01
Start with how you cook.
Use a gyuto and a santoku as two useful starting points, not as a universal ranking.
Compare shapesJapan kitchen knife guide
BladeHunter
Japanese kitchen knife
travel companion.
BladeHunter is being prepared as an offline guide for travellers considering a Japanese kitchen knife in Japan. Start with your cooking, compare the shape and steel you can live with, then confirm the current details that matter to your trip.
Explore the buying guide — release in preparation
A practical starting point
Bring better questions, not a rushed answer.
A Japanese kitchen knife is easier to choose when you begin with your normal meals, your board space and the care routine you will actually keep. BladeHunter is designed to keep that preparation in one place while you travel.
Its guide content can be browsed offline. Shop sites, phone calls, email, maps and official travel sources open outside the app and may need a connection.
BladeHunter does not recommend a particular shop or decide a purchase, airline, customs, security or transport outcome. Confirm current information with the relevant provider or official source.
The buying guide
Three small decisions before you visit a shop.
02
Understand the knife in your hand.
Use clear, respectful questions about the specific knife, its steel and the support information that matters to you.
Read seven questions03
Keep time-sensitive decisions current.
A listing is a research lead. Shop hours, stock, language support and travel requirements always need direct confirmation.
Read guide boundariesA guide, not a substitute
Keep a reminder beside your research.
BladeHunter can help organise the questions you need to answer. Current transport, airline, customs, security and shop information still belongs with the relevant provider or official source.
What is being prepared
A guide for research, comparison and your own checklist.
The current internal release candidate contains 57 listed shop entries, 35 steel comparisons and 20 English articles. Listing status varies: 10 entries have a verified-state label and 47 are web drafts. No entry is a recommendation or a promise about current hours, stock, service or suitability.
Release availability is not claimed on this page. When the guide is ready for its next public step, this page will be updated with verified information rather than a placeholder download link.