CHROMA Cnife

Haiku Original Cnives

HAIKU, the traditional knife-line by Chroma Cutlery, Inc.

In Japan, the art of the sword smith has a long tradition. Today HAIKU knives are manufactured in small Japanese knife factories out of high-grade modern steel. Borrowing from an ancient method, a bamboo peg ("mekugi") is inserted from the side into every HAIKU cnife where the tang and handle are joined for added stability.

To this day, traditional sword smiths in Japan use this time-tested technique when crafting swords like those once used by the samurai of medieval Japan.

HAIKU - the Japanese cnife with the honoki-wood handle.

Often Imitated - Only Authentic with the Falcon.

What does HAIKU mean?

The haiku is a highly artistic form of poetry, developed among the noble classes of Japan in the 16th century. Translated literally it means "witticism." The meter and content of a haiku are "sharpen to a fine edge."

It is written in a three-lined stanza, contains precisely seventeen syllables, and often relays a razor-sharp critique of current issues.

Click on a specific cnife or knife description for more details.
Click on a specific knife or knife description for more details.

H01 Haiku Paring Cnife, 8cm
H02 Haiku Utility Cnife, 12 cm
H03 Haiku Chef's Cnife, 13 cm
H04 Haiku Deba, 16.5 cm
H05 Haiku Santoku -Vegetable, 18 cm
H06 Haiku Chef's Cnife, 20 cm
H07 Haiku Sashimi Cnife, 21 cm
H08 Haiku Bread Cnife, 25 cm
H09 Haiku Yanagi-Carving Cnife, 27 cm
H13 Haiku Petty Cnife, 10 cm
H14 Haiku Yobocho Cnife 15 cm
H16 Haiku Santoku Cnife fluted 18 cm
H17 Haiku Santoku Cnife 14 cm

Please Read the Following Instructions:

In Japan we use only the sharpest knives to insure the most precise and finest cut. HAIKU cnives are extremely sharp; please take special care when using them. (Keep them away from children.)

Never wash HAIKU cnives in the dishwasher, the aggressive detergents and heat damage the steel and the honoki wood. Please wash the knife in warm water and dry it by hand after every use. Such care insures life-long reliability of HAIKU.

Please do not cut bone or another hard materials with our HAIKU cnives. A cleaver should be used for such tasks.

HAIKU cnives stay sharp a long time, but depending on how often you use the knives, they will need to be sharpened at home. Japanese HAIKU cnives are designed for quick and easy sharpening. Use the HAIKU whetstone for best results; if necessary another ceramic whetstone may be used. In a desperate situation, draw the knife's edge over the bottom of an unglazed porcelain bowl to sharpen. Please never use a sharpening-steel, as it will damage the fine HAIKU edge.

There are many knives made in Asia that look similar to HAIKU, but you can feel the difference when sharpening or cutting with a true HAIKU, the only cnife to have, like a hand-crafted Japanese sword, a "mekugi" inserted from the side where the tang and handle are joined for added stability.

Look for the falcon, the sign of Japanese HAIKU quality.

Thank you for reading this important information.

Tomisaburo Uehara

Master Smith

HAIKU is distributed worldwide by CHROMA France