Because my previous home had a much larger kitchen and dining area, my two oldest children learned to eat solid foods and eventually feed themselves sitting in your standard-style high chair. After we moved we found our new home with its smaller kitchen and almost no dining area didn't lend itself to the traditional high chair, and my two youngest have used - and are still using - Inglesina's Fast chair, which hooks directly to the counter.

When I had the opportunity to review the K2 high chair from Kuster, I was anxious to see if it really was as practical, easy to clean and space saving as the company's website claimed. I had yet to find a high chair that would work in our kitchen; perhaps this was the one! But after some not-so-thorough testing (and you'll soon read why), I found this sleek, modern high chair easy to clean and extremely compact when folded. But those are quite possibly the only redeeming qualities of the K2.

The K2 arrived with "some assembly required." Usually means putting Tab A in Slot B, but this baby needed a little elbow grease and a strong allen wrench. After attaching the seat back, I snapped the four self-leveling feet on the frame, and I'll be danged if those feet weren't a struggle to get on yet fell off if I even looked at them. If I weren't worried about the little metal feet scratching the floor I'd have left those plastic feet off completely!

The K2 came with the light blue and white dot optional seat cushion, and though it meant a little more effort in cleaning, I felt the K2 needed the padding. The cushion attached to the chair with just one set of Velcro tabs, though the harness did come up through a slot in the front, helping to anchor it a bit more. But even then the cushion slipped and slid all around, and when I opened it from its folded position, the cushion got lodged between the seat and back. As much as I love the print and the padding, I couldn't sacrifice function for fashion when it came to the high chair (a pair of shoes, no problem!).

I wasn't a fan of the harness itself. Though it boasts a five-point safety harness, the harness straps attach at the back of the seat and come up and over the shoulders rather than attaching or being anchored higher up the seat back just below the shoulders. It made for some pretty floppy straps that kept sliding off our child's shoulder as we tried to attach the harness. I also felt like she was able to move around a lot more than was safe. My kids are climbers and they have to be belted in securely to keep them from breaking free.

I did like the removable, dishwasher-safe tray cover, as it made for easy cleaning. Unfortunately we were never able to use it to actually feed our daughter since the K2 failed its tipped-by-a-toddler test. This toddler-initiated test of the K2's durability wasn't in our plans, but readers should be glad it occurred, because the K2's tray fell apart when it hit the (carpeted) floor, its locking slides underneath the tray popping right off to reveal some pretty lightweight and now dangerously exposed screws. My husband, engineer and fix-it-man that he is, quickly epoxied the slides to the tray, but even after a few days of curing they fell apart when we gingerly tried to reattach the tray.


We eventually noticed a hairline crack running along almost the entire width of the chair back, as well. And this was on carpet! I'm not saying high chairs are meant to withstand falls, but the trays should at least be able to withstand some wear and tear. I know with our old high chair that tray was tossed on the counter, dropped on the floor, stepped on and I'm sure used as an imaginary something or other, yet it passed those test with flying colors.


Apparently I'm not the only one with this problem. If you check out the K2 on Amazon.com you'll see a few customer images depicting similar tray mishaps plus an image of what looks like a missing foot rest. This guy wasn't too impressed either.

As I mentioned before, we didn't give Kuster's K2 too thorough a testing. When first set up we used it as the perfect chair for pounding playing the piano, but soon after (and in that same room) it met our toddler and the tray met its end. We have used it a few times since, but only as a piano chair, and even then I keep close watch; that harness just doesn't put me at ease.

The K2 high chair is recommended for children from six months to six years and is available in two different colors, white and beech, and three different cushion styles to "ensure you get a combination to suit you." Personally, no fabric/wood combination would suit me when it comes to the K2. It may be easy to clean and easy to store, but it is also easily broken, and I can't recommend its safety features. If you’re looking for a fashionable, yet functional and safe high chair for your child, I suggest you pass on the Kuster K2. - Emily H.