Sur La Table

I am a Sur la Table fanatic from way back. I loved the original Seattle location and this is my favorite shop in the Milwaukee/​Chicago area. I can’t step inside the store without buying something. I took my dad to a knife skills class here and the staff were AMAZING. My dad is generally in wheelchair though he can get around on crunches. I did some scouting and Chef Michael was GREAT. He had a stool and really helped me make the class a great experience for my father. We will definitely be back.

For a birthday gift my wife took a friend here for a cookie decorating class and for her description of the class and what she brought home I am outraged to say the least.
$ 75.00 per person and the person who ran the class was a fill in that knew less than most of the people who paid to attend.
The techniques advertised were not taught and the instructor (I use that term loosely) seamed to have limit kitchen skills let alone the ability to teach others.
My sister took a cake decorating class at WCTC for $ 35.00 and now runs a successful wedding cake business in Oregon.
I could have taught them how to do this myself and saved $ 150.00. I made 4 dozen decorated cookies last nigth and even was able to make the allergyfreindly vegan, something the so called experts atSur La Table were not able to do.
All I can say is outrageous.
If anyone out there wants to learn how to decorated Christmas cookies let me know, I won’t charge you a dime.

Shake N Bake
I love checking out this store for unique kitchen gadgets! They have a big area in the back for clearance stuff — some of it’s the same as what they have upfront but perhaps in a slow selling color. I scored a rubber garlic peeler (which I use all the time!) for a couple bucks.
I can’t even look at some of the other stuff here. I could drop a bundle on Le Creuset that I don’t need.

My boyfriend was looking for an interesting date night activity and he ran across the Sur La Table website. They happened to have a sale going on for their cooking classes and we figured, why not sign up?
We signed up for the Saturday evening class. We were running a little late due to traffic/​heavy fog, but our instructors, Ann-​Margaret and Hannah (Sorry if I butchered their names!) were super nice and assisted us in catching up to the rest of the class. It was the French Riviera course, and I LOVE French food!
I really loved that the instructor not only taught us how create the meal, but also where to find specific items, shopping tricks (e.g. when to buy the freshest fish!), and just general kitchen techniques that were useful to someone who may not have a lot of experience in the kitchen (like me…). She also referred us to some local places to pick up some of the ingredients we used in our food, as well as some pretty neat tools for cooking (think: the garlic cleaner).
Overall, I would highly recommend taking one of Sur La Table’s classes taught by Ann Margaret, not only is she funny, she also knows a great deal about what she is teaching!
Thanks for such a great time!

My boyfriend is UBBBB-​SESSED with the place, but it really doesn’t do me good. In fact, something is very fishy about all of it.
The concept is great. Good quality cookware and contraptions and cooking classes to teach you how to use the stuff. Too bad everything is so overpriced. Ridiculously overpriced, and if you’re easily fooled, you’ll be spending hundreds of dollars in minutes.
They do have free espresso. So I love them for that.
In general though, maybe go to Bolter for cooking classes, or the Milwaukee public market. I think you get more for your money. My boyfriend took an knife skills class for 60.00 (cheap for sur la table) here and didn’t even get a meal out of the deal.

Ah yes, sur la table. Sooooo difficult for many to pronounce. But, for those that can, you’ll soon realize that the French name is there for a reason. The French bring upscale to cooking, and the cooking products that are for sale here are definitely up scale. But that’s ok, if you cook. All too often, you’re looking for something nice and spend hours searching the city for it. Search no more, and just go here first. High quality everything. Knives, small appliances, crockery and pans, coffee makers, beverage containers/​servers, and the list goes on and on. Although I have never done them, they have a whole room dedicated to cooking classes. Search no longer, this place has it all in terms of your needs for the kitchen.

I admit that I have a kitchen gadget shopping problem. Fortunately, Sur la Table is far enough away and expensive enough that I don’t come in very often.
Today I wandered in looking for a gift. The staff were immediately welcoming and even offered a latte or espresso to enjoy while shopping. That’s a nice touch from a kitchen gadget shop.
They have lots of things, some fancy, some not, mostly expensive, and a good variety of things. They do also offer cooking classes occasionally as well. For high end gadgeteers like me, this is like Disneyland.

Absolutely love this place! I have recently got into cooking at home and this place has EVERYTHING you can imagine or need in the kitchen.
The staff is extremely helpful and knowledgeable about the products, their applications, and uses. If there is a specility, high-​end, or general use item that you need for your kitchen for cooking or baking they will have it.
Recently (well actually yesterday), I took the Essential Knife Skills class. This is my first Sur La Table class and first cooking class ever. The instructor, Zak, is personable, professional, and funny to boot. The athmosphere of the class was very inviting. Walking in I was greeted by Judy who asked what refreshment I wanted with chairs for each person with a packet of all the info we go over in the class with a 10% coupon attached. The class ran for 2 hours long including some light snacks and refreshments. Overall, great learning atmosphere and experience. I would highly recommend their classes.
Whether it is their classes or just going to pick up supplies or ask questions, you can’t go wrong with Sur La Table.

The best way to shop is the clearance everything else in the store is pretty pricey. I am officially a fan, I was walking around decided to pop in on of the after Christmas sales and end up scoring Cuisinart Immersion Blender for (drum roll) $ 24.99 originally for $ 40. Boom!!!

This is definitely an upgrade from your standard William Sonoma. The staff is all extremely friendly and willing to help. I have never come out empty handed. They always have exactly what I’m looking for and usually have an array of different choices. Not to mention they’ll make you a lovely cup of coffee to sip while you shop :)
I took one of their baking classes last weekend with my Mom and it was excellent. I took the one where we made a buche de noel — or a holiday yule log for us common folk. The class is extremely hands on and educational. The chef that taught it was knowledgeable and able to get everyone involved regardless of their baking experience. The end result was beautiful and I was even a little impressed with myself. Looking forward to take another class in the next few months :)

Nice place to get specialty kitchen items. A lot like Williams Sonoma.

Was happy to see that MKE finally got one of these foodie wonderlands! I love browsing through all the gadgets here. Also, big selection of high quality cookware.
Check the back for great deal on clearance items!!!
Classes look interesting, I’ve been meaning to take one here.

Sur la table is really cool. Having spent a lot of time in competitor stores for cooking supplies with my mother I must say Sur la Table is rather impressive. The cooking class I took there was also superb and the food was delicious. Though I would have liked to be able to get a little bit more creative with the food, it was very well done and the measurements were so exact.
My favorite parts of the store: the knives and the espresso machines. Of course there are a lot of little trinkets to fulfill your undiscovered kitchen needs.

I love this store. Is there anything they don’t have in here? The staff is super friendly and many times if you’re looking to buy some expensive equipment, they’re usually able to demo it for you before you buy it. That’s awesome.
The only reason they’re getting 4 out of 5 stars is because it’s so far away from me. Boo, I wish they were closer to downtown or to the west suburbs.

I do not usually walk around Bayshore, … I park close to where I need to go and get in and out, so even though I live close, I knew of William Sonoma, Alterra, B&N, and Trader Joes… and ignored the rest. Yesterday I wanted to pick up a pair of jeans (see my other reviews… ick!) and also needed a replacement CO2 canister for my sodastream, so I parked in the structure, and walked to William Sonoma. it is GONE! I guess that’s what I get for clicking the spam button on their emails.
I ended up FINALLY finding a pair of jeans that fit and that actually looked like jeans at the GAP… when I walked out of the Gap, I saw Sur La Table…
Great — HUGE selection of gadgets at ALL price ranges, awesome selection of cutlery. I have a 16×13″ roasting pan from All Clad in my wishlist now, if anyone was wondering what to buy me.

Less snooty than Williams Sonoma but more upscale than Bed, Bath & Beyond, this store has everything the home cook can possibly need (and then some). As others have noted, there is a huge amount of gadgetry here — strawberry hullers, bean de-​stringers and an avocado knife… that’s right… a knife specifically for cutting avocados because EVERYONE needs one of those. A regular knife JUST WON’T DO.
I liked the broad selection and that they generally had items in multiple price points. You CAN spend $ 2700 on an espresso maker, but you don’t have to. They have good sized sections for bakers, grillers and general cook’s needs. There were a lot of helpful emplyees around to answer questions.
I didn’t care for the screw job pricing on cooking classes — $ 70?! Are they on something? Also, the helpful employees seemed to disappear at check out time and of course, I got stuck behind «cookie cutter hoarder lady» who was buying 800 cookie cutters on clearance AND who insisted on the sale price for each be announced… sigh…
Still, it’s a nice store for both the dedicated cook and the novice who just needs the basics.

As someone who’s in school for a baking/​pastry certificate, I can verify that this store is dangerous. Was super-​excited and proud of myself when I walked out having only spent $ 12!
Love the baking section — every decorating tip you could want, couplers, cupcake papers, huge selection of cookie cutters and more.
They have their own line of bakeware that was incredibly reasonably priced and was also on sale and I can’t wait to try it.
Be careful about getting sucked into the gadget vortex — remember that you don’t actually need a special gadget to do every little thing in the kitchen.
They also offer an industry discount, which I thought was cool. Show a membership card or pay stub and fill out a small slip and you get a card to show every time you check out.
They also offer classes, but I find them disappointingly overpriced. $ 79/​person for a couple hour cooking class is insane.
This will likely become my go-​to spot for kitchen gear. Staff was friendly and helpful, but not pushy.
Tweeted to see anyone else had used their bakeware, looking for opinions and the corporate folks answered me — that’s pretty on the ball.

I could spend days on end and an entire home equity line at this place. Every kitchen gadget of your dream can be found here. Fun, funky, unique, practical and necessary are all here. If you are a foodie, like to cook, or know someone who is/​does — you have found the store for you. I’ll be back — perhaps when I get my tax refund?

Umm freaking awesome, but I agree with Tony– dangerous! So many glorious kitchen tools, gadgets, and accessories. They have a cookie cutter for almost anything you could desire. Every household needs a giraffe, cactus, foot, and beehive cookie cutter, right?
I almost jumped with joy when I saw the Cuisinart food processors and mixers in a rainbow of colors. Hot pink and bright purple? Yes, please.
Don’t get me started on the espresso makers. Amazingly high tech and awesome. Which one did I like most? The one that was almost 3 grand. Hahah, yeah no.
But seriously this store is awesome. You could find almost anything you’d need for your kitchen. They’re a bit pricier but this is a place you must check out for gifts or your own kitchen.

Umm. Kitchen gadgets galore.
Super friendly, knowledgable staff.
Did I say kitchen gadgets?
Danger! Walk away from the $ 40 vegetable peeler!