The Best Kitchen Gifts For Everyone From Top Chefs to Microwave Masters

Whether you’re gifting an avid chef who spends every night creating a flavorful meal, a baker who looks forward to making fresh pastries on the weekend, or a takeout master who has perfected the art of ordering, there’s a good chance the person you’re buying for spends a lot of time in their kitchen. It’s the place where we start the day with a cup of coffee, entertain guests during a party, and find comfort in a bowl of cereal when we are too tired to adult for dinner. When it comes to buying someone a gift for the kitchen, the list of possibilities is seemingly endless.

Kitchen items make for great housewarming, birthday, retirement, engagement, and shower gifts. Even kitchen gifts that are cooking basics can quickly become a person’s favorite item in their kitchen if it can help save time and effort. We’ve also included several kitchen gift items that are fun conversation pieces but are still useful. If anything is going to take up room in the kitchen, it better be useful.

From the splurge-worthy to the budget-conscious, kitchen gifts are some of our faves. Check out some of our top choices below and remember, gifting someone a kitchen-related item is a great way to get a dinner invite.

1. Five Two Silicone Oven Mitts & Pot Holders

BEST OVERALL

The Five Two Silicone Oven Mitts & Pot Holders set is a great kitchen gift for new homeowners or anyone who is preparing to live on their own for the first time. Available in a variety of solid colors, the matching set comes with silicone oven mitts, pot holders, an apron (with pockets!) and six tea towels with hangers. You can never have enough tea towels.

2. Bamboo 7-Piece Nesting Bowl Set by Bamboozle

SPACE-SAVING DESIGN

Like tea towels, it’s also nearly impossible to have enough bowls on hand, something aspiring chefs and bakers quickly learn when trying new recipes. We like the bamboo nesting bowl set by Bamboozle, which includes seven bowls of varying sizes. The rainbow-colored set is made from eco-friendly recycled bamboo and varies in size, making it a great set for any task. Plus, the nesting style means this gift works for kitchens big and very, very small.

3. Philips Viva Pasta Maker

BEST FROM-SCRATCH GIFT

Do you know a chef that isn’t afraid to get their hands dirty/flour-y? Gift them the Philips Viva Pasta Maker. The automatic pasta maker can easily create homemade spaghetti, penne, and fettucini, mixing and kneading the dough to the perfect consistency in less than 20 minutes. Detachable parts mean cleaning is simple and fresh pasta means dinner is delicious.

4. Chemex Classic Series Drip Coffee Glass Coffee Maker

FOR COFFEE LOVERS

We all know a coffee lover who is always on the lookout for the best cup of joe. Keep your friend happy and caffeinated with the Chemex Classic Series Drip Coffee Glass Coffee Maker, which gives users the ability to make their drip as strong as they like without any bitterness. Plus, it looks really cool, making it one of the best kitchen gifts out there.

5. Cuisinart Toaster

BEST TOASTER

If we added up all the money we’ve spent on inexpensive toasters over the years, it would be more than the high-end Cuisinart Toaster. Give people the gift of a toaster that will last for years and comes with settings for bread, bagels, English muffins, waffle, and pastries, all in a sleek and silver finish.

6. Zwilling Fresh And Save Vacuum Sealer Set

BEST MONEY SAVER

Throwing out spoiled, freezer-burned food is upsetting on so many levels, from wasted money to wasted time and resources. That’s why we like the Zwilling Fresh And Save Vacuum Sealer Set, which comes with everything users need to keep their meat, fruit, and veggies fresh in bags and glass containers. There’s even a companion app that helps users track their food storage!

7. Five Two Bamboo Cutting Board

BEST CUTTING BOARD

Whether you’re vegan or a meat-eater, love to cook, or just want somewhere to make toast, a quality cutting board is a must-have for every kitchen. The Five Two Bamboo Cutting Board has one of the best multi-use designs we’ve ever seen in the kitchen. The eco-friendly bamboo board is naturally antimicrobial and water-resistant, has a ridge for catching juices, and the double-sided board even has a place to put your smartphone. Brilliant!

8. Expandable Countertop Rack

FOR SMALL KITCHENS

Kitchen real estate is the most prime of all the real estate in the home, so gift someone extra space with the Expandable Countertop Rack from Food52. Stack mugs, spices, jars, hang oven mitts, and washcloths — just enjoy having somewhere to put all your stuff. Kitchens have so much stuff.

9. SodaStream Fizzi Sparkling Water Maker

BEST HYDRATOR

We’re not sure what we did before getting our SodaStream Fizzi Sparkling Water Maker. Actually, we do know. We carried a lot of cans and bottles of sparkling water into the kitchen and made too many trips to the recycling box. If you have a fizzy water drinker in your life, become their favorite person ever and gift them a SodaStream. It’s a kitchen gift anyone is sure to love.

10. Dash Mini Waffle Maker

BEST BUDGET BUY

If waking up to fresh waffles doesn’t get your day started off on a positive note, we don’t know what will. The super-popular Dash Mini Waffle Maker comes in a variety of bright colors and is a perfect present for people with limited storage space or those who want an easy way to enjoy a fresh waffle in a hurry.

11. Gourmet Oil Dipping Spice Kit

MOST DELICIOUS GIFT

When you dip, I dip, we all dip with the Gourmet Oil Dipping Spice Kit. A great kitchen gift for those who love to entertain, the kit includes 15 herbs and spices from around the world that can be paired with olive oil to make delicious dips. We like that the kit also comes with a guide on how to pair the spices with different loaves of bread, as well as recipes for making your own bread.

12. Row Boat Serving Bowl with Wood Serving Utensils

BEST SALAD BOWL

Make every salad fun with the Row Boat Serving Bowl with Wood Serving Utensils. The unique design is great for entertaining and comes with built-in holders for your oars (serving tools). Serve salad, fruit, a side dish, or anything else that fits in this nautical-themed dish.

13. Hard Anodized Aluminum Nonstick Fry Pan Set by All-Clad

BEST FRYING PAN SET

Whether you’re gifting a cooking newbie or an iron chef, every kitchen needs a quality set of frying pans. We like the hard anodized aluminum set by All-Clad, which includes 8” and 10” frying pans. The dishwasher-safe pans are compatible with just about every stovetop and they’re oven safe up to 500 degrees Fahrenheit.

14. AeroGarden Harvest Elite

BEST INDOOR GARDEN

Show off your green thumb without having to rely on Mother Nature thanks to the AeroGarden Harvest Elite. The user-friendly herb garden can be used just about anywhere in the home, including the kitchen. Each garden comes with six gourmet herbs to get gardeners started and will quickly have chefs enjoying fresh herbs without any mess or trips to the grocery store.

15. Yankee Candle MidSummer’s Night Signature Large Tumbler Candle

FOR COVERING SCENTS

Did you burn dinner, recently cook fish, or forget to take out the trash? For a kitchen gift that will keep kitchens smelling great no matter what happened behind the stove, we like the Yankee Candle MidSummer’s Night Signature Large Tumbler Candle. SPY received a sample of the new line of Signature scents from Yankee candle and love all the additions, including MidSummer’s Night, which smells great whether your kitchen has been busy with new foods or just take out.

The Best Gifts for New and Seasoned Bakers

Love what you’re seeing? Follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook and be the first to hear about new product launches, the latest trends and can’t miss deals you won’t find anywhere else.