Bobby Flay Loves This Cookware Brand For Its High-Quality Stainless Steel (It's Not All-Clad)

According to his website, "food is the center" of celebrity chef Bobby Flay's universe. And he's made a career of sharing that passion with others on television, through his cookbooks and restaurants, and beyond. One way he helps give home cooks a boost is by sharing his favorite products on social media using the hashtag #BobbysGiftGuide. In 2019, Flay took to Instagram to highlight a set of pricy yet beautiful stainless steel pots and pans produced by Sardel, a company dedicated to producing high-quality cookware.

Flay's post stated that he has an ongoing love affair with Italy and appreciates that Sardel works with family-owned Italian businesses to develop products. He also revealed that he owns the complete cookware set and loves it. Unfortunately, judging from Sardel's website and social media, the exact cookware referred to in Flay's post is no longer available. In 2019, Sardel was indeed producing Italian-made stainless steel cookware; however, the current stainless steel cookware listed on its website — a collaboration with Chef Daniel Boulud — is made in America and was introduced in 2024.

On a positive note, this doesn't mean the quality isn't still top-of-the-line. Chef Boulud is a highly regarded chef, and his professional input, combined with high-quality materials, no doubt resulted in a solid product. Rave reviews on Sardel's website claim that Sardel's cookware is "a game changer," and that the Daniel Boulud cookware in particular transformed one reviewer's kitchen experience.

Sardel's Daniel Boulud cookware is an investment — and it's a good idea to brush up on some tips for cooking with stainless steel before you make the leap. The seven-piece set, which comes with a skillet, saucepan, stock pot, and "versatile essential" pan, costs slightly over $1,000 at full price (although you may be able to find it on sale). The 10-piece set, which adds a second stainless steel skillet, steamer basket, and nonstick skillet, is about $1,500 at full price. If you compare Sardel's price with All-Clad, the latter's 10-piece set (which is only three-ply, compared with Sardel's five-ply), costs $1,240 full price. So Sardel's is more expensive, but not significantly so.

For this price, you're getting cookware made with five layers of stainless steel that is designed to handle years of daily use. Those five layers, in addition to making a sturdy product, are designed for ideal heat distribution: quick and consistent. The set also has a "French-inspired handle," which appears to be a handle curved higher so that the part you grip is further from the heat source. 

If you're hoping to add some stainless steel cookware to your collection but find Sardel's price a bit intimidating, there are other options. Consumer reports gave a big thumbs-up to Oxo's Mira-line stainless steel pan, for example. Amazon sells a 10-piece Oxo Mira cookware set (also three-ply) for about $350, and consumers seem very satisfied with this set overall.