Shop for all the best toddler play food that your kids will enjoy for years and years. Pretend play, here they come! I’m sharing play food sets and kitchen accessories to fit all price points.
Best Play Food
Whether they’re whipping up a silly snack for a sibling, heading to a pretend farmers market, or setting up a picnic with dolls, toddlers (and older kids, too) love to make believe with pretend food. A play food set is a great way for kids to boost their imaginations, and it can also help them learn about and get familiar with foods (including vegetables) outside of mealtime.
There are so many adorable play food sets and play kitchen accessories available today for basically any type of cuisine and price point you could want. Here are some of the best to pair with a play kitchen or to use on their own.
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Best Toddler Play Food Set
In my mind, the best play food set is the one the kids will actually use; it’s durable and easy to clean when needed; and it allows for a lot of options for pretend play and creativity.
I love all of these sets and starting with any one of them would be a great fun for any toddler or preschooler! Find options including baskets, cookie sets, pretend play food, items to shop for at a pretend grocery store, and more to inspire imaginative play.
Best Wooden Play Food: Melissa & Doug Food Groups
Learning about food groups while having fun? That’s a definite win! This set of 21 hand-painted foods—including cheese, watermelon, tomatoes, fish, and much more—comes with four wooden crates for sorting and storing. It’s perfect for a young child or toddler and is fun enough to be used with older siblings, too. And it’s priced at under $20.
(Also be sure to check out the brand’s wooden Smoothie Set and Sushi Set, which are both super cute.)
Realistic Play Food: KidKraft Play Food Set
If your kids are always trying to play with your pots and pans, this set is for you! With 11 pieces including 2 kid-size metal pans, a pot with a lid, and a spatula and ladle for realistic pretend cooking, this set is so fun, and it’s under $20.
It also comes with a few pieces of food—some broccoli, a chicken leg, and an ear of corn, to name a few—and pairs well with a play kitchen and play dishes.
Best Dessert Play Food: Green Toys Cupcake Set
It doesn’t get much sweeter than this toy. Kids can mix and match cupcake liners, cake, and frosting to make 5 cupcakes that all fit perfectly on an adorable stand. Plus, everything is made from 100% recycled plastic milk jugs for under $20. How awesome is that?
There are endless opportunities for the kiddos to play with this set.
Best Play Food Cutting Set: iPlay, iLearn Cutting & Cooking Toy
Your kids will love using the wooden knife and cutting board to slice, dice, and put back together this array of 26 magnetic wooden foods. It’s especially nice that this set includes some less common fruits and veggies, like passionfruit and kiwi, along with the more classic options.
Plus, the wooden toys come in a cute canister for easy storage. These are a favorite to pair with a kids’ kitchen set and to play with pretend ingredients for favorite kids’ recipe.
Best Learning Resources Play Food: New Sprouts Fresh Fruit Salad Set
Kids can fill their bowls with delicious fruit salad by scooping their choices out of the main bowl (or in this case, large watermelon!) and into their personal bowl, just like they would at the real dinner table. The Learning Resources plastic food items are very high quality, easy to clean, and made to last.
All for under $25! You might also like their Stir Fry and Soup sets!
Best Felt Food Set: Melissa & Doug Felt Food Sandwich Set
Move over, corner deli! Your kids are about to be making the best lunches in town with this array of 33 breads, deli meats, cheeses, and toppings for less than $20. Bonus: All the creative sandwich making might just inspire them to branch out at the actual lunch table, too.
(Looking for another fun felt food option? Try this Pizza Set.)
TIP: Play kitchen food is so fun and I’m glad that we have it as an option, especially when we’re stuck in the house on rainy days. You can find my top picks for play kitchens and shopping carts to round out your collection of play food!
Best Tips
- Have a dedicated bin for storing all your play food.
- Let the kids explore the play food on their own or with you as another way to learn about food.
- Bring some of the pretend food into the kitchen for the kids to use while you cook.
- Pair with a kitchen set, pots and pans, and a kids table for ultimate fun.
- Check out my Favorite Toddler Toys and Gifts for my full list of favorites.
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Best Play Pots and Pans
I’d love to hear your feedback on this post and if you have any recommendations for play kitchen food that I might have missed, so please comment below to share!
This post was first published September 2020.
