Our cheese grater gets used almost daily in the KA kitchens. Every kitchen should have a quality cheese grater that can handle daily use.
In fact, a cheese grater is one of the first things that I ever bought back when I had my first kitchen.
So, I was pleased when we started to test out the best cheese graters on the market because it meant that I could upgrade mine.
There are many different types of cheese graters on the market but for our money, the best cheese graters are the tower or box graters.
Why Are The Best Cheese Graters Tower Graters?
Traditionally, the box grater has come in a four-sided design, though there are 3, 5 and even 6 sided variants out there.
Each side comes with a different grating surface. The best models have a handle on the top for ease of operation and they have usually been made with an open base.
Some newer models now have a closed but removable base that allows you to grate all your cheese and then dump it into a bowl rather than grate it straight into a bowl.
We wouldn’t use a tower grater at the table because it’s a bit bulky and awkward to deliver a decent grate on the go but otherwise, it’s our grater of choice.
Unlike the rotary or single panel graters out there, you can make short work of pretty much anything with a decent box grater.
One thing that we recommend when buying a box grater is to check out the handle. It’s even more important than finding the right grating surfaces. If you pick something that is comfortable and easy to use – you’ll find that you use your grater more often.
A molded handle has been our preference in the Kitchen Authority kitchen, but your mileage may vary.
We reviewed a lot of graters and then narrowed it down to our 3 favorites.
Each of these graters will go well in your family’s kitchen and serve your grating needs perfectly.
The Utopia Kitchen Cheese Grater – Steel 6-Sided
This is a bit of a beast and we liked that about it. You can’t get more grating sides than this cheese grater has to offer and that means it offers maximum flexibility in the kitchen.
It’s very well-priced and would be one of our top picks based on the price tag alone.
However, the steel design is surprisingly robust and while we wouldn’t expect it to last forever, it’s much better made than we’d have expected given the price tag.
The handle isn’t molded but it is comfortable enough thanks to the rubber grip and we’re pleased to report that this is a model that you can pop in the dishwasher.
It’s not the prettiest of graters but otherwise, it’s an excellent buy for your family’s grating needs.
You can check out the latest details on the Utopia Kitchen Cheese Grater online.
The Cuisinart Boxed Grater
This is the classic design of a grater and we think there’s a lot to like about a product that is also Amazon’s Choice for “cheese grater”.
It has a near perfect rating out of nearly 1,000 reviews on Amazon too.
The handle is nicely contoured and that means the grater never slipped out of our grasp when using it.
The price tag is a little higher than the Utopia Kitchen model but we think it’s worth paying a little extra for a model that simply looks better in your kitchen.
It can be placed in the dishwasher and that’s a very positive thing, because cleaning graters is always a little risky and we’ve all cut ourselves on one at least once.
You can check out the latest details on the Cuisinart Boxed Grater online.
The Microplane Box Grater
We saved the best until last with The Microplane Box Grater.
It is the best grater by far. Sure, it’s a little more expensive than our other two picks but its worth it not just for its look but also for the fabulous build quality.
This is a made in the USA grater and that’s really important to us at Kitchen Authority, we strongly believe in buying local products where possible.
All four grating sides work very well, and we were impressed by the way that the sides never clogged no matter what we were grating.
You can check out the latest details on the Microplane Box Grater online.