HIC Mushroom Mortar and Pestle Set, Solid Carrara Marble, 3.8-Inch x 4-Inch

This was smaller than we expected but better because of it as not so balky and room hog. Grinds nicely. Happy with it.

Where has this thing been all my life...?? I am a Pink Mediterranean Sea Salt Junkie... lol And this is the perfect Grinder for it. I buy it coarse & grind it up into all different kinds of textures. It really brings out that gentle crunchiness Pink Sea Salt brings to the table. I've seen the mixed reviews here, & if you feel yours really was not made right, I would definitely send it back for an exchange. Mine didn't arrive perfect, because these are hand crafted, but it didn't arrive with the glaring defects in workmanship that others are experiencing. If it doesn't look right, you should be able to exchange it for one that is. Mine looks, operates, & fits together fine. Some people are concerned that they are eating finely ground marble along with their salts or spices. I see what they mean, but there's probably actually more of that same material in my Sea Salts, than is coming off of my Grinder. According to the Wikipedia, "Limestone is a sedimentary rock, composed mainly of skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral, forams, and molluscs. Its major materials are the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate (CaCO3)." Calcium Carbonate is commonly used in Calcium supplements & dietary antacid tablets. So like Sea Salts...it is organic. If you don't like the texture of your ground spices or salts, practice with it. You'll get better at using it over time. When you grind, work things around in small circles around the curve of the bowl. The more I experiment with mine, I get a better feel for it, and the nicer & more interesting my textures are coming out. The one con I have for this item is that it arrived with a major crack in the marble that runs down one side. It is otherwise well-made, but I hope it does not crack all the way across & break apart over time. I'm not exchanging it because other than this it is well-made.

This is not made of Carrara marble. The packaging says it was made in Taiwan. Marble not white, grey and low quality.

THIS IS THE ABSOLUTE BEST MORTAR EVER INVENTED!! Trust me!! I bought Jamie olivers large one before, it was the worst. Half the spices got stuck at the bottom. This mushroom one, is incredible. First of all, it is the PERFECT SIZE. When you are crushing things, it won't spill out (unless you add liquid duh!) and my god IT IS SOOO PRETTY!!!! It looks so adorable with the colors and patterns. A little darker than what it appears in the picture, but I am so happy and glad that I found this pretty little baby! It does not get stuck at all, and you can retrieve everything you put in to grind in this. Just absolute perfection. Whoever made this is an artist.

The item is a nice size for handling and has some weight to it. There were no detectable flaws or cracks. As some people have said, here is not 100% surface contact, as the two mating surfaces are machined and machining marks are on both surfaces. This leaves high and low spots that also serve as ridges to break down whatever you are crushing. The pestle has about a 1+ diameter flat on the end so tilting the mortar (bowl) at an angle draws the material you are grinding into the ridges. I assume the high spots will eventually be worn away by repeated use, creating more and more surface contact. I don't know if that makes the mechanism work better or worse, but unless you are grinding something hard and abrasive, that process should take quite a while. I've only used it once so far to grind cardamom seeds, and it worked satisfactorily.