Value for money

CHEESE GRATERS, reviewed by CONOR POPE

Cuisine Pro Acutec Storage Grater €23.50

The blades on this US-made grater are – as promised on the box – razor sharp, and it certainly makes light work of a block of hard cheese. It will store that cheese in a plastic container so you won’t need a chopping board. While most of the other graters offer a range – okay, range might be stretching it – but at least two different ways to grate cheese, this is fairly limiting and if you want big thick cheese strings you will need to look elsewhere. The actual container is on the small side and if there is a whole lot of grating going on, it will quickly fill up.

Verdict:Pretty handy ***

Alessi €55

This might well be one of the most ridiculous products we have ever reviewed. It is not that we don’t like it, it is just that it is over-priced and oversized. When we bought it, the sales assistant said it was more than just a grater, it was a statement – but a statement of what? “I am the kind of person who thinks it’s acceptable to spend this kind of cash on a grater?” Or perhaps the statement is “I have a house so big, it can accommodate a cheese grater that is nearly two feet tall.” Whatever it is, we’re not buying it.

Verdict:A crazy price **

Ikea Griller €4.79

The Swedish for grater is griller? Who knew? Like much of the stuff found in Ikea, this is pleasingly cheap and wonderfully functional in a natty, cleverly northern European kind of way. Its a three-in-one grater and can be used for grating cheese into tiny strips, into thick strips, while the lid – it has a lid – doubles as a plane grater, which is excellent for parmesan and other hard cheeses. While it is shaped like a regular grater, it has a base, so grated cheese collects in the body and it does not create much by way of mess. It is on the bulky side and will be something of a pain to store. It is also commendably cheap.

Verdict: Impossible to beat at this price *****

Joseph Joseph Fold Flat Grater €22.95

We love this Joseph Joseph a lot and hate it a little bit – we love it for its incredibly clever and functional design, and hate it because we’d never come up with any of their dinky designs in a million years. This grater is a case in point. It can be found in BTs, Arnotts and all good kitchen shops besides and really is quite ingenious. Once you grip it by the handle which runs down one side, it stands like a regular grater and grates cheese admirably but once you let go it folds flat so it takes up a lot less space in you cupboards than any of the competition.

Verdict:Very natty ****