If you don't need or don't want a big knife set at this time, this set will serve all your cooking needs. It has the basic knives you need to get any meal on a table - a chef's, a prep and paring knife. Throw in the bread knife and maybe you don't even need to cook!

Seriously, these are professional quality knives that are forged to last a lifetime. Minimal maintenance, just hone them regularly and sharpen them once a year. Hand wash them if you want them to look as good as they did when you got them home (although they are dishwasher safe.)