CalphalonClassic Stainless Steel Cookware, Sauce Pan, 2 1/2-quart

Can't say enough about the quality of these pans! I love this model, too -- better than their more expensive ones.Check out the lids: There is a pouring spout on two sides of the pan, for left- or right-handed users. The lids have a deep rim that has draining holes on two sides. If you turn the lid handle perpendicular to the pan handle, the holes line up with the spouts, and you can drain your food perfectly without using a colander! The deep rim on the lid keeps it from sliding as you do this, so no more dumping half my dinner down the sink!There are markings inside the pan to show you how full it is. It has an aluminum core sandwiched in stainless steel, so the heating is even. The handle is 3-dimensional, not flat, which makes it much easier to control the pan. (It engages the large muscles in the your arm, instead of just the small muscles in your fingers.)The materials are excellent and the design is elegant, making the pan wonderful to use. I highly recommend the Calphalon Classic series.

I really wanted to wean myself away from Teflon. I was looking for a stainless steel 10" pan with straight sides. It was like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Everyone told me to get cast iron, but I know I wouldn't have taken the time to keep up with care and feeding of cast iron. Besides, I have arthritis in my hands, heavy pans are difficult for me to hold.When I saw this pan, I balked at the price at first, but the reviews were good. I bit, bought the pan, and I'm so glad I did! It cooks better than my old Teflon pan, and if I soak it a bit, it cleans up really easily.Pros - cooks evenly, a little hotter than aluminum but I adjusted; very durable; lighter than cast iron; no "non-stick" surface to come off in your food.Cons - if food sticks to the bottom, it takes a little soaking in water and dish soap, but then a light scrub with a scrubber sponge takes it off in a minute.Now I'm looking at other sizes. I would buy this pan again.

I am in LOVE with this pot! It is sturdy, nice looking, and the handle is amazingly comfortable. I bought this after searching everywhere looking for the perfect pot for cooking pasta. I live alone and am fairly lazy in the kitchen, so I wanted the smallest pot that had just enough space to cook 1 lb. of pasta (which 2.5qts can!), had a poor spout on the side, and came with a lid with a strainer. This fits the bill perfectly! The inside level marks are cool too, and since it is stainless, I can use metal utensils with it. It is a little less great for heating than All-Clad pot, but for my use that doesn;t matter, and it is cheaper and more comfortable to use.**Update: 2.5 years of use and it is still going strong. Love it!

What a difference these pans make. I bought 2 and two 8 quart sauce pans. I threw the rest of my pans away. I use these and I’m covered sans my cast iron. The 8 qt has the option to buy the steamer insert as well which I’m going to do.The pans heat evenly with less heat so I had to learn to cook with these pans. I cook now without food falling out of the pan and onto the floor. The sides of these pans are tall enough to handle my way of cooking and are suitable for Frying food as well. The glass lids are a plus because tomorrow’s left overs go right into the fridge and I don’t worry about Teflon gassing into the food.For a moderately priced pan, I would recommend these pans to someone who LIKES to cook.I will never go back to non stick pans again after trying these pans.

Excellent pot.--Great pour spoutS. Brilliantly there are 2, one on each side.--I am really glad of the easy to read measure lines.--The heavy, quality SS heats evenly and super (super!) fast--Pot Handle stays relatively cool (Yay!)--I have super hard water and even tho filtered, the best of tea kettles are a disaster to wash, while this simple pot is breeze to clean by hand.Cons: HANDLE ON COVER GETS VERY HOT QUICKLY.Wish they'd rethink the cover which though excellent in design, especially for cooking foods (not just boiling water) is pretty heavy for this small unit for the many people who just want & need a great pot for boiling water. Still, it is well deserving of 5 stars, and the cover is well designed for all other tasks.

Edit: When I first reviewed this pan, I thought it felt cheap and I thought I might have missed a better pan by Cuisinart. I've changed my mind, and I love this pan. I've since seen the offerings by Cuisinart and don't like them as much.The thing is, this pan is pretty lightweight for stainless steel. It has thin walls and a thick bottom, along with a hollow handle. The light weight is actually a very nice feature, and the solid bottom does a decent job of distributing heat (better than I originally thought). My heavier (smaller) Cuisinart saucepan doesn't do any better at distributing heat, it just takes longer to heat up. This is now one of my favorite pans, and I use it several times a week. It's not perfect, but it deserves the upgrade to 4 stars.Original review:I have some other Calphalon cookware that I'm really happy with, but this sauce pan is an example of how their quality is on the decline. There's nothing terribly wrong with this pot, it's just cheap (and feels like it). The walls are very thin steel, with a slightly thicker base to disperse the heat (which it does a mediocre job of). The lid has a handy straining feature, which is one of the things that attracted me to this model, but the lip on the lid means that you can't place the lid askew on top of the pot. It's either on or off. Also, this pot discolored significantly on the bottom of the inside the first time I cooked in it. Now it has a swirly rainbow sheen on the bottom. My smaller sauce pan is a Cuisinart, and it's so much better that I find myself reaching for it even when a slightly larger sauce pan might work better. I may end up replacing this one with a Cuisinart, but you can save yourself the trouble and get one instead. If you are watching every penny, this sauce pan is a good value, and the strainer will come in handy if you find it difficult to deal with straining a large pot.

This is a solid stainless steel pot with graduated measuring units on the inside. Side of pot has pour spout, lid is see-through and has holes in two places on the rim to remain on when draining liquids. Have been looking for this size of pot for several months and was unable to find in-store.

I am happy with this pan. The pan size is ample enough to cook for a small family. The length and depth is normal, not too big not too small. Heavy and classic.Here is the downside- as it is not non-stick so it stick and difficult to clean. Still seeing some stain I don't know why.

if used properly nothing sticks to it and it's better than a nonstick pan

Pan is light weight not like other calphalon. The lid has bent on one side . It came in a normal carton box not in calphalon box and these made me to think it’s a duplicate product.

Ended up returning this saucepan because it was smaller than my smallest cooking element. If I had a gas or induction top I would have likely kept it.The ONLY issue I have with this design are the nubs inside the pot for the handle which will no doubt accumulate debris over time. Otherwise incredible quality.