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It's usually a chef's knife that takes centre stage when it comes to the restaurant utensil department. Japanese or German? Sloped blade or curved? What makes a quality, hand-forged chef's knife that can expertly and precisely chop, cut, dice and mince is a hotly debated topic. But it's the much smaller knives adorning tables inside some of London's best restaurants that have caught our eye as of late.
From Sune to Bistro Freddie, you'll find the Perceval 9.47 knife on some of the city's most trendy tables. The aesthetically pleasing utensil is inspired by pocket knives. In 2005, Michelin-starred French chef Yves Charles saw patrons of his Parisian restaurant pull out their personal pocket knives when they needed more oomph to slice through the duck course but he couldn't find a knife on the market with quite the same slicing power.
Inspired by his diners' foldable knives – and the 9.47% ABV wine the chef was sipping with his friends when the idea came to him – Yves turned to artisan French cutler Perceval to create a slicing utensil that was powerful enough. A coveted kitchen classic was born. Each knife is made entirely by hand using cryogenically treated steel for the blade and a polyacetal thermoplastic handle.
Since its creation, the knife has been the go-to for smooth slicing across Michelin-starred restaurants around the world, and if you haven't yet, you'll start noticing it too.
The knife set is an ideal gift for a food enthusiast who's already found their chef's knife and wants to take their utensil game up a level.
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While we've almost exclusively seen the beige iteration, the 9.47 also comes in a great variety of colours and mixed woods.
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