This $45 Dish Rack Is 100% Worth It

updated Dec 7, 2020
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Credit: Joe Lingeman

About a month ago, I moved into a new apartment. It’s warmer, cozier, and better in almost all ways than my previous apartment. The exception: There’s no dishwasher. That fact, in and of itself, wouldn’t be that bad, but the kitchen is also teeny-tiny. It’s just wide enough to fit one person and no more without playing some human Jenga. It also has just enough counter space for a single cutting board.

In other words, tag-teaming dishwashing and drying with my boyfriend isn’t a realistic option; nor is using the counter space to dry my dishes. I do have a generous dining room table, which could (and did) serve as a stop-gap, but carrying wet dishes from the sink to the table isn’t ideal. And the fact that my kitten likes to hang out on the dining room table, nuzzling up with anything that looks interesting, or batting things off the table and onto the floor, is also… problematic.

So, I took to the internet to find a solution.

I was looking for something that wouldn’t compound my space problem: A bulky dish rack that needed to sit on the counter was an immediate no-go. I considered a dish rack that sits behind the sink and over the faucet, but the ones I found were either too small to be functional, too ugly, or too expensive.

In fact, most dish racks I looked at were fairly pricey. On the low end, I was looking at spending at least $20; on the high end, $70—or more. So when I finally found one that I liked for $45, I didn’t hesitate. And it has been 100 percent worth it.

This Is the Best Dish Rack for Small Kitchens

The dish rack I ended up buying is made by Food52 as part of their Five Two series of kitchen tools. As you might expect from Food52, it’s pretty—well, pretty for a dish rack. It comes in two shades of grey (cleverly called Peppercorn and Smoked Salt) and a handsome Slate Blue.

More importantly, it’s functional: The rack itself measures 20.5 inches x 12.25, giving me enough surface area without taking over my entire sink. It also means it fits almost perfectly over a half-sheet baking pan, which means I can put it on my stovetop, next to my sink, when my sink gets too crowded.

Its sturdy construction—silicone coated stainless steel—makes it strong enough to hold heavy pots, but I also use it for wine glasses and other delicate things. And, it comes with a removable caddy for utensils.

It’s also versatile: It’s a hot pad! It’s a colander! It’s a cookie rack! Okay, I’ve really only used it as a hot pad, and I’m a bit skeptical about using the utensil caddy to wash my veggies, but the idea is that this isn’t a one-trick pony.

The very best part about this dish rack, however, is that it is easy to stow away when I’m not using it. It rolls up and can easily be stashed out-of-sight in a drawer or a cabinet.

At $45, it’s certainly not cheap, but so far, I have zero complaints. And 181 reviewers on Food52 agree with me, describing it as well-designed, beautiful, and worth the cost.