Guest Says the Cutting Board Is Soft?

[babywings76]

I just got this e-mail from a past guest. Any advice?


"I typically am not a problem child, but I'm feeling like one now. So sorry! I have a question regarding the cutting board I purchased. I replaced an old plastic thing I've had for probably 30 years -- told Xxxxxxx that the health department would write us up for scored cutting boards that needed replaced. Has anyone ever complained about how quickly the PC one scores? I've now had it for maybe two weeks -- it does not get used more than 3-4 times a week and it is actually in worse shape than the one I threw out. I love some of the features like the rubber edge that keeps it secure and the liquid channel on the one side. But it truly looks like I've used a chain saw on it after chopping a few vegetable, cutting some fruit and slicing a ham. If this is typical of the product, I wouldn't recommend it. Is it possible the surface is defective? (too soft)

Let me know your experience. Thanks."

 

[BethCooks4U]

It shouldn't be that bad already... You could tell her that she could take a sander (fine gauge) to it to smooth it again. It makes the cutting board look like new again. I guess it's possible that hers is defective but I think it's the user. Her knives may be dull if she's having to press down so hard to cut things that it's doing that to the board that quickly. I've had mine for years and it does have some marks but nothing much and we use it every day.

 

[esavvymom]

It could also be her perception. If she had a different kind of cutting board, one that DOESN'T give a little with the knives, then that could be it. For example, a glass cutting board won't leave grooves, but they are the worst for your knives. A cutting board is NOT designed to last for years and years. It is designed to extend the life of your knives (and save your counter-tops!). Is there a contact for HO products to ask them?? Without seeing it, my first reaction to her email was that she was just used to an entirely different surface type.

 

[pampered1224]

I do not like our cutting boards for that very reason but I love them for the reason they were designed. All of mine looked like they are 100 years old and been in battle just after a few uses. And do not blame the knives as I used ours on them. I constantly have to bleach them to get out the staining and to feel like they are clean. The purpose of a cutting board is not to have them look brand new. They are designed to keep your knives sharp. She should not worry about how she is using them but rather how she is cleaning them. If she feels like the health department is going to be knocking on her door because of them, tell her about bleaching them.
Use & Care details:
Wash prior to first use; dishwasher-safe.
Avoid contact with heating elements, hot pans, or other hot surfaces.
To avoid staining of board and soft grip material, rinse immediately. If staining occurs, scrub board with household cleanser or chlorine bleach and hot water. Deep clean and remove odors using a solution of bleach and water, refer to bleach label for details.
Do not cut on soft-grip edges.
One-year guarantee for noncommercial use. Refer to sales receipt for details.
The warranty tells the tale of longevity.

 

[colegrovet]

I have a couple of the older bar board (pre-silicone edges) and they look beat up, I'll have to sand them some to make them look a little better but those never leave my house.

 

[pchockeymom]

I do think everyone is correct in saying it is what she's been used to. Remind her that they are "soft" because they don't dull her knives. And, it may be that her knives are so dull from her previous cutting board so she is needing to cut harder than she would on her old, hard cutting board. Perhaps you could go to her house with a couple forged cutlery knives and have her do a test. This demo I think will show her the difference. And, although they aren't meant to last forever, I have PC cutting boards that are 15-20 years old and in as good of condition as my ones I've purchased in the last year.

 

[ShellBeach]

Mine are all scored up, too, from my husband. I don't like showing them. Every time I do carrots, I have to use bleach to get the stain out.
I suspect it's sharp knives doing it, though; no dull knives in my kitchen.

I think my husband just presses down a lot harder than he needs to. Since there's no way to tactfully tell a customer their knife skills need improvement, I'd just offer to let her return them. Esp since the 30 days aren't up.

 

[babywings76]

Thanks for the feedback. I know that the health department is strict about cutting boards not being too scored. So I'm just wondering what to tell her. If she is using this in a professional setting that gets evaluated and our cutting boards do this, perhaps it isn't a good fit for her? Does anyone have the e-mail address for the test kitchens? I think I'm going to e-mail them this letter just to see what their response is/if they have any advice.

 

[esavvymom]

Two ways:
(1) [email protected]-or-(2) Go onto CC --> Managing your Business --> Home Office Contacts --> Email The Pampered Chef. Then you'll see a link for "Test Kitchens". It is an online email form, not a specific email address.

 

[ShellBeach]

.... I think I'm going to e-mail them this letter just to see what their response is/if they have any advice.

Please let us know what they say, OK?

 

[heather223]

Also, if she is using the cutting board in a professional setting, I thought that it needed to be NSF certified, which ours are not. I could be wrong about it having to be NSF certified....

 

[ShellBeach]

Now that you mention it, the guarantee only applies to home use, not commercial....it says so on the PIG.

 

[babywings76]

I wrote them and just heard backear Amanda,
Thank you for contacting The Pampered Chef! There are two ways I am going to approach this answer. The first is that from what it sounds like, she is using our cutting boards in a foodservice establishment like a restaurant which is a no-no. TPC products are designed for household use and are not NSF (National Safety Foundation) certified. Technically, anything that goes into a restaurant kitchen has to be NSF certified. So really, she shouldn't be using our cutting boards in the first place. She will likely get written up by the health department for having non-NSF cutting boards. To answer the second question; this really sounds like normal wear and tear on the cutting board. Two weeks in a restaurant can be pretty brutal on any cutting board though I don't know exactly how much she was chopping. Remind her that if cutting boards mar a little, this is normal. It means that the boards allow a little "give" to the knives which prevents the knives from dulling less quickly. Boards that never mar or scratch are actually dulling the daylights out of your knives; which is why glass cutting boards are murderous for knives. I hope this info helps. Take care!

Damien Eftekhar
Senior Recipe Applications Specialist

 

[esavvymom]

I wrote them and just heard backear Amanda,
Thank you for contacting The Pampered Chef! There are two ways I am going to approach this answer. The first is that from what it sounds like, she is using our cutting boards in a foodservice establishment like a restaurant which is a no-no. TPC products are designed for household use and are not NSF (National Safety Foundation) certified. Technically, anything that goes into a restaurant kitchen has to be NSF certified. So really, she shouldn't be using our cutting boards in the first place. She will likely get written up by the health department for having non-NSF cutting boards. To answer the second question; this really sounds like normal wear and tear on the cutting board. Two weeks in a restaurant can be pretty brutal on any cutting board though I don't know exactly how much she was chopping. Remind her that if cutting boards mar a little, this is normal. It means that the boards allow a little "give" to the knives which prevents the knives from dulling less quickly. Boards that never mar or scratch are actually dulling the daylights out of your knives; which is why glass cutting boards are murderous for knives. I hope this info helps. Take care!

Damien Eftekhar
Senior Recipe Applications Specialist

LOL...I love his response. *edited to correct the gender...forgot who Damien was.*

 

[Sheila]

I wrote them and just heard back:

Dear Amanda,
Thank you for contacting The Pampered Chef! There are two ways I am going to approach this answer. The first is that from what it sounds like, she is using our cutting boards in a foodservice establishment like a restaurant which is a no-no. TPC products are designed for household use and are not NSF (National Safety Foundation) certified. Technically, anything that goes into a restaurant kitchen has to be NSF certified. So really, she shouldn't be using our cutting boards in the first place. She will likely get written up by the health department for having non-NSF cutting boards. To answer the second question; this really sounds like normal wear and tear on the cutting board. Two weeks in a restaurant can be pretty brutal on any cutting board though I don't know exactly how much she was chopping. Remind her that if cutting boards mar a little, this is normal. It means that the boards allow a little "give" to the knives which prevents the knives from dulling less quickly. Boards that never mar or scratch are actually dulling the daylights out of your knives; which is why glass cutting boards are murderous for knives. I hope this info helps. Take care!

Damien Eftekhar
Senior Recipe Applications Specialist

Huh? Looks like she started with one thought process & ended with another. LOL

 

[babywings76]

LOL...I love her response.

Huh? Looks like she started with one thought process & ended with another. LOL

I thought Damien was a guy!

So now I feel like I need to call this customer and find out if she's using it for a business or personal use.

 

[BethCooks4U]

I thought Damien was a guy!

So now I feel like I need to call this customer and find out if she's using it for a business or personal use.

Yes Damien is a guy. I would send his response to your customer. It's official and personal at the same time and it takes the onus off you.

 

[esavvymom]

I wasn't paying attention to WHO replied...sorry. Yes. HE.

 

[Sheila]

LOL I didn't look at the name of who replied either. Shame on me for assuming it was a woman!

 

[babywings76]

Ouch! I just heard back from her:
Thank you for your reply to my question. At least there is an explanation. I will continue to monitor it this week and let you know if I want to move forward with any action. I am thinking that I should just laugh about Chef Damien's reply. But then perhaps he should be reminded not to make any assumptions regarding the use of the cutting board. Truthfully I was quite surprised with Damien's at length reply about me not using the cutting board in a restaurant I do not have. At best, we cook one or two times a week -- and no, not in a restaurant -- just simple cooking for an empty-nester couple. My reference to the health department was a joke with my daughter and a reason why I did need to order from her party. Two weeks in a home with minimal use was the reason for my concern and the resulting e-mail. Chef Damien can rest assured that I won't be written up by the health department!! I would think that replies from company headquartered representatives would have a better approach to my question and concern about the wear on a product. In my opinion, this response was definitely blown out of proportion for the situation. Hopefully he responds to other customers in more appropriate ways. Thanks again for taking the time to check on this for me. I know you are busy with so many more important things in your life.

 

[kcjodih]

Oh my! Ouch is right

 

[babywings76]

Guess I should frame that up with showing you what I wrote in my e-mail to her before I included the part from Damien:

Hi Xxxxx,I'm glad the Cool & Serve Tray replacement part arrived. I'm sorry to hear about your disappointment with the cutting board. You are definitely able to return it for an exchange or for a refund. Just let me know which way you'd like to go and I'll help you get it taken care of.The material of the cutting board is a high-density polypropylene and is supposed to not dull knives and other cutting tools like glass or acrylic boards would. I know ours will get scored up a bit as you use them. They tell us that in order to protect the edge of your knife and keep it from dulling, a cutting board should have some sort of "give" to it, if that makes sense. Boards that don't allow the knife to give actually are harder on your knives. I do remember reading either on the Use & Care card or on some other product training information for consultants (can't remember which), they told us that you can use some sandpaper to remove the score marks. Out of curiosity, I forwarded your questions to our product development and test kitchens, to see what they would say, and Chef Damien wrote me back this:Then I closed it by saying, "I hope this info helps. Due to our satisfaction guarantee, you are able to return it and get a refund or a new one, and I'd be happy to help you. Just let me know."I guess I shouldn't have included the info from Damien. I think it turned her off. I think his reply to me was more candid and open than perhaps what he would've sent to a customer. I'm curious as to what you guys think, though, because my husband doesn't interpret her e-mail the same way I do. He doesn't pick up on the tone that I do, and he thinks I'm reading into it. That's the tough thing about e-mail.

 

[Deb Bixler]

If a cutting board does not give and get marked then it is dulling your knives. I really can not follow your time line but if it was me, I would just call her...

 

[ShellBeach]

You know, I wondered if that was a joke about the health department! I agree with Deb, call her - because the sense of humor isn't coming through in her emails.

 

[esavvymom]

From her original email, we all thought what Damien thought I think. So what was he supposed to think?!

 

[littlemaisyPC]

I thought she was using it in a restaurant setting as well. Like Deb said give her a call and let her know that you weren't aware of her joking with the Health Dept. and that is why Chef Damien thought it was being used for restaurant purposes. I think the customer has blown that email way out of purportion (sp?).

 

[babywings76]

I wasn't sure if she was joking at first or not about the health department. For the life of me I couldn't remember where she worked. Her daughter (my friend and also go to church with) has a home based cake business and so her kitchen has to be "certified", so for all I knew her mom had something similar going on at her home. I thought perhaps it was a joke though because she described having only used the cutting boards for a few things. I was embarrassed to call her and ask because I couldn't think of how to word my question about it. I figured I'd include his response so that just in case she did, then his answer should cover the bases. It sounded light-hearted to me, and I thought she was an easy-going person, so I thought it would be okay. If it was with a guest who I didn't know at all, I wouldn't have sent Damien's response because I thought perhaps it wasn't as professional to a customer (his response was directed to me and I'm guessing might have been different if it was a customer asking him.)Damien probably wasn't sure if she needed the warning about the health department, so my guess is that he was just throwing that out there to cover the bases just in case. I guess I'll be giving her a call to smooth things over and make sure things are okay. I'll have to have an awkward moment and let her know that I wasn't 100% sure if she was joking about the health department thing and so that's why I included Damien's reply. I was embarrassed to ask...and look where it got me.

 

[esavvymom]

Just let her know that you misunderstood her first email, as you said above. And tell her also that Damien is a Test Kitchen/Product Chef.... He's as down to earth as they come. if she gets her nose out of joint out of getting a REAL response from someone, vs a kiss-butt response....that's her problem. Do what you can, explain the situation, laugh a little, and see what comes. If she gets her panties in a wad, well, too bad. As far as the cutting board, maybe offer to take a look at it? You may notice from personal use of your own, whether it looks normal or not. I still think she's used to a different type of cutting surface and doesn't know what a cutting board SHOULD do (the give).