QUICK! SOMEONE FETCH ME THE GOAT CHEESE FRITATTA SKILLET! No, not the Western Frittata skillet

... too funny!

I have the cute hot chocolate thingie in off white ceramic with the words "hot chocolate" on in chocolate colored script. I guess in case you should forget what it is for. And the little ceramic reindeer spoons and mugs that go with it. And the reindeer napkins and napkin holders. And a panini maker, and a fondue pot. And other......stuff.....from WS. At least some of it was gifts.

No way am I clicking on that link because I think the person they are lampooning is me!

I loved it! But, I think he really missed the boat not mentioning the $700 Ice ball maker, which makes ONE, yes one, perfectly formed ice ball.

I covet this, because I want to have all my family to stand, glass in hand, excitedly waiting their turn, while I make one ice ball at a time.

Seriously, I want one.

Here is a link that might be useful: Ice ball maker

Ice ball? Ice ball, you say?

Deeinohio, we are talking here about a perfectly formed sphere of ice to cool a cocktail. And they can be made in your choice of TWO sizes. This is artisanal ice, not to be confused with that every day ice you probsbly make in your own freezer at home.

Wink!

kswl, I think you're OK as long as you don't have the $759.95 mail order chicken coop (with painted chicken) ;)

The ice ball does seem very practical. Here I've been having stupid rectangular ice my whole life and I never even realized I was too plebeian to even be aware that my ice should be sphere shaped :(

Our upscale grocery store has the ice balls - a little bigger than a shooter marble - right there next to the standard cubes and cubes with holes in the middle. All the same price for a 3# bag.

Mercifully, the only catalog I get and only once a year is Figi's and I have no idea why.

The ice ball maker is insane!! I was so intrigued, I had to watch the video and found out that you have to MAKE an ice block first-- you guessed it, the old fashioned way in the freezer!

Oh Beagles, did you not know that I already have a reasonable facsimile of that coop? I have had this sideboard server in my kitchen since the latter half of the 1990s....they may have gotten their idea from ME. âºï¸Â

wow, $700 to make one ice ball is a little extreme, even for WS. :p What an expensive, useless, time-consuming gadget! Why do they think ice will melt more uniformly (evenly) if it's in a spherical shape? and why does it matter? lol!

Show of hands, please: who examines the ice in their glass to see if it's melting "evenly"? I do not.

Oh my, that site is WONDERFUL!! My favorite may be this:

"Copy: "As the host of Barefoot Contessa and the author of nine cookbooks, Ina Garten knows how to make entertaining look effortless."

Drew Says: Of course she does! She has a f**kload of money, a house in the Hamptons, and no kids! That tends to make for smooth sailing in life. No wonder she looks so pleased with herself. I could build a sister peak to Everest if I didn't have these kids around gumming up the works."

I love her recipes but that certainly does nail it about the barefoot contessa doesn't it?!?!

Love Williams&Sonoma - I'm sorry but I do. Many of their items are way over the top pricey - $14 for a box of pancake mix comes to mind, but still love their stuff.

The $699 ice ball press kit has to be a typo! I would love to know if someone ordered one. Maybe it's $69.90?

Why would it cost so much when it doesn't even make the ice?

Laughing was the perfect cure for my headache this morning. Thanks for sharing it.

>The $699 ice ball press kit has to be a typo! I would love to know if someone ordered one. Maybe it's $69.90?

Naw, at that price it would accessible to plebes and wannabes.

OMG - larger ice ball maker is $1,099.95!

Here is a link that might be useful: check it out

That ice ball maker on a thirty page wedding registry gift list was the nail in the coffin as far as my attitude toward modern weddings goes.

I have two rather picturesque, Amish built chicken coops in my yard and raise my own pampered chickens. The chicken coop is one of the more practical items, as I see it, although I would design the ergonomics a bit differently. I tried to get one of the DSes to paint that chicken on the side of one, his own interpretation, of course, and he punted. Still, I rather like the looks of that coop.
Williams-Sonoma isn't all bad, but the attitude of the manager at the one closest to me is horrid.

Here is a link that might be useful: Do you think the customer reviews are real?

This post was edited by kitchendetective on Wed, Dec 10, 14 at 11:08

Here is a much cheaper version.

They do look kind of neat in the whiskey tumblers.

Here is a link that might be useful: Whiskey Ball

>Do you think the reviews are real?

In the press kit? Of course not.

In the "Customer Reviews" section on the W-S site.

While I could not pay that price for the chocolate pot, I do love it.If anyone sees one reasonably priced in such a lovely shape, please let me know. I need something like for scalding milk with the spout.

I did love the evaluation of Barefoot Contessa, her store caters to a different world than the one I belong to, but I do love many of her recipes (at least when I cut the fat in half).

Some of that diatribe was quite fun even though I generally enjoy sitting down with their catalog and dreaming of "someday."

>In the "Customer Reviews" section on the W-S site.

Probably a mix. Gaming reviews is a very big industry right now--you can hire people to review anything, either a good review or a bad one.

Lapkins?!

I want my morning coffee to be heated to a temperature using advanced fractals.

Oh beagles, thanks for posting this. It was so funny. Some of the customer comments (real or not) were also hilarious.

I would have to drive 45 minutes to get to our local W-S and I won`t do that. Home Sense works just fine for my kitchen needs.

For Tish above who wants a chocolate pot - I checked eBay and there are several Williams Sonoma ones out there. Some have 'frothers' or 'whirly whips' included! Price are MUCH better on eBay.

Here is a link that might be useful: Hot chocolate pots

I have this one and use it quite a bit - super cheap if you have an IMUSA section in your grocery store, usually in the Hispanic section - I think it was like nine bucks.

Here is a link that might be useful: IMUSA chocolate pot

Many are quite lovely too, thanks my3dogs. Ebay also gives cash back on ebates unlike WS. I may have to consider pulling the plug on a pot after I recover from Christmas.

So funny! But I do like to wander thru W-S on occasion. Their prices for 'specialty pans' always makes me laugh.

I've had a red Dansk pot like that for years. In fact, i'm on my 2nd one. I don't think I paid near $60 for the second one (off ebay) and I know I didn't pay that for the first one. I also bought my DD one because she remembered us making hot chocolate and soup (among other things) in it when she was a little girl. It doesn't have 'hot chocolate' written on it. Gee, I feel cheated!

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This post was edited by Fun2BHere on Wed, Dec 10, 14 at 15:40

This thread reminds me of a funny exchange I had with my oldest son last year. He makes me laugh; I hope you'll laugh too:

I'd ordered some chocolate filled peppermints from Williams Sonoma and had them delivered to my son and his roommates, just a small "thinking of you" type Christmas gift to them. Several days later, my son called:

Son: "So I was just reading online how Williams Sonoma is a terrible web site for dumb housewives who overpay for useless kitchen gadgets, like an $80 batter dispenser when they could just use, like, y'know, a SPOON, when this package appeared on my doorstep from Williams Sonoma."

Me: "Yes, I DID order something for you from Williams Sonoma. Hope you're not offended!"

Son: "Well, it was confusing because the package is addressed to me, but when I opened it, there was a letter to a lady on Long Island that said, "Dear Mrs. Bukowski, we are sorry you were dissatisfied with your previous order of chocolate filled peppermints. We hope you will find this replacement to your satisfaction.' Is the candy for me or not?"

Me: "Oh, Williams Sonoma must have mixed up your delivery with someone else's." (I'm laughing at the idea of a Mrs. Bukowski on Long Island holding a box of peppermints, puzzling over the enclosed card that says 'Merry Christmas from awm03!') "Just keep it."

Son: "Are you sure? Shouldn't I send it back?"

Me: "No, don't worry about it. It's fine."

Son (giggling sheepishly): "Good...because we ate all the candy already. It was yummy!"

I was so happy he liked the candy, even if it was from "terrible" Williams Sonoma!

Poor Mrs. Bukowski didn't get the first box and didn't get the replacement either.

Poor Mrs. Bukowski didn't get the first box and didn't get the replacement either.
I hope she received Awm's gift.

Not quite, kitchendetective. Mrs. Bukowski did get her first box, didn't like it, asked for a replacement, and I assume she got the box I bought for my son with my greeting card. Maybe she didn't. Whatever. If she was unsatisfied with her order, it's between her & W-S.

Hilarious!! I am not the least bit sheepish to say I shop WS! I can both celebrate and laugh at WS and my own purchase habits. It's like the riffs on J Peterman or the Soup Nazi on Seinfeld. It's all in good fun to play with their marketing gimmicks -- meanwhile, here we all are talking about.... yep, Williams-Sonoma!

I have purchased a number of their specialty pans-- you know, the ones I absolutely could not live without but then turned around and sold at a garage sale for $2 five years later! One very happy guy took home all the madeleine pans and the nordic pumpkin cake pan.. along with a number of cookbooks that "I simply could not live without"!

I have the lighted salt/pepper grinders-- and I've given them as gifts. Who knew the dangers of seasoning in the dark!?

I love my all-clad waffle maker. I genuinely hug it as I pull it out of the bottom of the pantry for our once-every-two-years multigrain waffles.

And seriously.. I choose not live without my kyocera kryotop ceramic chef's knife! I broke one, lost one in a move and am now working on my third... happily ever after!

LOL, kswl, your chickens are authentic and way cooler than WS. They should hire you to design future chicken-related products :)

Regarding the question of who is ordering this stuff, on the 2013 guide, they have some theories on just who is buying. I quote: "And what kills me is that there are clearly people out there who have sh*tloads of money and NO cooking skills who order this sh*t. Who are these people? How are there so many of them that Williams-Sonoma can sustain its business model? Are we all just racking up massive biscuit debts that will soon break the economy? I imagine that 60 percent of Williams-Sonoma's business come from a group of six Persian oil barons, who buy everything in every catalog five times over every year for no good reason at all. Seventy-two-dollar biscuits. "

Prices on the hot chocolate pot are definitely better on eBay. Quite surprising that the hot chocolate pots don't hold their value very well ;)

LOL, awm03. I'm sure Mrs. Bukowski gave William Sonoma what for!

I, of course, shop at William Sonoma too...

Thank you, beaglesdoitbetter! Thoroughly enjoyed every moment of that read, including the 2012 and 2013 editions, and the link to the author's thoughts on his kid's Xmas list.

If you can get to a WS outlet during a BIG sale, it's great! My sisters and I lucked out and hit one in Primm, Nevada quite by accident, and everything was 50-70% off. None of the merchandise was seconds, and the store was more stocked than a regular WS store. The sales person said they have such a sale once or twice a year.

For those of you (us) too cheap to buy a $600+ ice ball maker, I found this in the WS catalog I received today.

Here is a link that might be useful: If you MUST have ice spheres for your drinks

DH and I are both WS junkies. I just love looking at all their gadgets and must admit I've spent a few $$ there...UPS just delivered flameless candles yesterday that now adore my mantel. As for the Dansk hot chocolate pot, I still have my original red one from the Dansk outlet. Must be 30 years old, but I never thought to use it for hot chocolate.

"Who knew the dangers of seasoning in the dark!?"

Omg, something ELSE to worry about! ð§

AWB, That comment was intended to point out how un together W-S is, not to criticize you.

kitchendetective, I never gave much thought to whether or not the reviews were fake on the W-S site until I read those related to the ice ball makers. Too funny!

WS is the only one at the time that sold my beloved All-Clad Slow Cooker in the largest size! I never knew there was a difference in Slow Cookers until I used mine. I've had it for about 3 years now. My girlfriend had one and raved about hers so just had to get it.

I also buy WS dish towels and dish cloths about once a year

I've had numerous things but have gotten rid of a lot of doo dads that just filled my drawer and was never used.

edited to add: I've learned to always see if I can get it cheaper somewhere else first-most of the time the price difference is substantial, as all of you know.

This post was edited by olliesmom on Thu, Dec 11, 14 at 9:16