Saw It On Social: The Our Place Always Pan

The Always Pan was, without question, the most requested review of 2020.  Because when someone tells you that there’s a single pan that can replace all of your other cookware, fry eggs that would make a French chef blush, and grant you three magical wishes, people want to know if those claims are real.  So I bought the pan that’s been filling up my Instagram feed for months…but the story does not end there.

The Always Pan from Our Place is billed as a “do-it-all wonder is designed to replace 8 traditional pieces of cookware.”  From a stay cool handle to the included spatula and steamer basket, the pan has a lot of bells and whistles.

You’ve probably seen the candy-colored pans on the feed of nearly every blogger with more than 25,000 followers. Influencers rave about the pan.  They use phrases like “all-in-one” and “near perfect.”  They claim they’ve never cooked so well or that cleanup has never been so easy.  But is it true?

I ordered The Always Pan in Steam (pale beige) on a Sunday night.  On Thursday, I received an email letting me know that the pans were significantly backordered and that I wouldn’t receive mine until late December.  It was November 12th.  Waiting has never been my strong suit, but things happen.

But when they started a holiday sale the next day (one that was promoted by every influencer in my feed), I began to wonder how they had enough stock to recover from a 4-8 week delay in order to deliver all those new orders by Christmas.  Answer: depending on what color you ordered you might have gotten your pan by December 25th, you might be getting it in February like my friend who loved the sage color a lot.

I received a tracking number for the pan on December 16th.  Then, it didn’t arrive.  I called.  I emailed.  I was told another pan could be sent in mid-January or early-February.  I skipped it and cancelled the order.

But as luck would have it, a friend had one she let me borrow for a week.  We made potstickers.  We made eggs and bacon.  We cooked fajita veggies and made skillet cookies.  And frankly, it’s a pan.  A very nice, very non-stick pan that does clean up very easily.  But, in my opinion, a pan.

The idea that it’s going to replace all of your cookware is a fallacy.  If you cook any reasonable amount or you cook for more than one person, you will either need more than one Always Pan to keep up with your meal prep or you’ll need your other cookware.

I liked the pan.  It doesn’t live up to all the hype (but that’s not the pan’s fault, the hype is huge), but it’s a solid non-stick pan.  I would buy one if the pan cost $75, but at $145, it’s a pass for me at full price.  The Great Jones makes a similar non-stick pan (no lid, bells or whistles) that I would buy over this, and for less than the Our Place pan I could buy two.

Bottom Line. If you don’t cook a ton or you have limited kitchen storage space, this pan is a nice option.  (I think it would also be a good option for someone going to college.  It heats evenly and the non-stick is great.  But the price is pretty high, the shipping delays are long, it doesn’t actually “replace” all your other cookware, and most of what you’re buying is the mystique of smiling women in your social feeds who probably got the pan for free.

{this post contains an affiliate link that may generate commission for the author}