I went to BB&B this afternoon intending to buy the OrGrenic but when I got in the store and saw the pans they were butt ugly! I can't imagine cooking my food in a green frying pan, it's just so totally wrong a color to have any hope to look nice with food in it, IMO.
Another thing that totally turned me off about the OrGreenic was the steel handle. From past experience I know I will eventually burn my hand on anything with a metal handle.
Instead I bought the
Invitations 10" and 12" frying pan set:
Don't mistake this for any deluxe cookware. The two pans together cost $14.99, but when I redeemed my BB&B $5 off coupon the total price for BOTH frying pans together was less than $11!
I have bought other Invitations cookware before including a sort of wok like deep frying pan with rounded edges and a top, perhaps 2-3 quarts, and I'm still using it years later as one of my favorite cookwares.
When I first heard of Invitations I thought they were some today gone tomorrow off-brand but BB&B has been selling them for at least 4-5 years. When I first encountered them I thought it was some sort of introductory deal and that Invitations would raise their prices in the future, but they never did. Yes of course they're manufactured in China.
This is not premium cookware. When I've settled down in my new house (which I have yet to buy) I'll probably get a full set of Calphalon or something like that but for the time being this incredibly inexpensive but very usable cookware is a step up from the old junk I've been cooking on here in my temporary residence. My good stuff is in storage. In fact I think I have this exact 10"-12" set already! But for the price, $11, it's easier than digging through my storage and trying to find the box with the frying pans and unpack my other set of 10"-12" Invitations frying pans.
Half the price of the OrGreenic, twice the number of pans, and if you get a few good years out of the Invitations you can afford to toss them out or donate them to Goodwill and either get another set or buy the Calphalon or other pricey gear.
So I recommend Invitations cookware at Bed Bath & Beyond as extremely affordable cookware but still reasonably good quality, a good choice for anybody who doesn't want to spend a lot of money.
BB&B sells an
Invitations set of 6 pots & pans, some lids and 3 "Nylon cooking utensils" (whatever that is) for $50. Slap a 20% off coupon on that and you're out the door for $40 plus tax. I wish I had something that good when I had just graduated college and got my first apartment.
I'm going to get a really snooty big name cookware set very soon but until then these cheap but good pans will help me bridge the gap.