Our Place
Quick verdict: Our Place made a genuine argument rather than just a pretty pan: if one piece replaces a frying pan, a saucepan, a steamer and a sauté pan, that’s four things not manufactured and a cupboard you can close. The design is good and the brand is founder-led. What it doesn’t have is any third-party certification, and like every ceramic non-stick, the coating is a consumable with a finite life. Our rating: 3.2 out of 5.
Who they are
Shiza Shahid and Amir Tehrani founded Our Place in Los Angeles in 2019. Shahid’s background is unusual for cookware: she was the founding CEO of the Malala Fund, and the company was built around the table as a place people gather rather than around the pan as a product.
It’s independent and privately held, with venture backing from investors including Andreessen Horowitz. No parent company, though that level of funding usually implies an eventual exit.
What they get right
One pan instead of several is a real reduction, not a marketing claim, provided you actually use it that way. Four pans not made and not shipped is a bigger saving than most cookware sustainability stories manage.
No PTFE, PFOA or other PFAS, which is the reason people leave conventional non-stick.
Packaging is plastic-free, shipped in recycled cardboard.
It’s very well designed. The pan is light, it stores its own spatula, and the shape works for steaming and braising as well as frying. Cookware that stays on the hob gets used.
Where they fall short
No third-party certification of any kind. The PFAS-free claim rests on the company’s own testing rather than an independent body publishing criteria and auditing against them. Our greenwashing guide tells readers to check exactly this, and applying our own standard means the score comes down.
The coating wears out. Ceramic non-stick degrades faster than PTFE, and the honest expectation is a few years rather than a decade, less with high heat, metal utensils or a dishwasher. At this price for a pan you’ll replace, that’s the real cost question, and it partly cancels the one-pan-instead-of-four argument.
Transparency is thin. You get a materials summary rather than disclosure of the coating’s composition or where manufacturing happens.
What they sell and what it costs
The Always Pan and its variants, plus a Perfect Pot, bakeware, tableware and storage. The Always Pan typically runs $125 to $155; sets cost more.
Who it’s actually for
Small kitchens, first apartments, and anyone who actually wants fewer objects rather than better ones. If you’ll use it as a multi-tool it earns its place.
If you want cookware with nothing to wear off, Lodge costs a fraction and lasts forever. Field Company if the weight is the issue. Xtrema if eliminating the coating question entirely is the goal.
Deals and discounts
No affiliate program on our side, so nothing here earns us anything.
Related reading
- Non-Toxic Cookware: 7 PFAS-Free Picks for 2026
- 8 Zero-Waste Kitchen Swaps That Actually Last
- How to Spot Greenwashing: 4 Tactics Brands Still Use
Frequently asked questions
Is the Always Pan actually non-toxic?
It’s free of PTFE, PFOA and other PFAS, which is the meaningful difference from conventional non-stick. The caveat is that this rests on the company’s own testing rather than an independent certification. Nothing suggests the claim is false; it simply isn’t verified the way MADE SAFE or EWG Verified would be.
How long does the Always Pan last?
Expect a few years of good non-stick performance rather than a decade. Ceramic coatings break down faster than PTFE, and heat, metal utensils and dishwashers all speed it up. Low to medium heat, wooden or silicone tools and hand-washing extend it meaningfully.
Does one pan really replace several?
For a lot of everyday cooking, yes: frying, sautéing, steaming, braising and boiling all work in it. Where it struggles is anything needing high heat or a large surface, like searing steak or cooking for a crowd. If you have a small kitchen the argument holds. If you cook seriously you’ll still want other pans.
Who owns Our Place?
It’s independent and privately held, founded in 2019 by Shiza Shahid and Amir Tehrani, with venture backing including Andreessen Horowitz. No parent company today, though that funding usually points at an eventual sale, and we’d revisit this rating if one happened.