hedley & bennett Essential Apron - Professional Chef Apron with Pockets & Adjustable Bib Strap for Cooking & Grilling

I bought this as a gift for my friend who loves to cook because I've seen a lot of cooking channel Youtubers wearing them. My friend is a big guy so the size is good, it provides good coverage, thick fabric, plenty of strap length, and the quality seems nice. I didn't get a picture of it, but he's already got it covered in flour and sauce.

Great quality! Purchased as a Christmas gift for my husband and he loves the colors. No more ruining all his shirts with grease stains :)

Strong sturdy fabric! I customized this with fabric pens for a special gift! My husband was so impressed with the quality.

In short, this Top Chef (TC) colorway uses a lighter blended fabric than most (all?) of the others with 100% cotton. It’s well constructed, but aside from the fashion, nothing really stands out making it worth more than double most other aprons. Maybe the heavier 100% cotton colorways are notably better? At this premium price range, I’m gonna be a bit more critical of things I’d otherwise overlook. Ah, the buzziest most promoted product-placement-est kitchen-fashion apron brand all over my feeds, with the stand out logo, bold fun colors and stylish patterns, and of course the collabs. Are ya really a modern cooking influencer if you don’t have your own H&B collab? (Hi Olivia!!!! You too OP Susi!!) Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get one of those, but this Top Chef one will do. So yes, part of the relatively high price is because of the name and marketing costs, plus their Lifetime Guarantee (if purchased directly from their site). But even factoring that in, they’re still rather pricey compared to most other kitchen aprons, even “professional” ones at restaurant supply stores (and previously used on TC) that are still a fraction the price. Main fabric: - A current product pic incorrectly mentions “100% Cotton Twill”, while the product info says “65/35 polycotton twill”. Checking their website, it also mentions the “7 oz. 65% Polyester & 35% Cotton Twill Lightweight Fabric”, for the Top Chef colorway. Note that other colorways use mostly 8 oz. 100% cotton twill or 9.7 oz 100% cotton canvas, while some outliers use denim/camo/etc. If I had noticed this earlier, I would’ve opted for one of the heavier canvas ones. I feel a bit hoodwinked now for jumping on the TC one with its (IMO) cheaper fabric. Yes, the info is listed, but every other one is 100% cotton so I’d assumed this was the same. - The weave is different on the interior and exterior faces (pic). - Out of the bag it feels a little stiff, but after a wash & dry it softened up both in drape and touch. - It feels a little heavier than my basic Chefworks one from Restaurant Depot. It might be argued the lighter weight is better for full shifts in hot professional kitchens, but I doubt many of those have budget for $90+ aprons, aside from 3 Michelin star joints. - In person, the color is a steel grey like the pics here. Watching a recent TC episode, it may appear black after some video color adjustments, but at other times the steel grey. Features/Design: - The chest pocket has two I’ll call them sub-pockets (pic) to separate your pen/marker/tweezer/thermometer/skinny-things. Behind those is still another ~4.75” deep medium pocket, which isn’t quite deep enough for a cell phone (mine peeks out about an inch). - The utility loop is redundant for hanging a towel - most people just hang it on the waist strap anyways. It’s also suggested for holding tongs, but the tong heads are likely to rub against your thigh when you walk around. - Other than the utility loop, I can’t find any particularly standout “ooh-that’s-neat!” design features. The engraving on one of the buckles is a nice touch I guess? The name tag, I’ve seen on other commercial-focused aprons. - There aren’t any Top Chef logos/branding/etc at all. Even as a TC fan, I agree a prominent TC logo would’ve been a bit cheesy (unless you’re an actual TC alum), but I was hoping there’d be a small and/or subtle one, maybe a label on the back side, on the name tag itself, or even the inside of the utility loop or neck strap would’ve been a nice touch. It’s like releasing a blank red apron and calling it a Ferrari collab. - To really nitpick, the waist straps feel a little high and come straight out. This also sometimes causes the lower half to flare out unless specifically tucked tight under the straps. Lengthening the neck strap and wearing it lower helps, but I prefer wearing mine higher, the way it was shipped. Some other aprons I have, the straps are sewn so they come out at a downward angle. Quality: - Aside from the hem, everything’s double-stitched, and all four strap points are further reinforced with the X-pattern stitching. Etc: - The fabric weight on some other colors here don’t quite match up with the info on H&B’s site, so you may want to double check. For example, Caviar Black is currently listed here with 12 oz 100% cotton canvas and 8 oz cotton canvas, but 10 oz 100% cotton canvas on h&b’s site. - Didn’t help me win any Quickfires.

The fabric is nice but very thin. It was a bit expensive but upon receiving it I realize how good the quality is and the stitching... but WOW! It is a bit high for an apron and the fabric is quite thin. But I look good in this -- like a real butcher. LOL! The Denim is solid quality with a great deep dark color of black jeans. I’m giving it 4 stars. I only give five star ratings to items that I use and exceed my expectations for quality, functionality, ease-of-use, premium appearance & looks, durability, ease of installation & time to build, good value for the price point, accuracy in size & fit - and when possible - sustainability, green certification, safety, & environmental considerations. I hope my review helped you gain some insight and I appreciate you taking the time to read it. Thank you!