I'm glad you've found something you love! I'll add my 2 cents for others reading the thread.

I've been using Ikea 365+ for about 18 months with no marks. My old Noritake Colorwave had lots of marks, and I'm using the same flatware.

Also, I'm amazed at how many times I've accidentally banged a plate or bowl on the granite counter without it breaking or chipping.

mpagmom,

Yes, I've heard lots of good things about the Ikea 365+. If our Ikea was closer and not over a toll bridge, I would definitely have considered it. That and Crate and Barrel would have been contenders if they were closer. Seeing as I had to return some flawed dishes, really glad I found something close.

Glad you found such a pretty and functional set.
I guess I'll add my set to the mix too for the benefit of some other potential readers. I have been using mikasa antique white as my everyday dishes for the past 4 years and they are as white today as the day I bought them. I have a few extra pieces because there were small marks when they arrived and mikasa sent out new ones right away ( I ordered directly from mikasa). Oh and as I am a bull in a china shop, I can attest to the fact that they are strong!

Has anyone had any experience with Mikasa Lucerene White Bone China? I am curious about its ability to avoid the markings from utensils. Also it is billed as chip resistant and durable. Have you found this to be accurate?
(Sold direct from Mikasa or from Costco).

We bought our college son Ikea 365. At some point, one of the plates ended up back here. They chip very easily.

My Denby is awesome. Maybe I have the right stainless ware but there are no marks. Mikasa Countryside, my wedding every day selection, lasted 28 years without changing color. I replaced it because of crazing on a few pieces, from microwave use. DH loves the Microwave when he is on his own...

I loved the shape of ikea's fargrik dinnerware, especially the 9.5 by 2 inch large bowl but hated the terrible cutlery marks that were left behind on it. After much searching I discovered the exact same dinnerware (minus the small desert plate made by Omakase at my local H-mart. It can be ordered online at bowerykitchens.com. Its a bit more expensive but made of porcelain and no marks are left behind! For example, the 9.5 inch bowl is 7.99.

As I said before, after considerable research, the marks are unique to the combination of stainless steel utensils and some types of stoneware. Use silverware and no problem. Use porcelain or bone china along with your stainless and no problem. Don't know where in Canada you are but in Toronto area, try the Villeroy and Bosch outlet in Alliston for good prices on quality sets.

I recently purchased Mikasa's Italian Countryside and I haven't got any utensil marks after 3 months of use. I have Pfaltzgraff Tea Rose (which I love) but it marks up terribly. The Tea Rose has rougher, more matte surface which I believe is the problem. It seems the glossier and smoother the surface, no (or fewer) utensil marks.

I have had a beautiful creamy white stoneware from Dansk called Rondure, and the knife marks are driving me nuts. I used Bar Keepers Friend, which seemed to help at first but I actually think it may have taken off some of the surface and made it even more susceptible to scratching ?? Any way, I am now looking at Wedgwood Intaglio bone china and Wedgwood Tisbury porcelain. Both white. Does anyone know whether bone or china or porcelain resists the knife scratching better?

We have a huge set of plain, pure white 'Correll' tempered glass dishes, bowls etc. with absolutely no pattern at all. It is made by the same company that makes Pyrex. When my husband and I were newlyweds 12 years ago, we went to a Correll outlet store in Pennsylvania at 'the Crossings' and got a fantastic deal there on a huge collection that we bought pieces for individually. The plain white {I think it's called 'Frost' or some name like that} Gives a high end restaurant look on a very affordable budget. Keeping it plain is what makes it elegant in my opinion. I've heard pro chefs say they use plain white dishes in their restaurants in order to 'showcase' the food. Correll lasts for many years and holds up very. They don't usually stain, but if you do see any discoloration just use a small amount of bar keepers friend and it will come right off. The Barkeepers Friend doesn't appear do any harm to these. These dishes are actually made of tempered glass and are very strong, they are still looking great.

Wittredf,. See my comments above. Neither bone nor porcelain will show the marks. If you want to keep the Danby, just buy yourself some silver plate utensils and the problem will disappear.

I ditched all my stoneware for Corelle white in a square pattern. I love that it goes with anything, is lightweight, stacks easily, lasts forever and is reasonably priced. I didn't realize how much I liked it until I was up at my Dad's after he passed. I was using his old ugly Corelle and really liked everything but the pattern. I came home and immediately ordered a bunch of Corelle. I bought more for my lake house too.

FWIW, I have had the Sango Nova Brown stoneware that was so popular at dept stores and BBB. (I got it to replace white stoneware that was scratched up from stainless flatware.) After more than 15 years, the brown Sango stoneware is starting to show the grey marks from stainless flatware. I feel like this is from the glaze wearing off. Also, it is beginning to craze and develop cracks. The crazing and cracking seems to be happening to the pieces that get microwaved a lot. I too am wanting some classy plain white dishes that won't mark. Sounds like I should try a porcelain set (or porcelain china ? I don't know what the difference is).

China is a generic term for porcelain.

Consider Villeroy and Bosch, Apilco and Pillivyut and Thomas by Rosenthal for great basic white dishes that will last a lifetime.

I bought the Apilco about 6 months ago for the same reason (old Ikea stoneware had tons of gray marks). I really like the feel of it and no gray marks yet.

I ended up buying a porcelain -- Wedgwood Tisbury by Jasper Conran -- about 6 weeks ago. It's slightly off-white with ribbed edges. I love it, and so far no marks. I'll try to remember to update in 3 years!

(BTW, good price for 4 place setting set thru BB&B with 20% coupon.)

I have stoneware, and it never got marks.

I turn to porcelain a year ago, no marks yet. I never used stoneware, but I think you'd better try porcelain.

I realize this thread is really old, but in googling non-marking dinnerware, it came up for me. I had heard of this problem, but had personally never ever experienced it with either my stoneware, china, or porcelain dinnerware. But that all changed when I bought dishes for our vacation home several years ago. I bought 222Fifth brand fine porcelain china along with coordinating pieces from Nicole Miller bone china and a few small white bowls from Ikea. I brought an extra set of silverware to the vacation home from our primary home, so I knew the silverware didn't mark up my dinnerware there.

All of the above dishes are covered in gray marks on the white dishes and on the 222Fifth dish interiors that are white. I've tried using other stainless silverware, but it still left marks. I've used bar keepers friend to clean them, but that's a huge pain and only gets accomplished infrequently. So I'm finally fed up and looking to replace them, but just wanted you all to know that simply buying porcelain or china isn't the solution to avoiding the problem. I plan to actually test rub with a piece of my silverware to see if any marks show up.

Wow, I am so surprised to hear that you got gray marks on porcelain!

Thank you for the update. I would be interested to know what new dinner ware passes your new test rubs. My Omakasa is still pristine. This is such a mystery. It seems some porcelain gets gray marks and some doesn't; and some stoneware gets gray marks and some doesn't.

I also have 222Fifth brand, same marks.

I was one of the original responders to this thread 5 years ago. I’ve now been using my Ikea 365+ Everyday porcelain dishes (made in Turkey) for more than 6 years with no gray marks. I’m surprised. Someone above said they chipped easily, and I wonder if they were talking about the porcelain. I have had maybe one chipped mug, and I have 4 kids who aren’t at all careful. They’ve held up super well, so I think for the price they were worth it. I don’t think my specific dishes are still offered, but they probably have something very similar.

I bought white bone porcelain ware from Villeroy & Boch and good quality stainless from Yamazaki about 10 years ago. I upgraded with the hopes that I wouldn't have this problem anymore as I did with my old sets. No luck - I have small silverware marks all over this set too. It's very disappointing since I love a nice white place setting. If I remember correctly, the marks didn't start showing up until they were a bit older, has anyone noticed this? They are very sturdy though - no chips and we do not baby them and use them every day (they are our only dishes).

In reading this thread, it seems that it must be a very specific combination of plate and utensils that creates the problem. Looks like there are all combinations of porcelain, stoneware, glassware (Corelle), and stainless that have the problem. What do you think? Perhaps simply make a post that lists only these things so we can easily peruse it: dish brand (composition), utensil brand (composition), how old, yes/no marks.

Villeroy & Boch (white bone porcelain), Yamazaki (stainless), 10 yo, yes marks.

^^^^^^^^ I have ancient V&B without a mark on it. My mother's Manoir set was used for three meals per day for 20 years. I still use it occasionally. No issues at all. Her stainless was Europen or American- can't think of the brand though. Her V&B Basket was used weekly for even longer, never a scratch.

Could this be about the water? V&B is glazed seven times- that is a considerable amount of glass.

PS I would be livid if I were you.

Deb, the first step is to determine what type of material your dishes are made of. There is bone china, fine china and porcelain but not 'bone porcelain'.

The reactions discussed are very specific to the materials involved.

moebus, the V&B website says, " Material: Premium Bone Porcelain" on this page under "Additional Info" a bit down under the plate picture: https://www.villeroy-boch.com/shop/anmut-flat-plate-27cm.html. And Wiki says, " Bone china is a type of porcelain that is composed of bone ash, feldspathic material, and kaolin. " https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bone_china This is all very confusing and I am sure that the terms get all jumbled up.

I bought Sur la Table's Bistro dinnerware in 2012 when we bought this house right before the holidays and I needed more dinnerware, and right away. Service for 18, and not a mark, scratch, chip in any of it yet. My flatware is Oneida 18/10 for anyone feeling that may make a difference, but we use steak knives on it, other knives, no grey and no scratches. It is not babied. It goes from dining room to patio and is used on the kitchen table most week nights.

They have it marked down to about $99 every few months for 6 place settings - I keep meaning to increase mine to service for 24 and not getting around to it, slipping in pieces of my old Lenox when needed has worked. I did replace the mugs with clear glass hot beverage mugs from a restaurant supply...men did not seem to like the handfeel of the mugs that came with it.

ETA: Forgot my link ;0) Bistro at Sur la Table

Found this, very informative info from "The Cook's Kitchen" on another Houzz thread:

Grey marks on dishes occur because the dishes are harder than the metal. Just like what happens with a cast iron porcelain sink. The abrasion of one to the next leaves metal behind when they meet in a death match.

It's a twofold issue. One of the silverware, and one of the dishes. Softer silverware, as in true silver, abrades rather easily on a hard porcelain surface.

Stainless steel is chromium and nickel added to steel. Chromium (chrome) adds the element of non tarnishing, and the nickel adds some as well, but also the hardness. Flatware comes in 18/0, 18/8, and 18/10 proportions of chromium to nickel. The better quality 18/10 is harder, and less likely to leave marks on any surface.

Porcelain vs. stoneware also have different micro-surfaces. Smooth porcelain doesn't offer as may 'nubs" to receive the microscopic metal shavings of abraded metal. The rougher the dish, the more chance it has of sandpapering metal.

Long term, oxalic acid, aka Barkeeper's friend, should not damage porcelain with a brief cleaning. Porcelain is really really tough. Some ceramic and stoneware glazes may be damaged by contact with a weak acid like oxalic acid. The old lead glazed ceramics are in this category. Like old Fiesta. It's probably not enough to hurt you if you use them every once in a while. But, it's enough that I wouldn't feed kids with old glazed ceramic dishes.

After doing more research, I definitely agree with "The Cook's Kitchen" above. It is a combination of dishes and flatware that cause the problem. So two people with the same dishes may have or not have marks depending on their flatware type. It seems that it is the nickel content that causes the marks (bad), but that same nickel also prevents rust stains (good) - so it is a balancing act. I have Villeroy & Boch (white bone porcelain), Yamazaki (18/8 stainless) that is about 10 years old. I can see gray marks but they are not too bad and seems like they took many years to accumulate. So while the porcelain is very hard some marks from the higher nickel content in my flatware have shown up. You can get stainless steal that is 18/0 (no nickel) but shows tiny rust spots or pit marks from the dishwasher. Seems like the best bet is very hard porcelain and 18/8 flatware and use Barkeeper's Helper now and then.

I own Mikasa french countryside and Lenox 18/10 flatware and the gray marks are driving me crazy. I keep BKF in business but I want to replace the dinnerware because I just cant keep the white dishes clean.

All my dinnerware is white bone china and 18/10 flatware, i have no issues

Agree @debthompson3, upgraded to good quality flatware and no more marks. My old cheap flatware marked up everday dishes and china. Can’t recall what i upgraded to as its been several years

Same here 18/8 Oneida and wedgewood countryware bone China no marks. And have used them every day for 30 years! Looking to buy some mugs from juliska in porcelain to replace my cheap target ones that have marks from spoon that will not come off. Hoping they’re good. Love white dishes. Classic look.

I bought some plain white plates at Dollar Tree to supplement my set of dishes that DO get marks from utensils. None of the dollar store plates have utensils marks after years of daily use. Go figure. My dish set will re-aquire the marks with the first use after cleaning with Bar Keepers Friend cleanser.

A couple of years ago I changed out my dinnerware from Portmerion Pomona (never had any marks) to Portmerion Sohie Conran White (Terrible black marks). The new dinnerware has raised circles on the plates that my Oneida Stainless is just wreaking havoc. Anything that I don't cut on like the bowls, are fine no marks. Just the flat plates. I had the same flatware with my previous china and it did nothing to them. Portmerion classifies the Pomona as "fine earthenware" and the Sophie Conran White as "Fine Porcelain". I love the new dinnerware, but I hate those black marks and I'm sick of cleaning them. So are you all saying that Bone China will also get those marks? I'm thinking of buying just 11" dinner plates and 8" salad plates to co-ordinate. Any good suggestions. I was thinking of Vera Wang Wedgwood, the Venato Imperial Collection (bone china). Do you think those 2 patterns would mix well?

Old post, but just discovered it so here's my 2¢ : my Corelle in White Winter Frost was getting marks from my Oneida stainless flatware. I used baking soda and nylon scrubber, which worked quite well, but Bon Ami worked even better. I love my Corelle which is nearly indestructible, has no glaze, is made in USA, and is lightweight (always hated the heaviness of my mom's stoneware).

Yeah, I have used barkeepers friend for these marks, but it takes so much elbow grease and the stupid marks kept coming back. I recently found an interesting little microfiber scrubbing cloth and it had made all the difference in the world. Not only did the marks come out with less effort, but they don’t seem to be reappearing as quickly. To the point that I’ve fallen in love with my China again.

We have had Lennox Opal Innocence white porcelain for 10 years & the cutlery marks are terrible. I tried BKF and 1) it’s alot of work & 2) I think it removed the last of the shine & has made it more porous, therefore worse. I am looking at bone china this time.

I’ve used Gorham Melonbud 18/10 flatware for the last 26 years. It has left TONS of gray marks on our 1) expensive Mikasa stoneware, 2) Target Threshold porcelain, and now 3) Mikasa bone china. The only surface this 18/10 flatware hasn’t destroyed is a newer set of 4 Target Threshold porcelain salad plates that I bought to replace some of the original set that broke. Got others in that style thinking I’d found the perfect match … nope, only those 4 can defend against the Melonbud. I’m giving up. It must be the flatware but that goes against everything out there that says 18/10 is the “hardest” and shouldn’t leave marks. Might switch to plastic, lol. ;0)

I have service for 12 (OY) of a discontinued Dansk pattern, Barberry. I think it is porcelain and I purchased this almost 30 years ago. Lots of gray silverware marks. I really like the pattern, and I tried removing with BKF without success. I have a lot of serving pieces so replacement will be be pricey. But if I decide to jump, I'll probably by Apilco white at WS.

I'm probably too late considering this post is 10 year old but if anyone wants to fix this problem with their dishes use the pink stuff made by stardrops

As far as I’m concerned, it’s never too late for a good tip that works. Going to Amazon now to order it and give it a try. Thank you!

a bit of baking soda and some dish soap is probably going to do just the same

I use bone china - white Wedgewood - everyday for 32 years so far! No marks.

I just received two used Juliska “Winter Frolic” mugs from ebay. Good price, but seller didnt say the interior of each is badly ”smudged grey”. Pictures didn‘t show this either. Is the awful grey (supposed to be white) from too high dishwasher heat and/or utensils when original owner used them? Any ideas to turn them white-like-new again? Thanks!

I have been using Polish pottery dishes for 25 years without a chip or scratch- extremely durable. I want to change to more contemporary dishes & fell in love with Fortessa Havana in gray ( stoneware) . Has anyone had the marks issue? How can I find out if my cutlery will leave marks??? If it does , to me it’s not worth scraping dishes AND THEN having to remove marks!!
Also, I read that stoneware is not as durable as others??

Lenox dinnerware is beautiful and it's expensive. The French Pearl line is gorgeous but it looks like crap really quickly. The glaze is not properly applied. Do not buy these.