and gardening tools.
Blade sharpening here will be a wait (sometimes months). But this is because, contrary to what another reviewer wrote, knife sharpening doesn’t just take 5 minutes. They take their time and do it right.
If you’ve not visited Hida Tool, you’re missing out.

This is an amazing store for gardeners, woodworkers and cooks of all stripes. They have an amazing selection of tools for all kinds of tasks. A list of items I have purchased here:
— Dog Yu Japanese hammer
— Dog Yu nail pullers (2)
— Silky Hayauchi pole saw
— Silky Gomtaro pruning saw
— Silky Zubat landscaping saw
— Hori Hori digging tool
— Various small knives, weeders and pruners
As you can see, I have dropped a few bucks here over the years, but I don’t mind paying the prices for what are amazing tools that are a joy to use. Try any one of these saws, or even the nail pullers and discover the difference between Japanese-​style tools and the ones you may be used to.
Also, the staff and the Shop Cat always make you feel welcome!

I should not be allowed into this store! Please lock the doors if you see me coming…
Whenever I set foot in here, my wallet gets thinner. So many awesome Japanese knives and sharpening stones… I can’t resist.
Ok…just one more knife. Arghhh!