Robot Coupe - 4581 R2N Continuous Feed Combination Food Processor with 2.9 L Polycarbonate Bowl, 1-HP, 120-Volts

OK, so why would anyone who doesn't own a restaurant want to plunk down $900 for a food processor (and btw, I managed to buy it just before the prices started sliding south). This is the ancestor of the Cuisinart, Kitchen Aide, and other brands of home food processors. Mine DID come with an instruction manual, although from talking with a former restaurant chef, instructions for commercial restaurant equipment are rare. The functions (metal scimitar blade, slicer, grater, et al) are about the same as you'd find with a home model. The work bowl (3 quarts) is about the same size as the largest home food processors. All models have a locking mechanism so you can't operate the food processor without the work bowl cover in place. That's the end of the similarities. The Robot Coupe has a motor base that's about twice as big as my old Cuisiniart DLC8 (2 quart processor). Its got on-, off-, and pulse- buttons. Its very quiet. It comes with a shredding/slicing/mincing assembly that mounts on the motor base in place of the work bowl. It locks into place but the feed chute and pushers don't have to lock, themselves, making it far easier to julienne, slice, or shred large volumes of whatever vegetable or cheese you're working with. And the outfeed opens away from the base so you can slide a container under it and collect all the sliced/shredded/julienned output. This appliance is an industry standard, much like Hobart-style mixers or Vitamix blenders. It will turn a head of cabbage (cut into eighths) into cole slaw material in under 30 seconds. As another reviewer noted, this appliance will likely outlast you and the next 2 generations of your family. Manufacturer literature consistently describes this model in terms of 'how many pounds of mozzarella you can shred in 30 minutes', etc. So back to the question of 'why spend that kind of money?'. Yes, you could get along fine with a much cheaper, home-use food processor. But the speed of this machine and the precise cuts, make it worthwhile for me. I can prep for meals far faster (or prepare a much larger quantity) than I ever could with my Cuisinart. And its super-reliable. I'll never have to put up with bearing-whine or overheating. It's built to take serious abuse.That's the beauty of commercial tools -- they'll be working just fine long after you've forgotten how much you had to pay for them.Downsides: This comes with 3 blades (scimitar, medium-width slicer, and medium-width grater). All the other blades (different widths of julienne, slicer, and grater) will cost you about $80 apiece. Also, I found the top of the workbowl was super-snug and was hard to twist into place. I used a little food-grade silicon grease and that seemed to help. I did find, when I ordered a clear plastic workbowl to replace the opaque original, that the lid went on with no problem, so the original bowl may have been defective. The parts will go through a commercial dishwasher (which doesn't have a drying cycle and completes wash and dry cycle in about 90 seconds), but you really don't want them going through a home dishwasher, unless you pull them out before the drying cycle starts. Otherwaise, the plastic may warp (and yes, that happened to me). This is also going to suck up more counter space than a more modest home food processor. The base is 7" by 11" and stands 17" high with the work bowl mounted. Its heavy enough that you're not going to want to keep picking it up and moving it to a different counter. An it doesn't easily fit on most kitchen shelves. Also, if you use a round mixing bowl to catch the shredded/sliced/julienned vegetables, some of them completely miss the bowl and end up on the counter or floor. I've discovered I have to use a square, 12-qt. plastic storage container (available from restaurant supply stores for about $20). It slides neatly under the outfeed chute and catches all the output.

I read the review of the Robot Coupe R2N in Cooks Illustrated and was impressed with their endorsement of it as a must have tool if you could afford it. Because I injured both wrists in a freak accident, making it difficult for me to slice hard vegetables like beets or perform the kind of twisting and pushing motion required to grate cheeses, it was worth the price of admission to me if it performed as advertised. Boy, does it ever. If you have a Kitchen Aid stand mixer and a VitaMix blender you know that there are kitchen tools that save time, improve quality, and are cheaper over the long run because you never have to buy another one. All of this is true of the Robot Coupe. It is ridiculously easy to feed products into it, there are no nooks and crannies that catch and hold food so cleaning is a breeze, the motor is so powerful and the blades so sharp that it works lightning fast with no noise, bouncing around or bogging down, and you absolutely can and will produce restaurant level results. If you're a serious home cook, or just someone who enjoys cooking and isn't deterred by the price, this machine is great investment.

Bought this for my restaurant, works fantastic and price was cheaper on Amazon than any where else

We process 2 full upright freezers' worth of garden produce each summer and we bought this commercial unit because we were tired of burning through the cheapos. It arrived in a large box with all parts in it. It did come with an operation manual which we haven't needed so far because it's pretty self-explanatory. Yes, it's heavy. It would be difficult to knock over by accident. It's also very quiet, you don't get that high-pitched whine that most household processors emit. In the 6 weeks we've owned it, it has chopped several freezer bags' worth of garlic scape pesto, shredded zucchini directly into freezer bags (how convenient!), and sliced a pile of cucumbers, shallots and garlic for refrigerator pickles, right into the brine tub. The opening for the shredder chute is large enough to stuff mid-sized zucchini and small peppers and onions in without having to cut them up first. Bzzzzzt! All shredded or sliced, very efficient.The parts are durable (yes I've dropped one of them on the floor - not even a scratch) and easy to clean with a simple stream from the faucet. No awkward corners to dig into with sharp pointy objects to scrape out anything, and no special brushes needed either, just rinse and dry and put away.

Great product

This is a great piece of equipment. I used to own a restaurant and this is one of the tools that you find in any commercial kitchen. over the corse of the years my wife has purchase few different food processors, but also with a light residential use, every couple of years they need to be replaced. I decided to by one of those for her, the first impression was not encouraging. The machine does't look as pretty as others, but once you turn it on and start to use it, then it is all over. The power available, the pieces feel solid and fit properly and easy of use. Now she use it all the time and I am sure it will last for years in or home.

These things aren't cheap and I was on the fence for a year. My son who's a chef talked me into it. I cater week long and weekend events for a couple hundred at a time. It saves me SO MUCH TIME!!!! So glad I bought it.

It's a work horse. Wish it came with more blades. Shredded items do get caught up under the blade, though.