Old Stone Pizza Kitchen Rectangular Pizza Stone for Oven and Grill, 14x16-Inch

11/13/2017 Update:Still serving our needs after 10 years of use/abuse. Looks totally black now which only adds to it's character and attests to it's reliability, I read several comments regarding initial odors, etc., I don't know if the supplier has changed and I received a different make. All I can tell you is the one I received has served us well. I am attached a picture of the way it looks today.We've had this for several years and it gets used/abused no less than 3 to 4 times weekly. We use it so often because it does an excellent job baking bread, pizzas, etc. The trick is making sure it is preheated to the desired temperature first (Typically 425 to 500 degree F). You will be amazed at how quickly things bake after that. Whether you are baking a couple of pizzas or dozens of pita bread loafs, it becomes a production machine and you need to keep your eye on it. At these temperatures you definitely need a good tool (peel or similar) to accompany the stone, depending on the typical things you anticipate to bake on it.Unlike the round stones, the rectangular shape affords you more versatility when baking items other than round pizzas. You can experiment with the placement of the stone (which rack/level) depending on what it is you are baking. Start with the middle rack and utilize the Broil function when you want to force or expedite browning.True Dimensions (L, W, H), Weight, and Bottom Side Description:- Length: slightly longer than 16" inches by a 1/4 to 3/8 of an inch- Width: slightly longer than 14" inches by a 1/4 to 3/8 of an inch- Height: 5/8" of an inch (not including the height of the 8 risers underneath - more on that below)- Weight: 11 to 12 poundsAlthough it may be insignificant to some, I'm being very specific about the dimensions because these were pluses for me. You have some wiggle room when placing a 14" pizza without exposing one of the sides. If you like placing four 7" inch flat breads at a time, you have enough room to do it without overlap or exposure. As for the height, 5/8" of an inch thickness retains a lot more heat than 3/8" or 1/2" inch, not to mention it makes the entire stone less fragile.The bottom of the stone is not flat. It has 8 protruding risers/legs underneath. Four are L-shaped around the corners and four are equally distanced from the center. This makes it easy to place on the rack and pick up when you are done. Between that and the thickness, it does make it slightly heavier than other stones, a compromise I welcome given the advantages.Admire the looks of this stone when you first receive it because it will never ever look that good again! If you have obsessive compulsive tendencies and like to maintain all your kitchen tools the same way they looked when you first bought them, this stone is not for you. Yes, you can add a piece of parchment paper if you like (but not foil for goodness sake), but you will discover, spills and black spots are unavoidable and add character to the stone. Eventually, they do cover the entire surface if you use it enough. I just give it a good scraping now and then and back in the oven it goes. Attempting to use abrasives and soaps will only shorten its life span and the stone will end up soaking chemicals you certainly do not want to serve.This stone is not cheap. Possibly slightly overpriced. You can certainly go to your favorite home improvement store (HomeDepot, Lowe's, etc.) and get a cheap alternative (<$1) as one of the reviewers suggested, or consider some of the other offerings on Amazon. I've tried most of them. I'm a strong believer in "you get what you pay for". Considering the number of years we've enjoyed it, and continue to, it was worth the investment. It makes for a unique gift for cooks that like baking breads and pizzas. I've given these as gifts four times thus far and every single recipient has enjoyed it just the same. Our four kids have lots of fun with it, because we no longer waste half an hour mediating pizza ingredients, too much sauce, not enough cheese, on and on with "have-it-your-own-way" branding! They all make their own individual 7" inch pizzas and can pile whatever they want on it! We can bake four of them at a time. A great hit at birthday parties, I must add!My only wish about this product is a bigger version. Ideally a 21" by 16". This would allow the baking of a 16" pizza and/or 6 loafs of 7" pitas (like Kontos pocketless pitas) at a time, instead of just four.This is my first review ever on Amazon. Benefited so much from other faithful reviewers. It's about time I contribute and make a habit of it because I buy so many things on Amazon. Did my best to share what I appreciated the most in other reviews when making a comparative buying decision. Please let me know if I missed something that would have been of value to include in the review.

Santa gave this to our house this past Christmas and it was an impulsive move by old Saint Nick. TBH, I wasn't sure how it would work out. Well, it's great! Here are highlights:Full disclosure: I worked for years at an East Coast mom 'n pop pizzeria and I know good pizza. I have my own dough recipe. I also have made bread for decades, and a good stone can make *all* of the difference.Surface: seems crazy, but I had a stone before that stuff just stuck to. No matter how much cornmeal or flour, it was like superglue. In my stone in my kamado style grill, it is split in two--again which can cause sticking or complexity. This product works really well. Seems nonstick in comparison.Surprises: there are little "feet" on the bottom (see photo) and I placed this right in the bottom of my gas oven. None of my prior stones ever had this, and it allowed me to get it extra hot, which led to a perfectly crispy crust! Hooray!Thickness: the stone is a bit thicker than most others on the market, and some that I have owned. Again, this is a good thing, as that mass helps translate into a crispy crust. It is all about the crust.Shape: I now greatly prefer the square to the round shape. It is so much nicer to have a more full cooking surface available to use. You loose square inches in the round shaped ones. Seriously. This extra space is important for rolls, multiple small loaves, sicilian style pizza, and the like. Even things that go on still in a *rectangular pan* that you may wish to get high heat from below, perhaps focaccia as an example.Value: This stone was *amazingly* priced at Amazon in comparison to the bricks and mortar options that I looked at. I'm glad I got it here. (Note: unbiased and uncompensated).Potential cons: it is heavier than most of the stones I have owned. I point it out as it may be an issue for some, depending upon abilities. Again, however, you truly want this mass for heat dissipation for your crust.Unboxing: it came packed extremely well by the manufacturer, with custom plastic foam (not styrofoam) and heavyweight cardboard. It is clear that a lot of thought went into this to ensure that it will arrive in one piece. That is appreciated. The cardboard went right into recycling. A suggestion for the manufacturer: I wish that plastic foam had markings or a symbol on it so it could have gone into our commingled bin instead of the trash.Happy baking!