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

H01 Haiku Paring Knife, 8cm
H02 Haiku Utility Knife, 12 cm
H03 Haiku Chef's Knife, 13 cm
H04 Haiku Deba, 16.5 cm
H05 Haiku Santoku -Vegetable, 18 cm
H06 Haiku Chef's Knife, 20 cm
H07 Haiku Sashimi Knife, 21 cm
H08 Haiku Bread Knife, 25 cm
H09 Haiku Yanagi-Carving Knife, 27 cm
H13 Haiku Petti Knife, 10 cm
H14 Haiku Yobocho Knife 15 cm
H15 Haiku Chef's Knife fluted 20 cm
H16 Haiku Santoku Knife fluted 18 cm
H17 Haiku Santoku Knife 14 cm

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

Never wash HAIKU knives 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 knives. A cleaver should be used for such tasks.

HAIKU knives stay sharp a long time, but depending on how often you use the knives, they will need to be sharpened at home. Japanese HAIKU knives 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 knife 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