Dishware

[Cruisingdad]

Originally Posted by wchevron

anyone know where to get reasonably priced dishware. i'm looking for some with the rubber on the bottom to prevent sliding. a friend found a good deal at home goods but i haven't been able to find any.

Good luck, and I do not mean that meanly. It is just flat expensive... but worth it.

We have had both. Lived aboard with the galleyware stuff you describe. Absolutely loved it, but did not see the point of the non-skid since we didn't actually eat out of plates like that underway. Then on the next boat got cheap and bought cheap plastic stuff. Felt like I was camping out. Then Kris (my wife) threw that in the picnic basket and we bought some corelle? (sp???). My experience with it was not as positive as Eryka's. You see, I explained to my wife that corelle was a good substitute for the expensive stuff (Galleyware) and was not easily breakable and good for a boat. She explained we had kids. I said it was worth the risk. I cannot remember if it was the third or fourth broken plate/bowl, but she got her way and we got the good stuff. In all fairness though, I am not sure I actually saw any of the kids break the stuff so I have been concerned that I might have been hoodwinked by a restless wife and a late night excursion.

So what do you take out of that? I will always have the Galleyware stuff and the corelle did not work for us - but we tried. Not to counter Eryka because she and LASM give great advice on this board... they just don't have my boys I guess (or my wife who hates to lose an argument!!).

- CD

PS Check with Sailnet and see if they can swing you a deal. Their prices have become quite competitive on many things. Next stop, if that does not work would be Defender. Last stop, West. The positive of West, though, is that you can see the many different designs and buy what you like.

[Cruisingdad]

SD,

Is corelle (sp?) melamine or whatever you describe? WHen we used it, we microwaved it all the time. No issues. I am not saying you are wrong, I am simply stating my experience.

- CD

[sailingdog]

Corelle, IIRC, was a trademark of the Corning Glass company, and refers to their line of dishes that are made from Corelle, which is basically tempered and laminated glass. From the Corelle website:

About Corelle ProductsMaterials

VitrelleTM glass – the original Corelle material that is known for its strength, durability and versatility.
Vitrelle 1:

Our Vitrelle and Vitrelle2 products are made in a hub lamination process that thermally bonds three layers of glass together. The core glass in the middle and a top and bottom layer of very clear skin or glaze glass. This lamination results in glassware that far exceeds the normal strength of any single glass composition. Simply put, lamination does for glass just what it does for wood. It yields a finished product that is much stronger than the individual components from which it is made. We are so confident in the strength and durability of our dinnerware , we offer a THREE YEAR warranty against breaking and chipping to the Vitrelle glass dinnerware and will replace any item under normal household use that does.

Melamine is a plastic resin. From the Wikipedia entry on it:

Melamine resin or melamine formaldehyde (also shortened to melamine) is a hard, thermosetting plastic material made from melamine and formaldehyde by polymerization. This plastic often is used in kitchen utensils and plates (such as Melmac and is the main constituent of high-pressure laminates, such as Formica and Arborite, and of laminate flooring. Melamine-resin tile wall panels can also be used as whiteboards. Melamine resin often is used to saturate decorative papers that are directly laminated onto particle board; the resulting panel often is called melamine and often is used in ready-to-assemble furniture and inexpensive kitchen cabinets.

Not the same thing at all... one is made of laminated glass, the other is plastic resin.

Melamine resin dishware isn't really all that safe for use in Microwave Ovens... as seen here, here, and here. Corelle, AFAIK, is perfectly safe for use in the microwave oven.

[eryka]

Originally Posted by Cruisingdad

...did not see the point of the non-skid since we didn't actually eat out of plates like that underway...

This is so true. It made me smile a wistful, reminiscent smile, for which, in honor of the day, I am giving you a pos rep. We had recently graduated from day sails only, where the only meals you ate underway were sandwiches for lunch, to longer trips with multiple overnights.

Forget "the good dishes" - the best meal I've ever eaten was a styrofoam cup of hot Campbell's tomato soup that someone handed me when I came on watch at 0200 on a crystalline, cold, October night.

There are some times when you eat for gourmet pleasure and other times when you eat strictly for 'body maintenance.'

PS: Not sure what to say about your bad Corelle experience, but then again we're adults only on our boat (at least until after the second round of rum punch!)

[TrueBlue]

Originally Posted by Cruisingdad

We have had both. Lived aboard with the galleyware stuff you describe. Absolutely loved it, but did not see the point of the non-skid since we didn't actually eat out of plates like that underway. Then on the next boat got cheap and bought cheap plastic stuff. Felt like I was camping out.

I suppose there are as many opinions on this topic, as there are boat builders.

We've owned several boats of various sizes and displacements and are currently looking for the next little ship to throw our money into. The first cruising size boat we bought was of relatively light displacement but still had full galley and dining facilities in the cabin. For dinnerware, we used our old, solid white Corningware Corelle set, saved from our newlywed years.

When anchored overnight in calm Bays and coves, the set served us well . . . that is, until a mammoth twin-engined, semi-displacement flybridge sportfishing vessel cruised by. We grew to expect it to be piloted by a tanked-up skipper, running at full throttle and throwing huge wakes across the anchorage. Our smooth bottom plates, cups, bowls and saucers, would end up on the cabin or cockpit sole, conglomerated with food, drink and thousands of sharp glassy shards.

Fast-forward to our last boat, an 18,000 lb, 33 ft Nauticat with a 5k lb keel. An uninitiated person may think that a heavy coastal cruiser would remain stable at anchor. In reality, round bottom displacement vessels will roll when hit broadside by waves - resulting in the quick removal from horizontal surfaces, of any objects without rubber bottom grips.

For this reason, and not for use while underway, Galleryware style dinnerware is a smart choice.

Of course, if the boat will be a marina queen - utilized mostly as a dockside condo, then any cheap stuff from Walmart or Target will suffice.

[fishboyneil]

There is this caulk called "Windjammer" available at home centers that makes a decent nonskid. It comes in a pressurized can with a variety of nozzles. I have had some luck spreading it on the bottom of dinnerware as nonskid.You have to be careful when washing as this caulk is removable. It works to keep other things in place while underway that don't need to be permananently affixed. It also did a great job sealing drafts on my very old home windows.

[wchevron]

thanks for all the replys, i think i'm going to bite the bullet and buy the galleyware.

[MMR]

I got the "Unbreakable Dinnerware" on Plow and Hearth website. Its got a nice hefty weight to it, but still unbreakable. Comes in white and pretty Caribbean blue. Worth checking out.

[ADMTROX]

MMR,

Is it safe to put in the microwave? Good looking dishes, did you get the blue or the white?

[MMR]

Just boiled some water in one of the bowls, so YES, microwave safe. I got the white, but am still wistfully looking at the blue. I REALLY like the heft of these. Don't feel like lightweight melamine.

pssssssssssssss...looks like they're on SALE, too!!!