Glassware is pretty much a personal preference. I guess the first thing to consider is if you care whether or not it’s made in China. Obviously you’re going to be paying more if it’s not. The second thing to consider would then be the level of durability you’re seeking, particularly if you’re putting it in the dishwasher or it’s going to be utilized by children. Libbey, Anchor Hocking, and Duralex are very popular brands for folks looking for durability.
For barware, shape plays an important role in the type of liquors you’re consuming. A lot of liquor drinks are either served in a highball [tumbler] glass (taller and skinnier) or an Old-fashioned [rocks/double rocks, lowball] glass (shorter and wider). Then, of course, you’ve got specialty cocktail glasses like martini or zombie [Collins]. And let’s not even get started on all of the various types of beer glasses the connoisseur could find themselves looking for!
Different barware shapesRiedel
Stemware obviously puts us into another category because some people are very particular with what they are putting their wine into! What I have learned is that the shape of the wine glass matters because how the wine falls out of the glass and into your mouth – different wines need to hit different parts of your tongue. However, what the glass is made out of also plays a significant role, and personally, I was very skeptical of this fact until I did a special tasting with Riedel. If you’ve ever been to a winery, sometimes you can pay extra to use a fancier glass. Most people don’t care, but real wine affectionados will want the special glass because it’s made with lead crystal. It is also most likely a Riedel since there’s not a whole lot of widely distributed manufacturers that are still making glassware this way.
Libbey stemware
As for stemware durability, of course there is always Libbey, reliable and inexpensive. For something a little swankier and with more choices in shape and style, Schott Zweisel is a favorite. It’s reinforced with titanium so they are super strong – safe for dishwashers and boisterous toasting! These are actually one of my favorite wedding gift ideas because banging together wine glasses is sure to impress anyone, trust me. 😉
Schott Zweisel titanium-enforced stemware
Glassware Care
Glassware care: DON’T DROP IT! But seriously…
Most sturdy glassware will be dishwasher safe, but I’ve never seen a glass come out of a dishwasher without at least a little dot of a watermark on it, if not several. I’ve also opened dishwashers (albeit mostly in work environments) to see some of the sturdiest pieces of glass shattered to bits on top of the drain piece. My advice to you, as always, if you truly love it, do not put it in the dishwasher.
This dishwasher was obviously built to handle stemware!
I try to make sure nothing fragile is going to shake around and knock into something else when I’m loading the dishwasher, so that should help. Something shaped like a martini glass is probably not going to hold up well in a dishwasher, and if your wine or champagne glasses actually fit in yours, I would definitely recommend cheap, thick stemware. Heat is brutal on glass and the temperature extremes your dishwasher can reach will slowly make your glassware more and more brittle. It’s the same reason why your glass coffee pot can one day shatter to bits on you if you barely tap it on the edge of your mug by accident.
I have seen fancier dishwashers that actually have a glassware setting, so perhaps those work a little better with them, but one of my favorite quotes again is, “It’s called a dishwasher for a reason. It’s not a pots and pans washer. It’s not a glassware washer.”
The problem with hand-washing glassware, particularly specialty stemware, can be getting inside and washing it properly. There are specialty cleaning brushes for stemware as well as glass decanters available.
Brushtech cleaning brushes for glassware
Wine glasses should be rinsed immediately and left overnight with a little splash of warm water inside of them. A lot of wine glass representatives will tell you that you don’t really even need to wash your stemware with warm, soapy water every single time if you’re doing that.
Microfiber cleaning cloth to remove spots!
As for towel-drying, most of us are familiar with the lovely little flecks of fuzz that most towels would leave behind. Air-drying is the best method, although this can still sometimes leave unsightly watermarks. A microfiber cleaning cloth is recommended for keeping your stemware sparkling clear!
I couldn’t resist – using lead crystal glasses to play music!
I know, I know, THIS is the ceramic blog you’ve all been impatiently waiting for! Enough with the boring stuff, tell me what brands to buy!! 😛
As with everything I write about, personal preference trumps all! This is what I have seen, heard, and learned. Someone could have had the completely opposite experience. What matters is that the brand you buy has good customer service and normally delivers quality product. Please leave comments, email me, etc. and let me know your experience – good or bad – with a different line of products not listed here.
Vintage Pyrex
Let me put it another way; ANY brand can have a manufacturing defect, even the fancy ones. However, a reputable manufacturer (and for that matter, a reputable sales outlet) will replace these easily and at no cost to you. For years I helped what I thought were persnickity snobs examine their dinnerware piece by piece, and so I became a ninja at spotting the tiniest of imperfections. Some of these are super ridiculous, like, on the bottom of the plate?? Seriously? Or a tiny pinhole nobody would notice. But sometimes the color has a flaw – maybe the bowls got too close to each other during the glaze phase and they didn’t get a full coating. 99.9% of imperfections don’t matter, technically, because the pieces have been heated and it won’t do you any physical harm. But I know what really matters, and it’s what it LOOKS LIKE! 🙂 So when I bought my own Fiesta dinnerware, you bet your bottom I was ninja inspecting every single piece! Even the bottoms! 🙂 (Which is the perk of buying “open stock” versus sets. This will always vary by store, but most stores do not offer open stock, FYI.)
A good website to find discontinued dinnerware pieces is Replacements, Ltd.
Sonoma (TAG) Dinnerware & Other Inexpensive Ceramic Brands
Tag Sonoma dinnerware
This is some really good looking stuff, and I think it’s similar in both price and quality to stuff you’d find at Target or Bed, Bath & Beyond, store brands or something by Rachel Ray. These brands all usually have really cute prints, particularly for holidays or something. Sonoma dinnerware is nice because it’s in that price range but they keep making it, versus it being a seasonal item for the big box stores. The company also has pretty darn good quality control and I very rarely had off-color pieces come through the store I worked at. The downfall of any of these less expensive brands is that although they are dishwasher safe, they are not safe from your dishwasher and are prone to chipping in there. You can be pretty much guaranteed that the inexpensive brands are all going to be made in China.
I want to take a moment to say that while I call these ceramics “inexpensive”, I don’t make a ton of money and by no means do I think that ANY ceramics are that inexpensive unless you can find them on clearance! But compared to the brands not manufactured in China, Sonoma & Rachel Ray are cheaper.
Rachel Ray dinnerware
My first ceramic set of dinnerware was made for Target, and had really fun Hawaiian prints on them. One year later, handwashing only, mind you, I had one bowl left from a 16-piece set. It was 50% off when I bought it, but still very expensive to me at that time in my life, so I honestly expected it to last longer based on the price. I still have that one bowl, and it’s my “junk” bowl that I don’t care about what happens to it, so it goes in the microwave and dishwasher. It has crazing all over it, and a chip on the rim.
Some people only know this brand as the “Red Plate Dinnerware” because they are pretty infamous for their “You Are Special Today” line of goodies. Others know them as the easier to remember name “Fun Factory“. Their Fun Factory line is a delightfully bright-colored line of dinnerware that is the most commonly found in the US of all the lines they manufacture. All of their ceramics are made in Germany and are the next level of sturdiness up from Sonoma and other inexpensive ceramic brands.
Waechtersbach dinnerware
Waechtersbach dinnerware holds up a lot longer in the dishwasher, but are not exempt from chipping if the situation is just right. However, I had a roommate who collected all red Fun Factory dishes at thrift stores and we had one of those little junky dishwashers that you had to roll over to the sink and hook it up to run it…let’s just say the number of roommates in the house and the fact that this couple was older and had a history of many more roommates…I cannot believe these dishes lasted in the dishwasher, especially the way we crammed everything in there. So they are tough, for sure!!
The Fun Factory dinnerware is microwave and dishwasher safe, but not all of their lines are microwave safe so make sure you read the label! The red glaze in Waechtersbach does get pretty warm in the microwave, so beware!
Chantal Bakeware
Chantal Make and Take bakeware
Chantal makes a really nice line of bakeware that is oven, microwave, dishwasher and freezer safe. It is really easy to clean up and very durable. They are not a very well-known company, but most people own at least one of their ceramic pie plates and don’t even know it! They revamped their designs a few years ago, changed the colors to be a tad more bold, and offer handles that are easier to actually grip. The coolest thing is their Make and Take line of bakeware offers a silicone gasket seal that is removable around the lid. This makes it very easy to transport these pieces without worrying about spillage, or for marinating something in the refrigerator. The silicone is BPA free, dishwasher safe, and oven safe up to 425 degrees. You can also write on the ceramic surface of the Make and Take with a permanent marker and it will wash off with warm, soapy water, making it easy to label your potluck recipes and get your bakeware back!
Le Creuset Dinnerware and Bakeware
Le Creuset dinnerware
Le Creuset is probably in-line with or another step above Waechtersbach durability-wise. Neither are single-fire, but both are high-fire lines of ceramic making them a lot more durable. I have not personally sold or used the dinnerware, but I do own a few pieces of the bakeware, and it cleans up like a dream! All of their stoneware is made in France and comes with a limited warranty. All pieces are microwave, oven, broiler, freezer and dishwasher safe. Yes, you can put your soup bowl in the oven! Le Creuset stoneware can go to 500 degrees Fahrenheit.
Le Creuset stoneware molds, just like their cast iron molds, are broken after the dish is created. Therefore they consider each piece to be unique and hand-made, meaning what you might see as a slight imperfection is just part of it’s uniqueness. They expect slight variances from piece to piece.
Emile Henry Dinnerware and Bakeware
Emile Henry dinnerware and bakeware
Emile Henry is made in France, and as mentioned in a previous blog, does not utilize glazes to color their pieces, but naturally occurring metal oxides. A lot of people enjoy their dinnerware because while colored on the outside, the bowls, mugs and bakeware are white on the interior so you can still have that whiteware presentation for your meals while still including very bold colors.
Emile Henry is high-fire, meaning it only goes in the kiln once at a very high temperature, making it the strongest ceramic! In fact, not only can it also go in the freezer, it can actually go from the freezer directly to your oven, AS LONG AS YOU WARM IT UP WITH THE OVEN. Emily Henry is of course microwave and dishwasher safe, and cleans up beautifully, as well.
Fiesta Dinnerware and Bakeware
A lot of people call Fiesta “Fiestaware” which is incorrect, although by Googling it that wouldn’t be the case. Since most people don’t differentiate you will find a lot of links and images labeled “Fiestaware” but there are actually companies that have manufactured Spanish-looking ceramics that they call “Fiestaware”, like this set:
Fiestaware – not Fiesta dinnerware!
Fiesta dinnerware and bakeware, like Emile Henry, is high-fire. Microwave, oven, dishwasher and freezer safe, it can go freezer to oven AS LONG AS YOU WARM IT UP WITH THE OVEN. (Sorry, I cannot stress that enough!) Cleans up really easily, and the best part, it’s made in the USA by the Homer-Loughlin Company.
Fiesta dinnerware
People who are familiar with very old Fiesta dinnerware and bakeware might bring up lead concerns, however, it is has been lead free since 1986. They cannot make the claim of 100% lead free because all ceramics have trace amounts of lead in their raw materials that are tested and deemed appropriate levels.
From all of the complaining I have heard, I think temp-tations is the Made in China, affordable option to Le Creuset, Emile Henry, & Fiesta. It is high fire, so it can go freezer to oven (warm up with the oven!!), and is microwave and dishwasher safe. It cleans up very easily and the patterns are really pretty. The bakeware pieces are great because a lot of them serve multiple purposes as both bake- and serveware.
temp-tations dinnerware
However, despite their claims that production hasn’t changed at all, customer satisfaction seems to be declining. Their customer service sounds extremely reputable, though, so you will be able to get your damaged or badly painted items replaced without any trouble, but I wouldn’t want to risk that hassle to begin with, personally. I have been gifted a few pieces and like I said, cute prints and easy cleanup – no troubles in the dishwasher! However, of the two sets I was given, the pattern was supposed to be the same and they are completely different shades of orange. They are not things I will ever use side-by-
temp-tations bakeware
side, and on clearance, so I can live with that!
One great thing temp-tations bakeware does offer that is seemingly unique at the moment are ceramic muffin and mini muffin pans. I did find a generic ceramic muffin pan at Cost Plus World Market, but other than that nothing else has populated in my online searches!
10 Strawberry Street Dinnerware
10 Strawberry Street dinnerware
I am unable to find supporting evidence, but I think that 10 Strawberry Street was bought out by another company. I recall it disappearing from all the higher-end stores for a time, and now I’m seeing it at Target and Walmart in my online searches. Their website is for wholesalers, but their “About Me” says that “Ten Strawberry Street currently manufactures and imports dinnerware, glassware, flatware and serve ware from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, China, Thailand, Poland, Germany and Belgium.” I know it was very popular and customers were very disappointed when they couldn’t find it anymore. It is porcelain dinnerware, meaning it’s extremely durable, and their “Basic” line is the most popular for food service. Since they have allegedly changed hands over the years, I don’t want to give any false hope, but their former reputation speaks highly of their durability.
BIA Cordon Bleu Dinnerware and Bakeware
BIA ceramic ramekins
BIA Cordon Bleu is another line of white porcelain, and of course being porcelain, it’s also highly durable and used widely in the food service industry. A lot of stores will at least sell their serveware and white bakeware if they don’t sell the actual dinnerware.
Like 10 Strawberry Street, BIA is a wholesaler that has a variety of products made in different countries. They do carry a few French lines; they also carry some colored ceramic lines and distribute Danesco kitchen gadgets, as well. Most of the generic white ceramics you buy are probably made by BIA and you didn’t even realize it, like ramekins, for instance.
Deruta Italian Ceramics
Deruta hand-painted designs
Deruta is the city in Italy that is famous for majolica, a type of tin-glazed pottery, that has been in creation since before the Renaissance. Deruta still produces handmade, hand-painted ceramics you can buy today. With the exception of their dinnerware needing to be stamped to ensure uniformity, the rest of their pieces are all hand-painted by artists and signed on the bottom by the person who painted the piece. I can’t find much use and care advice on their page, but an importer recommends they are only dishwasher safe on the “china” setting if you have one, or else a very light wash setting. Avoid abrasive scrubs and cleansers, and do not put in the microwave or oven. I think this is due to another claim that extreme temperature changes will cause crazing, which of course doesn’t hurt the piece, it just doesn’t look great. Deruta’s site claims that they will last generations if handled properly, however, and says they are very sturdy.
Sur la Table carries a line of Deruta-Style Dinnerware that is crafted in Italy exclusively for them that’s a little more affordable than the other stuff, but it’s still pretty expensive.
Corelle, CorningWare, & Pyrex
CorningWare stovetop baker in a modern print
Corning, Inc. (Corning Glass Works), were the American manufacturers of Corelle, Corningware, and Pyrex until they sold the majority interest of their consumer production lines to World Kitchen in 1998. Corning is and always has been known for the strength and durability of its unique glass products. I can’t find any specific information regarding whether any of these are still made in the US or not. World Kitchen‘s website says they produce in the US, Canada, and the Asia-Pacific region. On other web resources (that aren’t 100% reliable so I’m not linking to them), I am finding claims that certain lines or certain pieces of Corelle and CorningWare are still made in the USA, but you have to check carefully. The CorningWare Wikipedia entry leads me to believe that in 2001 when two US factories were closed we may have lost our American manufacturing of Corelle & CorningWare. Maybe the pieces we’re finding still made here are just leftovers? You can email their Customer Service and ask, or possibly the packaging will let you know where it’s made.
Corning does still have a its homebase in Corning, New York and still manufactures things, however, they primarily focus on screens for electronics, laboratory glass, and telecommunications fiber optic cable and hardware. You can visit the Corning Museum of Glass to learn about over 35 centuries of glass and even make your own glass while you are there!
Corelle dinnerware
Corelle is a tempered glass product that’s composition allows it to be lighter and thinner than most ceramic products. It’s still the same stuff they’ve been producing since 1970, so everyone in my family at least used to own Corelle. Like my family, I know many people who have the story about that one person in their family that managed to break a Corelle dish, despite the numerous other times they were dropped! Corelle dinnerware is both microwave and dishwasher safe, and there are no edges so you don’t have to worry about scratching if you stack your dinnerware. I plan to supplement my Fiesta dinnerware with some Corelle in the very near future! It’s a very great price for something that will last forever.
CorningWare bakeware – NOT stovetop safe!!
CorningWare is a unique pyroceramic glass cookware that is very unique in that it could go directly on the stovetop. Unfortunately they removed CorningWare from the market in the late 90s. A company in France called Pyroflam (distributed by ARC International) is the only manufacturer of vitroceramics in the world and they create a line for CorningWare, now. The lids cannot go directly on a burner or over an open flame, it must be on the base because it is not vitroceramic glass. World Kitchen also manufactures ceramics that are NOT stovetop safe, so I would assume that’s why the removed the burner image from their original logo. Make sure you read the label and instructions before buying the wrong thing!
Pyrex is now tempered glass and is actually still made in the USA and according to this customer service announcement, and despite it no longer being made of borosilicate glass, it is still safe to use. Because people have experienced exploding Pyrex, there have been rumors floating around that this occurs because of the tempered soda-lime glass now used, but as I said, that article as well as the Consumer Product Safety Commission and other sources say it’s safe. As with everything, make sure you read the use and care instructions.
Pyrex glass bakeware
Pyrex’s video guide says not to use it in the broiler (despite many Pinterest recipes telling you otherwise – don’t believe everything you read!), make sure you put a little liquid under anything if the whole pan isn’t covered (like meat versus making a casserole, make sure there is liquid under the meat), preheat the oven, and use a cloth potholder – don’t put it on the stove burners, a metal trivet or a cold counter. I would say make sure the pan is room temperature if you’ve refrigerated something to bake later because just like ceramic, extreme temperature changes are not good for glass either. As with the Corelle, I know many people who have the story of that one person in their family that manages to blow up Pyrex, and we all assume by their personalities that it was probably their fault despite their claims of it being otherwise!
***
There are many brands of glass dinnerware and bakeware, and since we’ve talked about how ceramic becomes glass, it makes sense to fit glass in here, especially since Pyrex comes from Corning, Inc. with its ceramic cousins. Glass is always going to be more durable than ceramic, however, it shows scratching much worse than ceramic does. However, like ceramic, it sounds like there are ways to remove these scratches if you wanted to. I have a few colored glass plates that are really fun, but boy are they scratched! I am most familiar with brands like Libbey, ARC International, and Anchor Hocking and they are all very reputable and affordable options.
I will admit to you that a lot of issues with kitchen wares arise out of putting them in the dishwasher. I grew up without a dishwasher, so I’m pretty great at hand washing them and don’t have an issue doing them that way. I’m also pretty fast at it so it doesn’t take up hours of my day.
I have used dishwashers since then. I’ve known people to have lovely looking dishes come out of theirs. I’ve lived with people who bought cheap dishwasher soap that didn’t work and had nightmarish issues with them at jobs. But now that I understand them a little bit more, how various products react in them, and have been using one in my own home a little more regularly – I have learned to stop worrying and love using my dishwasher!
The Basics:
Don’t put things in the dishwasher that aren’t dishwasher safe. They usually say that for a reason.
Cheap plastics leach BPA, some ceramics aren’t strong enough to handle bumping each other with the shaking motion of the washer, and certain finishes can’t handle the harsh environment, etc.
Pans on the bottom, plastic on the top. Some items will specify they are top-rack only. The heating element in the dishwasher is on the bottom, so this is to keep the item away from the heat.
Do not lay knives down on the top rack! If they don’t fit in the utensil holder, hand wash them.
Wood does not ever go in the dishwasher. (Epicurean brand can because it’s a special compressed wood that is dishwasher safe.)
Dishwashers get EXTREMELY hot, so that’s the reason a lot of items can’t go in them in the first place. They are the problem with plastic leaching BPA, so if you don’t have a dishwasher you really don’t need to worry about it. Plastic baby bottles are almost never dishwasher safe and unfortunately a lot of parents try putting them in on “sanitize mode” which is usually the hottest setting on the dishwasher. Not a good idea!
Notice the heating element is in the center of the inside of the machine.
I have overcome this issue by sticking to the lower-level settings on my dishwasher. I have a couple of settings above “normal wash” and I have never touched them. If you have anything dirtier than that it’s not even worth trying in the dishwasher, in my opinion. Whatever is stuck to the pan will just get baked on inside of the machine.
Which brings me my next tip – turn off the “heated dry” setting if your dishwasher allows you to. This is just a waste of electricity (in my opinion!) that literally just bakes the dishes after they are washed, so if anything is still stuck to them, it just got baked on harder. The dishes are hot and usually still moist anyway if you do use it, so what I do is turn it off and when the wash cycle is over I just open it up and pull the racks out so they can air-dry. The plastic storage stuff doesn’t seem to dry well so I pull them out and put them in the counter dish rack to dry. Of course this is easiest when done later in the evening so they can dry overnight.
Your dishwasher shakes. A lot. Think about your dishes getting bumped around into each other inside of that thing for an hour while it runs. This is why ceramic dishes chip in the dishwasher, because they bump edges with each other. Same with your nonstick finish, if something is bumping into it in the same spot over and over – chipping. I worry about my ceramic bowls even though I put them on the top shelf and they are a really good brand name, so I put the dishwasher safe plastic items between all of the ceramic items to try to avoid them bumping into each other.
The worst is if you put your sharp knives flat on the top rack – they shake and cut into the plastic rungs. This is what causes your flatware to rust, when the plastic coating is exposed inside of your dishwasher. You can sometimes remove this staining with Barkeeper’s Friend but usually you will end up having to replace all of your flatware and also replacing the racks inside of your dishwasher, which is very costly.
As I already said, if my pans are really dirty, I just resolve to hand washing them. I let them soak overnight and wash them with any other items I have that are not dishwasher safe. Sometimes you can get away with scrubbing the pan with a dish brush or a scrub sponge and getting all the big stuff off of it so it is dishwasher-ready, however. I pretty much end up cleaning them first if I do this because if anything is stuck to the pan, it will be baked on in the dishwasher, usually. And if it does come out this way, dirty, resign yourself to hand washing them at that point – putting them in for another dishwasher cycle will not get it off!
My motto is, “If you love it, hand wash it,” so even a lot of the things I own that are dishwasher safe – I still hand wash. Some items I will throw in the dishwasher every now and again and it’s not the end of the world, but some little thing will happen that reminds me that I do indeed love it and I better wash it by hand next time. And actually, sometimes putting your stainless steel Kitchen Aid mixer bowl or stainless pot in the machine actually helps bring back its luster – just not every time so I only do it every handful of uses. One of my dearest kitchen store friend (and mentor) had the best saying about dishwashers: “It’s called a dishwasher for a reason. It’s not a pots and pans washer. It’s not a glassware washer.” So keep that in mind when putting items other than dishes in that machine, even if it does have special settings for those other things.
Speaking of glassware, I don’t put anything with a painted design in the dishwasher, nor any stemware. If you have really inexpensive, sturdy stemware like Libbey, that will probably hold up. Anything shaped like a martini glass is just asking to break because of the bumping. Luckily most stemware is too tall for most dishwashers unless you purchase one that has specific glassware settings. Use at your own risk! I find that the glassware tends to come out with a teensy bit of spotting, but maybe that’s because I don’t steam clean them afterwards with the “heated dry” setting!
If you just can’t stand to hand wash, make sure you read the labels of what you’re buying and avoid items that aren’t dishwasher safe. There are still kitchen items that you cannot find dishwasher safe, and I’m sorry, you’re just either going to have to not use it, hand wash it, or buy really cheap so you can afford to keep replacing it because you put it in the dishwasher anyway. 😛 (Meat tenderizer is the item I know you can’t find as dishwasher safe. Even the OXO one can’t go in there – it’s a kind of metal that will oxidize. All the generic metal meat tenderizers I have seen are the same kind of metal so there must be a reason for it.)
Cascade Complete Pac
My last tip will be on dishwasher detergent. The only thing I have found to work almost all the time are the Cascade dishwasher pacs. They now make a few different versions of this, and I find the Cascade Complete work the best. (Although now there is a “platinum” version I will have to try!)
Just use your best judgement, and the dishwasher can be a great help in your kitchen without costing you a fortune in replacement costs if you’re smart about how you utilize it. Of course spending the extra money for more durable kitchen wares always helps, but clearly we can’t always afford that. So the Dollar Tree items…those get hand washed in my house. 😉
