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I've used T-Fal a few times, they aren't bad.

My parents like the T-Fal from Jamie Oliver... but they just do a lot of basic cooking... I have the Emeril and I second what caviarandcodfish said!

I got so excited when I happened to see a familiar red circle in the middle of a pan on one of Jamie's show:-) - back home, probably 70-80% of my cookware was T-Fal, and I loved it. It didn't have anybody's name "attached" to it, but it was very good.

I have a Jamie Oliver set I bought on sale about five years ago. It's not the same stuff that I've seen in store lately. My set is not non-stick and doesn't have the red dot. It's regular stainless and i like it alot. Honestly the quality of the Jamie Oliver pieces I have is not much different from the All-Clad pieces I have. I'm very happy with Jamie's pots.

I have some T-fal stuff. A stainless steel 4 quart pot and glass lid with a pressure cooker attachment and a 2 quart ss sauté pan. I love them. The non stick frying pan surface wore out because I have always cooked with cast iron and didn't know how to use a non stick pan. I'm sure it was a good pan, I just ruined it. I don't trust non stick pans anyway, my cast iron pans rock.

I have an Emeril cast iron stove top smoker, that thing ROCKS and I recommend it to anyone.

I got the Puck set available at Sam’s. I LOVE it as it is stainless steel and I can use anything in it as there is no nonstick lining. I have had it for about a year. I have bought many sets over the years from hsn because I liked the sizes and sets offered but they never lasted. I think I have had about 6 sets in 1 yrs so I am pleased to still have my Wolfgang Puck set in good shape.

I've got a Mario Batali Panini Press which is really a beautiful thing. Only problem is that there's now a few chips in the persimmon enamel on the point of the handle. I've no idea how they got there since I've used it only a few times. My Le Creuset pots I've used countless times and without chipping the enamel...

Oh! About 10 years ago I bought a set of Martha Stewart Copper Bottomed cookware on sale at Kmart (!). I think they were made by All-Clad, the quality really is good and I use the 3qt sauce pan everyday quite happily.

I also have Nigella Lawson's gorgeous Coucousiere. It's a work of art. It's stunning visually and is very well made. It works perfectly for a traditional (and time-consuming) couscous. It could be my most prized piece of cookware, along with my massive Le Creuset WilliamsSonoma Bistro pan. Ah... the joys of cookware.!

I really need to purchase a dutch oven and I have my heart set on buying my first Le Creuset piece. Being that I am young and poor, I could use some advice. Should I bite the bullet- or are there similar quality brands out there for less $$$? First time poster... Thanks!

Great idea. Thanks! I do enjoy Marshall's. I will probably head there this weekend.
A friend once told me that the Le Creuset cookware that is sold at the discount stores are 'knock offs'. I didn't think she was right... but does anyone know if there is any truth to that?

Tfal is good for non stick things. I have one on and off. Once a non stick peels in any manner out in the garbage it goes.
I have Wolfgang Puck stainless and its nice quality and was given a consumer reports good rating in the top 10.
I have one Rachael Ray 12-Inch Stainless Steel Nonstick Skillet, this was a gift from a friend 2 years ago, I have used it only once and no it was not horrible.
The Tood English green pan is also being sold by Calphalon and I am not crazy about the surface.
Emerils All Clad is made in China so I am not ever getting any of that.
God only knows what is in the metal.
Mario's sets are too expensive for the size. I need me some big pots.
My Wolfgang Pucks are 4 years old and they are still lovely.

if you ever heard the truth about something listen up. the todd english green pan is junk. oh, when you first get it an egg will not stay in the pan, it will slide right out. its the prettiest blue with black on the bottom.
well after a few months you can't fry an egg or anything else because it sticks, your food has a chemical smell and the pretty black bottom scratches all to pieces. it's junk.
i don't know what they will do when all those millions of people who bought it on hsn makes the same discovers as i did.
i also purchased the emeril stainless steel and had to send it right back because the cast iron grill pan had a big scratch in it and one of the saute pans had a piercing dent in it.
i'm still looking for a good set.

Thanks for all your responses. I haven't been in Marshall's or TJ Max in a while to snoop around for some good deals, but I keep looking at the Wolfgang Puck set at Sam's Club. Glad to know so many of you are so happy with it.

this isn't exactly pots and pans, but i have a nigella lawson whisk -- it's the little one she uses all the time that's about the size of your palm. i am obsessed with it! i use it for vinaigrettes, eggs, anything in a smaller bowl.

@ jam114: when I was young and poor I bought a Le Crueset roaster (orange) in Filene's Basement in Boston. Two subway rides later the Filene's bag, otherwise known as newsprint, was dead and gone. I was marching through Harvard Square with an orange roaster under my arm. A guy stuck his head out of a bus and yelled "I'll be home at six, baby!"

The roaster lasted at least 30 years. Treat yourself! If a cutie approaches, talk to him.