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I met the kitchen towels of my dreams, the best kitchen towels I have ever used and ever will use, on the first day I set foot in a restaurant kitchen. It was a classic meet-cute. They were unassuming in their simplicity—100% cotton, a soft white with a distinctive herringbone weave and snappy blue stripe. They weren’t like those other tea towels from back home, those awkwardly large, overly thick, hopelessly linty decorative towels that sported pumpkins in the fall, tulips in the spring. Those towels were for show, mere accessories for the oven handle. But these ultra-absorbent Zeppoli kitchen towels were more akin to flour sack towels, and they’re everything I’d ever wanted from a kitchen towel and more. I’d fallen hard.
They’re simply the best. Better than all the rest.
Zeppoli cotton kitchen towels are the apex of high-quality towel functionality. They’re super absorbent and quick-drying, perfect for cleaning up messes and splatters at a moment’s notice. Like magic, the long-lasting fibers get more absorbent after a few spins through the washing machine. They’re the ideal size and weight for cleaning cloths: light enough to air-dry quickly, but with enough surface area to handle spills. Because the flat weave towels are lint-free and don’t shed, they also make the best dish towels, so you can dry your glasses without leaving loose threads all over your clean glassware. And no lint means you can sub them in for paper towels when a recipe calls for pressing the water out of tofu or patting dry slices of salted squash (since we’re all about reusable alternatives). You can even use them in place of your oven mitts—which are likely past their prime—just fold them into quarters or eighths when it’s time to handle a hot pan. They come in many different colors, including solid black and rainbow pastel, but we’re partial to the classic white with blue or red stripes. They’re everything you need and nothing you don’t, which is exactly why they’re a top pick for pro cooks and BA staffers.
Don’t I know you from somewhere?
Even if you’ve never worked in a restaurant kitchen and had the distinct pleasure of starting your shift with a clean stack of these towels on your station, you’ve probably encountered them before. You know that rustic-chic, no-tablecloths, fine-casual type of restaurant? The one with vintage bric-a-brac on the walls and chicken liver mousse on the menu? Can you picture the napkin that’s on the table, right beneath the Duralex water glass? That’s right: Some version of the same single-striped kitchen towels I’ve been describing. I’m not saying your dining table should cosplay as a late aughts farm-to-table restaurant, but I am saying that this machine-washable towel set is lightweight and handsome enough to do double duty as the cloth napkins you have always thought about buying but never got around to. Very French bistro.
So if you buy yourself a set of these, not only will you have solved your dishcloth/kitchen towel problem, but you’ll also have morphed into the type of person who has matching napkins for a dinner party. TWO. FOR. ONE. BABY. That’s versatility. Listen: You have a combination phone case and wallet, because you’ve only got so many pockets, and cargo shorts are not coming back, no matter what your cousin thinks. (Editor’s note: This piece was originally published in 2018. We regret to inform you that cargo shorts are back.) You buy combination moisturizer and sunscreen because why have two bottles when one will do the trick? So why buy kitchen towels and cloth napkins separately when there exists a product that (1) serves both functions extremely well, (2) is reasonably chic, and (3) costs less than $2?
I’ll say it again louder. Each towel costs less than $2!
A 30-pack of Zeppoli Classic white kitchen towels is going to run you about $40 on Amazon. Less than $2 for the crème de la crème of kitchen towelry that also doubles as table linen? This is a tremendous deal. Perhaps you’re thinking, 30 cotton towels? Isn’t that a bit much? We think not. We’re convinced there’s no such thing as too many kitchen towels—in fact, we like to keep a minimum of two dozen on deck at all times. After you receive your 30-pack of Zeppoli towels, we recommend separating them according to future usage. Consider immediately setting aside a dozen for use as napkins (these are for company, not for mopping up red wine spills) and also trying to kick your paper towel habit. Keep a stack on hand for wiping down countertops, another for drying dishes or drying hands, some for throwing over your shoulder while cooking, and another one or two to use as pot holders or to buff mineral oil into your cutting boards. You can’t beat this price point for a set of kitchen towels that have arguably endless uses.
We’ve got a thing for kitchen towels. Here are a few other options we’re into.
Finding actually-good reusable paper towels that will help you reduce waste isn’t easy, but these compostable DII Swedish dish towels are up for the task. While BA contributor Alex Beggs hasn’t entirely eliminated paper towels from her home, she’s enjoyed having these reusables on deck: “I’m definitely using paper towels less than I was before, and I feel good about that dent.”
Maybe you’re here for a fancy kitchen towel upgrade that’s a cut above the much-loved $2 workhorse. Look no further than the Moku Light Hand Towels from Rikumo, which BA contributor Christina Chaey swears will change your life. “Everything about these towels is pleasing to me—the featherlight weight; the plush, supersoft feel of the cotton; the fact that they are at least twice as absorbent as they appear, yet dry in what feels like minutes,” she says.
Editor’s Note: This article was originally published July 19, 2018.