Mikasa Swirl 16-Piece Dinnerware Set, Service For 4, Blue

I really wanted to like these dishes, but I am sadly disappointed by them.First of all, they arrived with one plate broken. Don't know if that is a problem with the dishes, the packaging, or the delivery man. We aren't off to a good start though. The set is really beautiful. Mikasa has always had the most interesting and trendy designs. Right now, the "Ombre" color fade is quite the fad. You see it everywhere, I love the shape of the mugs, they are kind of a reverse pot-bellied stove shape. They feel so comfortable in your hands.Let's address the problems with this set. First of all, they are very thin, and feel fragile. This is confirmed in my mind by the fact that one plate broke during delivery. I don't think these plates would last very long in a busy household with young children. The other problem is with design. As much as I love the interesting, avant-garde look of the bowls (they have upswept edges on two ends), in practical use, that design presents a problem. If you are a person who likes to slurp up the last drop of your milk, or soup from your bowl, you may wind up with it on your lap like I did. It is easy to forget that the edges are uneven, go for the slurp and wind up spilling it all over yourself. I don't want to work that hard when I"m eating, trying to keep my brain engaged to avoid a spill.So, what's the verdict? If you like trendy designs and have money to burn, you will enjoy these dishes. If you don't care about trends and rather want dishes that will last, pay a little more and buy Lenox or another good quality dishware.

Mikasa has always held a certain title in my head: Unusable. Why? Because of how fragile they are, even their sturdy china still can and will get chipped. At least my mother's set did, and that's what drove that into me. This set however? I think I can actually use it, a little babying like any china, but this is everyday Mikasa china. Let me get into why I like it.I like the mug size, I can make a very large cup of coffee with cream, with space left over, absolutely no issues. Balance point is good, and the swirl pattern feels good to hold. Even very hot coffee still allows me to hold onto the outside without getting burned. May not be the same for every drink, but I can with Coffee.The bowls are good, not super duper deep, so some soups you will have to be careful for, but it's still deep enough that I'm not worried about spilling things when I walk with it. Just have to keep in mind the odd shape when putting how much soup-y items you want. The sides of the bowl are the tallest part, the middle is the shallowest.The plates are...plates. Nothing super special, nice design, makes the set look complete, but they're not interesting really to talk about. The swirl pattern is decorative, it's not a plate with a deep inside, but that's more than fine. I don't expect much interesting elements to a plate, it functions well, and my metal forks did not leave marks.Overall, can I recommend this? Yes. Very much so. If you like the pattern, go for it! It's a very nice set, and a wonderful gift if that's your plans. It's certainly an everyday china, not super fancy, but something that can be used without a problem.

This is not my first experience with Mikasa. Aside from miscellaneous mugs, vases, and sundries I've accumulated over the years, I also have numerous sets of dinnerware, all of which I love. These everyday dishes meet the quality expectations I've come to expect from Mikasa; however, Mikasa is packaging this "Swirls" line differently than other dinnerware lines. Unfortunately, my experience with this packaging is less than satisfactory. I ordered three different sets from the Swirls line. All are beautiful and high quality dishes. However, all three sets were covered with a very thick layer of dust, and two out of the three sets contained a broken bowl. In both cases, it was the bottom bowl in the stack which was cracked. I am honestly surprised there was not more breakage, because the new packaging just isn't as substantial as I've experienced with other Mikasa products.Aside from the two broken pieces, the dishes are all flawless. None have even the slightest imperfection. I was excited to discover that they are exceptionally lightweight compared to most porcelain dinnerware. The design is simple, yet elegant. There is an adequate amount of solid colored surface to allow the food to be the star of the plate.While I typically consider it a waste to include tea cups with a dinnerware set (since I generally tend to only use large coffee mugs), I was very happy to see that the mugs included with this set are actually quite large.I immediately washed the entire service in the dishwasher without any issues. I then performed two important tests.First, I boiled water in one of the bowls using the microwave. The bowl held up very well. It was certainly very hot to the touch when I removed it, but I was able to remove it using my bare hands. I don't think I could have lifted it from the bottom without a potholder, but the rim of the bowl was not too hot to handle.My final test was the most important one for any dishware. I added some tomato sauce to one of the bowls and "baked" it into the dish using the microwave. I let the dish cool until the sauce was completely stuck to the surface. I am pleased to report that it cleaned up beautifully and did NOT stain the bowl! It actually cleaned easily with just water, but there was a faint orange residue. As soon as I added a drop of Dawn, the stain wiped right off.I strongly recommend this dinnerware set. It is beautiful, microwave safe, and dishwasher safe.