Thanks for all the comments. I found myself in a shop yesterday that specializes in kitchen products and they had a good selection of kitchen knives. I was able to see quite a few brands/lines, and touch and use a few of the chef knives. A Japanese style chef knife followed me home — FC61 steel, 11º-12º (per side) edge, full-tang, good overall feel. For the time being, that will be my knife for veggies (including onions), not for parting out whole chickens.