The Best Things the Eater Staff Bought This Month

In March, we worshipped a cool Japanese toaster, a confetti-colored cutting board, an addictive snack mix, and a chic Parisian ice cream scoop

Welcome to the first installment of Eater’s monthly shopping roundtable, in which our editors clink cocktail glasses and dish over the best new fancy snacks, countertop appliances, gadgets, and kitchen decor items that have been improving our lives. (For your immediate consideration: the butter guillotine in this butter yellow shopping guide.)

Eater staffers spend a lot of time in the kitchen, and arguably even more time coming up with ways to make that time run smoothly. Eater senior reporter Bettina Makalintal loves her kitchen tweezers so much, she recently broke up with her tongs; Eater’s senior commerce editor Hilary Pollack learned the hard way why chainmail gloves are such a godsend for chopping-heavy recipes, and I finally found an aesthetic to-go mug that doesn’t make me feel like I’m drinking from a sippy cup (TL;DR: It’s ceramic-lined and keeps drinks hot for 10 hours).

It’s the little things — life’s garnishes, let’s say — that can be game-changers. But sometimes, you also need a heartfelt review as to why the Ninja Creami is god’s gift to those of us who grew up within the Y2K soft-serve community.

Let’s unpack some of the best stuff Eater editors bought this month, from a workhorse Japanese toaster to a sexy stovetop coffee maker.

The Ninja Creami Swirl is a soft-serve dream machine

I consider my countertop real estate precious and am highly selective about what makes the cut to live on it full-time. When I was presented with the opportunity to try Ninja’s latest ice cream machine, the Creami Swirl (with a built-in soft-serve function!), I was excited by the prospect of a supply of homemade ice cream, but imagined that I’d use it a couple of times and then stash it in a cabinet until this summer. Friends, I was so very wrong — I’ve been eating ice cream pretty much every day since unboxing it. It’s just so easy to use, the ice cream turns out so perfectly creamy, and I’m obsessed with the CreamiFit program that allows me to turn protein shakes into a frozen dessert (although I still put sprinkles and salted caramel on my “healthy” breakfast). Top marks for this one; read my full review here. — Hilary Pollack, senior commerce editor

Finally, someone made a ceramic-lined to-go cup

I already evangelized this ceramic-lined cup in a recent Eater newsletter, but I’m just so happy to have evolved past plastic Nalgenes and metal canteens when it comes to to-go cup options (they taste like making out with an airport bathroom sink). Created Co. has been perfecting a line of ceramic-lined to-go cups of all shapes and sizes over the past decade, and it includes this 8-ounce lavender beauty that makes me feel like I’m sipping my coffee from actual drinkware. No more lingering smells, no weird metallic aftertaste, and it’s dishwasher-safe. —Francky Knapp, commerce writer

Dansk’s Købenstyle Dutch oven is the perfect serving (and snacking) vessel

I acquired a small vessel that quickly became my obsession: a mini Dansk Købenstyle Dutch oven. It’s probably the 1-quart size, though I’m not sure — all I know is it only appears to be for sale on eBay. But it’s the perfect at-home snacking vessel, with little handles that allow me to carry it from kitchen to sofa to desk and back again (gripping one of the handles while I also precariously hold my phone and a beverage); and the size is perfect for a few scoops of post-dinner ice cream (eaten while couch rotting, of course), or cereal, or a few apple slices, or just a handful of M&Ms and nuts. It is sturdy, seemingly unbreakable, and the perfect size for apparently everything. Treat yourself to one (praise eBay for being a reliable source for discontinued treasures). — Ellie Krupnick, executive director of editorial operations

This Panasonic toaster oven that feels straight out of The Jetsons

While photographing Charley Lanyon’s comprehensive testing of five of the most popular toaster ovens on the market, I fell in love, on sight, with Panasonic’s retro-futuristic FlashXpress model. But it’s the appliance’s synthesis of both throwback Japanese design and modern amenities (perfect infrared-tech toasting; an intuitive frozen pizza one-touch button) that has taken it from a charming objet to an item of everyday use in my kitchen. I wouldn’t want any other toaster oven, ever. —HP

These stoneware dishes make for charming cottage pies

Meat pies are to the UK what quiche is to the French: a comforting dump dish that is made all the more charming when baked in the right dish. I brought home this stoneware set from Souper Cubes in the cute blueberry colorway, because I was tired of heaving out my cottage pie from the fridge in a single, massive lasagna pan throughout the week. Instead, this set of four rectangular, 5-inch-long stoneware dishes already portions out my pies and crumbles (and comes with BPA-free lids for freezer storage or taking my food to the office). — FK

A trip to Paris inspired this editor to (finally) get an ice cream scooper

For years, I secretly resented cookbooks that ask you to measure cookie dough with a dedicated scoop because I didn’t have one. But on a recent trip to Paris, I took myself to the legendary kitchen store G. Dehillerin and rectified this situation with a Piazza ice cream/cookie dough scoop. It’s a beautiful, shiny thing that fits perfectly in my hand and is immensely satisfying to use. And, arguably best of all, I now get to channel my resentment elsewhere! — Rebecca Marx, Eater at Home editor

The iconic Alessi Pulcina (which is currently 33% off)

Moka pots have been trending again, and are specifically being praised on TikTok for their more accessible price point (than, say, a big Moccamaster machine) and ability to make rich, espresso-like coffee. I have always admired the Alessi Pulcina for its Bauhaus-esque design — it’s the kind of countertop appliance I don’t mind leaving out, because it’s so chic — and it’s still more than $30 off right now over at Amazon. — FK

The coveted Balmuda toaster (yes, another cool Japanese toaster)

While Eater senior commerce editor Hilary Pollack fell in love with the Panasonic FlashXpress, it’s Balmuda’s dramatically named “The Toaster” that ultimately blew contributor Charley Lanyon’s mind — especially in the pursuit of a true “toasty” toaster. Sleek and Japanese-designed, it features a steam function for a perfect crispy exterior and incredibly soft interior. “If you want perfect toast every time, this is the ultimate luxury pick,” he writes. “It’s also fantastic for reheating pastries and baked goods (even croissants!), reviving them to bakery-fresh status.” Few home appliances can actually reheat a croissant to textural perfection, but the Balmuda can.

It also “looks and sounds like a damned dream,” Lanyon says. “There’s [something] ineffably charming about this toaster. I just like having it around. It doesn’t beep like a vulgar Western toaster oven; it chirps and clicks and bonks. And it has a kind of inviting formality, not like a gala, but like a luxury train car.”

A cutting board that feels like a party

I’ve had my eye on this confetti-speckled cutting board for years, wooed by its balance of whimsy and practicality, but held at bay by its price. On a warm day in New York over the summer, I popped into Big Night while on a walk with a friend and spotted it — I tried to convince myself I wouldn’t leave with it, but it was all over. The small size feels appropriate for my city apartment and hangs alongside my pots on a rack. The board itself is sturdy, and the colors look even better in person than online. While I don’t use it as my daily driver prep board, it is the ideal snack board to be dotted with slices of Parmesan, a random cheese from the Whole Foods $5 cutoff bucket, and sliced strawberries. — Rebecca Roland, editor

This snack mix tastes the way a vacation in Taos feels

As the folks behind the chef-developed Mineral Creek snack mix so poetically describe their eclectic snack, it tastes like “Autumn in the canyonlands. Falling leaves, warm sun, a meandering stream.” This hearty snack is a sweet and savory blend of roasted pecans, puffed fava beans, black sesame, and pepitas; hatch red chile, habanero, and crunchy carrots and corn with a lick of bright apple cider vinegar. A kaleidoscopic snacking experience, if ever there was one. — FK

The chainmail glove that saves my fingers

Fool me once, shame on you; cut off the same tip of the same finger twice, shame on me. Such was my mindset when I decided to invest in a chainmail glove so that when I was bouncing around my kitchen hacking at a spaghetti squash with a huge chef’s knife or slicing paper-thin cucumbers on my Japanese mandoline, no longer would my extremities be in such danger. This affordable, cut-proof Schwer glove has since become my personal spotter when I’m slicing, dicing, mincing, or any other activity that requires fast movements with a sharp tool. —HP

Happy shopping — we’ll see you next month.