Our Place vs Caraway: A Review

Can’t decide between the trendy Our Place pots and pans and the versatile Caraway cookware set? We put both to the test to help you pick the non-toxic cookware that’s right for your kitchen. Check out this detailed review highlighting the pros and cons of each.

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What is Non-Toxic Cookware?

Non-toxic cookware refers to kitchen utensils and cookware that are designed and manufactured with materials that do not release harmful substances or chemicals into food during cooking. The goal of non-toxic cookware is to provide a safer and healthier cooking environment. Here are some common characteristics and materials associated with various non-toxic cookware materials:

1. Ceramic: Cookware with a ceramic coating is often considered non-toxic. Ceramic is a natural material, and when used as a non-stick coating, it is free from PFOAs (perfluorooctanoic acid) and PFOS (perfluorooctanesulfonic acid), which can be found in some traditional non-stick coatings (for example, the originalTeflon brand).
2. Cast Iron: Cast iron cookware is known for its durability and even heating. When properly seasoned, cast iron becomes naturally non-stick. However, it’s essential to ensure that the seasoning is well-maintained to prevent food from sticking.
3. Stainless Steel: High-quality stainless steel cookware is generally considered safe and non-toxic. It doesn’t react with acidic or alkaline foods, and it doesn’t leach harmful substances into the food. However, some stainless steel cookware may have aluminum or copper cores, so it’s essential to check the construction details to know exactly what type of stainless steel cookware you’re getting.
4. Enameled Cookware: Enameled cast iron or steel cookware is coated with a layer of enamel, which is typically made from materials like porcelain. This coating is non-reactive and doesn’t leach harmful substances.

Of course, this is not an exhaustive list, just some of the more popular choices you have when it comes to healthy cookware options. Quality matters, too, of course. So when brands can be transparent about their materials, coatings and finishes, it will help you determine which cookware brand is right for your kitchen.

In this particular review, we are going over two popular and trendy ceramic coated non-toxic cookware options: Our Place and Caraway. Both have similar features and price points, but I’m going to break down each brand with pros and cons for you.

Our Place Cookware Set

Our Place first debuted with their popular non-toxic, ceramic coated 10.5″ pan they named, The Always Pan. It gained popularity for its multifunctional design and features. Our Place boasts the Always Pan does the job of 10 pieces of traditional cookware, making it an extremely versatile piece of cookware in your kitchen.

Here’s what their site says about the original Always Pan:

“Deep enough to roast a chicken, shallow enough to flip an egg, the Always Pan 2.0 is the gold standard for versatility, doing the job of ten pieces of traditional cookware.”

NOTE: Our Place also has cast iron cookware, but for this review we are specifically comparing their Thermakind™ ceramic-coated non-stick to the Caraway ceramic-coated non-stick cookware.

Caraway Cookware Set

Caraway pans are often praised for their aesthetically pleasing and functional design. They come in a variety of colors with a classic look to fit into any kitchen.

The Caraway cookware set is a classic set featuring two pots and two pans, with smooth ceramic-coated non-stick surface, stainless steel handles with lids plus storage and organization included.

Caraway Key Features

• Classic design
• Non-toxic ceramic coating
• Compatible with all cooktops (including induction)
• Includes countertop magnetic storage (or use in deep drawer) and lid rack
• Oven-safe up to 550ºF
• Easy cleanup

Pros of Caraway

Caraway pans and pots by themselves are fairly lightweight.

The non-stick surface is extremely smooth and makes cooking a breeze. (Think, eggs that glide with no sticking.)

Comes in several colors (eight, at the moment) from classic to fun, with two options offering gold handles if you have gold accents in your kitchen you’d like to compliment.

Cons of Caraway

The cons of the Caraway pots and pans are similar to Our Place, in that you cannot go past medium heat without damaging the non-stick surface, the cooking surface will scratch if you’re not careful or using silicone utensils.

Another con I found of Caraway is the lids are pretty heavy. If you combine the weight of the lid with the pan (the 12″ pan for example), it is almost 7 pounds! That is a lot of weight to hold in one hand (because they don’t have a handle on the opposite side (like Our Place does).

What are the Main Differences between Caraway and Our Place?

Alright, I so I’ve covered a lot of details about each set and if you’re scrolling through you might just be saying to me, “Okay, but what are the main differences between the two? Why should I choose one over the other?”

So here are my thoughts on the main differences that stand out:

While the pots and pans themselves are similar in weight, the lids of the Caraway cookware set are much heavier.

The Our Place features the nesting spoon and spatula rests AND a pouring spot with handle, which I think is a pretty great feature that sold me.

The Caraway Cookware Set does NOT include a mini pan (8.5″), while the Our Place set does.

The Our Place cookware set does NOT include a 12″ pan, while the Caraway set does.

Caraway cookware has a higher oven-safe temperature (550ºF, compared to 450ºF with Our Place)

If you don’t have deep cupboards or storage for Caraway, you won’t be able to utilize the storage features it comes with, unless you have room on your countertop.

Our Place has a 100-Day Trial option. Caraway appears to only have a 30-day return policy.

Personal Opinions after Testing Both Products

All in all, I think the two brands are very similar in quality and overall function. For me personally, I think I like the features that Our Place has a little bit better, for example the pouring spot and spoon rests (and the colors/design work better in my kitchen).

Both pans heat evenly, cook well and have great non-stick. I think the Caraway’s non-stick *seems* to be a tiny bit better from my experience – meaning it sticks a little less than Our Place. BUT that being said, they both clean up well and no issues getting food off when cleaning.

If you do a dive deep into the reviews, you’ll find both negative and great reviews. You do really need to be mindful of the heat you use when cooking for both Our Place and Caraway, as both brands say to only use low to medium heat to preserve the life of the non-stick coating.

Both have worn about the same over the last couple of months as well. Our Place has a different kind of paint coating on the outside (rougher in texture), and it appears to scratch easier than Caraway, but it does not affect the function of the pans.

We have an electric cooktop (glass), that if any food residue is stuck or burned on, it marks the bottom of the pans. If you have a gas cooktop, you may find you need to be more careful setting down the pans or you’ll scuff them up.

Which Cookware Set Should You Choose?

All in all, I think it comes down to personal taste, style and the features of your own kitchen regarding the space and function. Both sets are essentially the same price, unless one is running a better promotion than the other.

For me with how our kitchen is setup, I found it hard to utilize the storage features that came with the Caraway, making it essentially useless to use, and a feature I almost wish were sold separately so they could lower the cost of the cookware set itself. BUT, if you have deep cupboards or large/deep drawers for storing (as shown on the Caraway website) you may find you appreciate those features more.

If you’re going off of wanting a complete kitchen set that matches, i.e. matching cookware to bakeware, Caraway has more complete kitchen sets at the moment. For example, Caraway has a half bakeware set that features their ceramic non-stick, which includes two baking sheets, a baking pan and a muffin pan.

Currently, Our Place does not have a classic bakeware set, they do have a 3-piece set made for their Wonder Oven™, which includes an 8″ square pan, 8″ round pan and 6-cup muffin pan. They also have aluminum ceramic-coated ovenware and griddle pans.