The Best Toddler Play Kitchen- Melissa & Doug Chef’s Kitchen Review

The Best Toddler Play Kitchen- Melissa & Doug Chef’s Kitchen Review

I’m writing this Melissa & Doug Chef’s Kitchen review after buying one for my daughter’s second birthday. 

I recommend play kitchens for kids who are beginning to play pretend- they’ll use it for years to come! 

Keep reading to find out if the Melissa & Doug Chef’s Kitchen is right for your toddler!

Some of the links below are affiliate links. This means that, at zero cost to you, I will earn an affiliate commission if you click through the link and finalize a purchase.

The Best Toddler Play Kitchen- Melissa & Doug Chef’s Kitchen Review

The kitchen is available in white, stainless steel, and pink. Click the image to see more details on this awesome toy kitchen on Amazon.

Pros

  • Comes with all the kitchen features- stove, oven, microwave, sink, fridge, freezer, ice cube dispenser
  • Attractive, stylish wooden design 
  • Plenty of storage space for accessories 
  • Straightforward to assemble
  • Will last for several years as your child grows
  • Fits easily along a wall or in a corner
  • Large enough for multiple children to play at once
  • Available in 3 colors- white, charcoal, and cupcake (pink)

Cons

  • Time consuming to assemble 
  • Doesn’t come with many accessories 
  • May be too large for small spaces
The Best Toddler Play Kitchen- melissa and doug chef's kitchen review photo
This toy kitchen fits perfectly in the corner of my living room!

Features

Your child will love the many features of the Melissa & Doug Chef’s Kitchen (click to view on Amazon)! It has so many perfect details that make it realistic and fun! 

Honestly, even the pink kitchen looks nicer than my kitchen! The white and charcoal ones look tasteful in any room of your house. 

Most of the parts are high quality wood with lots of details, like the microwave buttons and the picture frame on the fridge! A few parts are plastic, like the knobs, dials, and handles.

My daughter plays with the kitchen set daily and it’s still in excellent shape. And reviewers on Amazon say their children use the set for 3+ years and it remains in great condition! (Related posts: What do you do with a toddler while you’re cooking? A kitchen set is one great options, read about more ideas here!)

Stove and Oven

The oven and stove are a key part of any kitchen! And this play kitchen mimics the real thing very well!

The cook top has four burners with grates and four knobs to set the (pretend) temperature. The knobs make a satisfying clicking noise when you turn them! 

And the oven has pretend buttons to set the temperature, and a swinging door. Plus it has one shelf, so you can store more stuff inside or your toddler can cook lots of stuff at once! 

Microwave

The microwave has a door that swings open, and buttons to set the time. Most importantly to many toddlers, they can make the food in the microwave spin by turning the knob underneath! 

Sink

I wish my daughter could wash real dishes as thoroughly as she washes her toys! The little sink fits a toy pot, pan, or plate. And the faucet has a knob kids can rotate, plus the faucet itself swivels.

Right next to the sink, there’s a clipboard for the grocery list!

Fridge, Freezer, and  Ice Cube Dispenser

ice dispenser

The play kitchen comes with a fridge with one shelf. Personally, I wish it had one or two more shelves, but it works just fine as is! 

The ice cube dispenser is a great touch and comes with 2 huge ice cubes that don’t pose a choking hazard. Put the ice cubes into the dispenser inside the fridge. Then close the fridge, press the handle, and they pop right out! 

Finally, the freezer is another great storage spot. It even has a picture frame on the door where your child could put a piece of artwork or photograph!

Related post: Looking for more toys to spark your little one’s imagination? Here are our favorite awesome baby doll accessories for your toddler!

Storage Space

Like any good kitchen, the Melissa & Doug Chef’s Kitchen has lots of storage space. There’s a little shelf above the sink.  And another below the sink. Plus, there’s an open area under the counter next to the oven. 

If you wanted to get creative, you could also add hooks or shelves to the outside walls of the playset! 

Specifications 

  • Shipping dimensions: 43.25 x 15.5 x 39 inches
  • Weight: 31 pounds 
  • Assembled dimensions: 39″ high x 43.25″ long x 15.5″ wide
  • The kitchen set is mostly made of wood. The handles and accessories are plastic. 

How long does it take to build Melissa and Doug Chef’s Kitchen?

It takes one to three hours to build the Melissa and Doug Chef’s Kitchen.

The instructions are easy to follow, but the kitchen has many pieces that require assembly. 

My two year old’s review

I love my kitchen! My favorite activities are:

  • Opening and closing the doors
  • Turning the clicky knobs on the stove
  • Dispensing ice cubes
  • Carrying the food around the house
  • Watching Mom and Dad clean up the food
  • Microwaving a tomato
  • Wearing the colander on my head

Accessories

Unfortunately the kitchen set doesn’t include any accessories (except for the ice cubes). Luckily, there are tons of great options to choose from. I selected these ones to start out and my daughter has loved them all, and they’re great quality. 

Melissa & Doug Stainless Steel Pots & Pans Set Review

melissa and doug pots and pans set

To cook in the kitchen, your toddler will need some pots and pans (click to view on Amazon)! This 8 piece set includes two skillets, a pot with a lid, a colander, a spatula, a spoon, and a storage rack.

The pots, pans, and storage rack are all stainless steel, and the utensils are wood. They look so realistic that the only negative reviews I could find were from people who thought they were real cookware and were disappointed to find out they are children’s toys!

The pots are even dishwasher safe! 

Some parents like to bring these pots and pans in the real kitchen while they cook so their toddler can “cook” too, or eat snacks out of them.

Click the image to see more details on Amazon.

Related post: Best Android Apps for 3 Year Olds

Melissa & Doug Food Groups Review

melissa and doug food groups accessory

Now that we have cookware, we need food! Some kids are perfectly fine imagining food in their kitchen and that’s fine too.

Anyways, this set includes four wooden crates with different wooden foods in them (click to view on Amazon):

  1. Bread: 2 slices of toast, loaf of bread, hamburger bun set 
  2. Meat: pork chop or steak,  hotdog, hamburger, chicken drumstick, fish
  3. Dairy: cheese wedge, cheese wheel, milk carton, butter, egg 
  4. Fruit and vegetables: tomato, orange, lemon, banana, watermelon slice, onion

Kids will love using them to create and cook their own meals. 

The high quality wood toys are durable and have a lot of detail. The milk container even has a picture of a cow on it. And the cheese has holes so it looks like swiss. Definitely worth the price! 

My two year old likes the rattling sounds the different foods make when she stirs them in the pots and pans!

Click the image to see more details on Amazon.

Related post: 36+ activities to do with a one year old at home

melissa and doug slice and bake cookie set

My sister gave the Slice and Bake Cookie Set (click to view on Amazon) to my two year old for her birthday. The wooden cookies themselves come in a tube where they’re velcroed together. First, kids can use the wooden knife to slice the cookie dough. Then they can use the velcro to put them on the wooden cookie sheet and into the oven, where it fits perfectly! Finally, they can wear the oven mitt to take the cookies out and decorate them with the velcro toppings.

Kids will love stacking and slicing the cookies, and arranging them on the baking sheet. 

I definitely recommend the Slice and Bake Cookie Set to go along with any kitchen set! 

Click the image to see more details on Amazon.

Related post: Thinking for going outdoors? Best Toddler Sleeping Bags for Camping!

Take Me Away Wooden Food Cutting Set Review

toddler food cutting set kitchen toy accessory

Last of all, I got my daughter some fruits and veggies to “cut” (click to view on Amazon).

Like the cookie set, velcro holds the two pieces together, and the child can use a wooden knife that’s included with the set to chop them apart. 

I wasn’t sure if my two year old would have the manual dexterity to play with these. But after showing her a few times, she got it and loves to play with these every day!

The wooden tray fits perfectly into the kitchen refrigerator too!

Click the image to see more details on Amazon.

Is a play kitchen worth the price? 

Play kitchens can be expensive. But they’re well worth the money for several reasons:

  1. Kids can use them from 1-6 years old! 
  2. Doctors and educators recommend toys that encourage children to make-believe.
  3. Children can play with toy kitchens in so many ways, they’ll never get old. From cooking to serving meals to family, to playing restaurant and more!
  4. Toy kitchens are great for kids to play with alone, together with their friends, or even with their parents. 
  5. Accessories don’t need to be expensive. While I recommend several accessories above, there’s no reason you couldn’t give your child extra utensils from your own kitchen instead. 

Related post: Simple bingo dauber craft for toddlers 

Wrap up- Melissa & Doug Chef’s Kitchen Review 

melissa and doug chefs kitchen set review pin

I highly recommend a kitchen set for any family with young children. And I hope my in-depth Melissa & Doug Chef’s Kitchen review helps you understand if it’s the right choice for you. If you have the space and the time to assemble it, it should be a no- brainer! 

Related post: Looking for more toys for ages 1+? Here are my favorite latch boards for toddlers!

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