Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I read a lot of reviews before buying on Amazon, and I notice that there is a pattern among the one-star ratings. So many people are just mad about something and decide to strike out against the product or company. I have no irons in the fire here (pun intended). I give this one star to maybe help you escape the frustration that I went through with this pan. Go read about iron skillets before buying this. If the skillet doesn't have a machined surface, you're just asking for frustration. I bought one of these Lodge Logic skillets a while back, and it nearly made me give up on iron skillets forever. The biggest advantage of an iron skillet is, of course, the taste. This skillet does deliver in that aspect. The taste of the food is wonderful when cooked in it. However, the next biggest advantage of an iron skillet is the Teflon-like surface of a well-seasoned skillet. You will not get that with this skillet. The surface is rough and pebbly. I found that a good fried egg with the yolk intact is nearly impossible on this skillet. The egg gets "hooked" on the pebbles and you can't get under it to flip it. You'll just tear it up. Because of the pebbles, things will stick, and when they do, it's hard to get the leavings out because of the rough surface. The only way I found to combat it was to heat the skillet to high heat and burn the sticky parts out. Lots of smoke doing that, though. And DO NOT try to wipe this out with a paper towel or you'll be picking out paper towel roly-polies for the next hour. That's how rough it is. Go spend the extra money and get yourself a real cast iron skillet with a machined surface. The seasoning will take on a varnished look to it - unlike the flat black of this skillet - and might actually be slicker than Teflon. Things will slide right out of it. I use this skillet for a camp skillet now to give us an extra pan for making breakfasts, however, I only use it for very greasy foods like bacon or sausage. I just can't recommend it. The only reason I can see for the positive reviews on this skillet is because people were like I was, not knowing the joys of a skillet with a machined surface. And food cooked in it does taste good, but taste isn't everything.