quote:

Originally posted by jcsabolt2:replace it all for Christmas with some GOOD stuff.
...
MUST be dishwasher safe.

Nope. Good pots n'pans DO NOT go in the dishwasher.
Pots n'pans get washed by hand. Regardless of what the instructions say, no good cook worth their salt puts their most important tools in the dishwasher; that especially includes knives and cutting boards.
Hot soapy water and maybe some Bar Keepers Best Friend for those stubborn spots.

Find the nearest restaurant/industrial kitchen supply store nearest to you. Ask them for a good recommendation for stainless cookware ; cast iron and high carbon steel are out in that arena since you specify dishwasher safe. There's nothing wrong with that (no matter what some might say) as long as you don't put your chef's knife in there .

Their offerings will be on par with All Clad but not nearly as expensive (or quite as pretty).

I echo the near universal recommendation for All Clad, and agree with buying piecemeal rather than buying a whole, pre-assembled set. Unless you'll use every single piece, it's spending good, hard-earned money and cabinet space on cookware you won't use.

I've invested in the Copper Core line but hardly ever pay full-price. I wait until there's sale on "seconds". Every single piece I've gotten so far looks in perfect shape; there must be something I'm missing but it's more than good enough for me. Besides, it'll look used after cooking anyway, so it wouldn't bother me if there was some defect that doesn't affect performance.

I've also thought about the 5-ply brushed set so I don't have to fret over the shiney exterior. You can sign up for email notification to their sales via the All Clad website. www.homeandcooksale.com The site is not active right now because they just finished their most recent sale.

cookwarenmore.com sells All Clad "irregulars" at deep discounts, but usually not as deep as homwandcooksale.com.

Buy once, cry once.

I still use the Farberware set my parents got as a wedding present in 1964. Also have some commercial no-name stuff. It all works fine without the expense.

quote:

Originally posted by kz1000:
I still use the Farberware set my parents got as a wedding present in 1964. Also have some commercial no-name stuff. It all works fine without the expense.

Fair enough--people can make anything work well enough for their needs. Heck, that's how my tool box looks and it's perfectly fine with me. However, the OP was specifically asking for advice for an upgrade and wanted to avoid having a "hodgepodge" of pots and pans. I take that as having everything from a brand or two.

I own a few pieces of All-Clad pots and pans, that I bought piece by piece, just cuz I am too poor to afford a whole set at a time. If you look and check sales, it is possible to pick up All-Clad cookware at huge discounts. Also, I have 3 pots made by Anolon, it had non-stick coating and is pretty good. Amazon has Anolon cookware for deep discounts