the stickiness most likely is caused by partially oxidized oils from the dressing you have used. A cleaner like 409 and a plastic scrubber will remove it....but don't do that if the bowl is varnished. In that case try just dish soap and lots and lots of elbow grease. Linda C

I did have a cast iron griddle crack.....and haven't yet found a replacement....sob...... It does SO matter what brand the cast iron is...certain brands are much finer finished and will season better than others....Griswold pans I have are the smoothest...with Wagner coming in second and Lodge last. I use soap, but rarely and only in case of something like really stuck on egg....from a pan left on the fire with remains in it....mostly I just swish and wipe... But I really take issue with the recommendations on the wooden bowls. I have my grandmother's wooden bowl and she died in 1950 at age 68. She said....never put water in it, but to rinse and always empty any leftover salad immediatly because moisture will cause a one piece bowl to crack. That bowl is used often in my kitchen today....if it gets a bit of a rancid smell....a scrub with salt will fix it right up. and never EVER put cooking spray on your bowls. As for the canard about the wooden bowl and the pepper grinder, I think that's apocryphal. The classic recipe for a Caesar salad recommends rubbing the wooden bowl with a cut clove of garlic before making the salad....and the reason waiters walk around with the pepper grinder....and the reason it is so large is because patrons have a tendency to swipe them. The first time I ever encountered the giant pepper mill was at Pals Cabin in West orange...some time before 1950... Sure it's a subject of satire....but the satire came after the practise. The country club I belonged to used to have a pepper grinder on every table...until they started disappearing....then you had to ask as there weren't enough to go around....then the waiters started carrying them.... I need a 10 inch cast iron round griddle...preferable used....don't much care for the coarse finish on the modern ones.... I need to be hitting the yard sales. Linda C

Randy, Since I live in Minnesota an igloo is an interesting idea. Thanks, Max

Please.....no plastic! The world is full of people who raised 2 or more kids without resorting to melamine and acrylic. This is a gift make it lovely.....and I really doubt that at family wine and cheese functions the kids will be too active at the snacks table. The board with the fruit ceramic piece in the center is for a small wheel of cheese...think a Brie or camembert, possibly a little goat cheese and the edge is for crackers. Not sure why you think it needs a cover? Given that my husband was in the cheese business we always did and I still do, serve cheese on a board for a bite with cocktails or wine. Unless you are outside during fly season, the cover is a pain. Even then it's a pain! Wood needs to be wiped immediately....or left for the next day, but not put into the dishwasher. When I had family around I served salad every evening in a wooden bowl with individual wooden bowls for individual servings. Somehow it seems that the individual salad bowls have gone out of style, so now I toss my salad in a wooden bowl ( rubbed with a garlic clove) ands erve it onto plates I suggest you rethink the ceramic and glass. People with children don't resort to using all melmac and plastic. They may have a set of dishes in a special cartoon theme for a child and the baby gets a sippy cup, but by the time they are 5 they are eating from real plates and using real glasses. Go with the cute ceramic.