I've been using this kitchen utensil set for almost 3 months — each piece performs well and is less than $7

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• Potluck is a direct-to-consumer startup that makes simple, smart cookware that's sold in bundles.
• The company sent me their 12-Piece Utensil Set ($80) and it was an easy upgrade and overhaul while I moved.
• Potluck's designs were informed by interviews with chefs about how they cook at home and in a professional setting, and its basics benefit from the tiny upgrades. 

The last thing I want to think about while moving in New York City is which kitchen utensils are mine, and which are the relics of past and current roommates. By the end of a lease, a kitchen drawer looks like a squirrel's springtime garage sale. Rusty peeler, but no cheese grater. 

In a place like New York City, such energy must be reserved for dragging a dresser up four flights of stairs. 

Ideally, I could click a button and somebody else would ship me everything I need. In this fantasy, they'd be affordable, best-in-class, and thorough. I'd open the box, put things away, and never think about them again — until I'm wielding lightweight tongs I didn't know I owned four weeks later, admiring how easy they make the job.

This is what actually happened when I discovered Potluck and was sent their $80 Utensil Set during my latest life-sapping move. It included everything I didn't want to think about buying: a colander, mixing bowls, wooden spoon, and more. It looks nice. It performs really well. And on average, each item costs under $7. 

We wrote about Potluck earlier this year. It's an affordable cookware startup, which was founded by two former Glossier senior managers, Minsuk Kim and Jessica Sheft-Ason, to deliver on affordable, exceptional kitchen basics. The company says their offerings are made in the same factories that make kitchenware for other top brands, but Potluck is priced at about half the cost.

The best basics, backed by insights from professional cooks

To make the smartest use of simplicity, Potluck consulted cooks to understand how they cooked at home and how they cooked in professional kitchens. The insights led to strategic product design, like opting for tri-ply stainless steel construction over five-ply because one cook from Chez Panisse told them it was all she used during her time there. In the end, it's a line of the best of the basics. Nothing flashy or especially Instagrammable, but the products you'll nonetheless reach for time and time again.

Like many other startups, Potluck's offerings are simultaneously sparse and a great deal. Shoppers can choose between a few bundles — the kind of structure that lowers your average cost by mixing high-end hero products with lower-lift essentials.

Potluck's complete offerings are as follows: a comprehensive 22-Piece Essentials Bundle ($270), a seven-piece Cookware Set ($160), three-piece Knife Set ($60), and a Utensil Set ($80). The downside is, of course, that you can't buy items a la carte; you have to commit to a set. This means replacing an item won't be as simple as reordering it, though that shouldn't be an issue with how long the items are meant to last. And, on the flip side, bundling can save money, time, and keep you prepared long-term. 

Below, I walk you through each of the utensils included in the Utensil Set. Overall, I highly recommend checking them out if you're looking for easy, well-designed cookware without a big price tag. 

Here's everything included in the Potluck Utensil Set.