Why we love KidKraft Play Kitchens

If you have a curious toddler at home, chances are you’ve seen how they can be engrossed in imaginative play!

Play kitchens are great for allowing kids to explore and express themselves creatively, that’s why we’ve compiled a list of the best kitchen sets in this play kitchen review.

Best Play Kitchens for your Little Chef

We’ve done our best to sift through the best play kitchens for your budding little chef!

Your kids and toddlers will spend hours preparing tasty meals on these realistic and durable KidKraft Play Kitchens:

Best Corner Kitchen for Interactive Play: KidKraft Ultimate Corner Wooden Play Kitchen

We’re absolutely in love with this stylish and realistic corner kitchen!

If you’re a little tight on playroom space, the compact curved L-shaped design will make the most out of every nook and cranny. There’s even extra storage space under the kitchen sink and a helpful refrigerator rack that makes the toy all the more realistic.

Why we love it

This kitchen set comes complete with an oven, a washing machine, and interactive kitchen appliances. The best part? It’s made of durable wood, so it’s not likely that you’ll hear the sound of cheap cracking plastic any time soon. Your kids will love the little details that make this play kitchen engaging and cozy. All the little knobs, buttons, and handles work like the one in mom and dad’s kitchen. There’s even a cordless phone, fabric curtains, and a gorgeous tile detail that will enrich the creative play experience.

Our kids loved that the burners and ice cooler make realistic sounds while they’re whipping up a meal. The burners glow red and make frying sounds that our kids love! There are lots of interactive knobs, handles, and buttons that will keep your kids engaged for hours while also helping develop their fine motor and gross motor skills. There are also enough appliances and workstations so kids can learn how to multi-task, just like mom and dad.

If your kids have many playmates, there’s enough counter space, storage space, and appliances that a few kids can share at the same time. Kids love opening all the functional doors and organizing all their food and cooking supplies.

What we want to see

The only downside might be that it takes about 90+ steps to assemble the whole set. If you’re not too familiar with assembling furniture, the process might take you at most 3 hours.

Overall, it’s one of the best KidKraft Play Kitchens if you’re particular about realistic and interactive details.

Best Combo Kitchen Play Set – KidKraft Two-piece Retro Kitchen

If you’re looking for a chic retro kitchen that will fit right in a quirky home, this one’s for your little chef! The combo playset comes in adorable teal that won’t be an eyesore in your living room or kitchen.

Why we love it

The kitchen set comes in a two-piece modular design, so it’s easy to re-arrange the kitchen set according to your preferred design layout. Your little one can learn all about multi-tasking with the many appliances included: a stylish two-door refrigerator, a burner, oven, and washing machine. All knobs and handles provide a realistic touch that will keep your toddler engaged for hours. Compartments can be opened and closed, but it can be difficult for very young toddlers to open as they can get stuck.

What we want to see

The set is made of plastic – we wished that the washing machine and refrigerator could have a sturdier base, especially since toddlers have a hard time opening compartments. We also wished there were more storage spaces for all of our kids’ cooking sets and food toys. It’s also a little smaller than we expected, so it’s perfect for toddlers up to three years at most. The countertop is about 21-inches, while the refrigerator is about 27.5-inches tall.

We loved the simple yet chic design of the components. The combo set is easier to assemble the most KidKraft toys, so it won’t take you more than two hours to complete the whole assembly. The beautiful design is nostalgic – mom and dad will remember their own childhood while whipping up some meals with their little chef!

Best Rustic Farm Kitchen – KidKraft Wooden Farm to Table Play Kitchen

If your home has a more boho design, why not choose a KidKraft kitchen set that fits the bill? We are in love with this rustic farmhouse-style kitchen with wood accents and metal details.

Why we love it

This modern yet rustic farm-to-table kitchen set comes with thoughtfully designed pieces that will make creative play all the more engaging! Your little ones will love the mini metal cookware including a pan, pot, and spatula. There are even small metal hanging hooks that will help your kids keep the play area clean and classy.

This is the perfect kitchen if you want to subtly teach your kids about healthy and organic living. Let them know how fun it is to care for indoor herbs and plants with the adorable teal planter boxes. The playset comes with a wooden crate of vegetables and a wooden knife and chopping board – each ingredient is “cuttable” with velcro, so they make a fun chopping sound whenever your little chef is preparing a meal.

The details like the knife slot, collapsible wood-grain fabric drawer inserts, menu chalkboard, removable shelf rack, and chalkboard are thoughtful additions. The burner and faucet that light up and make sounds also provide a realistic touch! The stove burners make the sound of a gas burner as they light up red, followed by the sound of a bubbling pot once it’s fully turned on. The sounds aren’t distractingly loud, and they even have timers in cakes your little chefs leave the faucet or stove running. There’s also an ice dispenser that releases ice plastic ice cubes when the button is pressed.

What we want to see

While the product is marked as an EZ Kraft Assembly, some parents had a hard time assembling the playset, with some taking more than two hours. Some components were hard to handle.

While that’s the case, it’s still a very thoughtful kitchen set that makes an enriching play experience.

Best Wooden Play Kitchen – KidKraft Uptown Espresso Kitchen

Are you looking for a modern play kitchen with interactive components yet doesn’t take too much space?

Here’s a modern-style kitchen that will blend perfectly in your home, thanks to its compact design and chic dark wood detail, and granite countertops.

Why we love it

The gender-neutral design is perfect for encouraging both girls and boys to engage in interactive play that will help develop their social skills. That’s why it’s great that the playset comes with enough counter space and appliances that kids can share at once.

We love that this play kitchen is realistic and fully equipped with all the details you’d find in your actual kitchen. The stainless steel appliances might even look better than the ones you own! There’s also a food prep area, an oven, a dishwasher, a microwave, a refrigerator, and a freezer. All knobs and compartments are functional so that kids can have an interactive play experience. We love the details of a cordless phone, oven rack, wooden storage rod, and hanging blackboard that will keep your little chefs engaged for hours.

This KidKraft Uptown Espresso kitchen set is made with solid pressed wood materials, which keep the set up stable and durable. This makes it more realistic and therefore more for children to play together in their toy kitchen.

With a detailed toy comes many parts, which means that assembly can get complicated – if you don’t have much experience assembling furniture it could take you about four hours. There aren’t any lights on this kitchen set either, but it’s easy to install some touch lights if you’d like to spruce up the design even more.

Other than that, it’s a beautiful play kitchen that will look chic in any home. Did we mention this is an award-winning kitchen set?

Best Vintage Style Play Kitchen – KidKraft Vintage Kitchen

This KidKraft vintage kitchen is as stylish as it gets! The design is the perfect retro throwback when all kitchens have a monotone design with sleek stainless steel details. The design is available in striking red, pink, and classic all-white.

Why we love it

The KidKraft Vintage Toy Kitchen has open-style shelving, the old-school ice thermometer on the cooler, and a cordless phone.

These are some of the small details that make this kitchen set realistic and interactive! There won’t be a lack of engaging role play as kids will enjoy learning about cooking, food prep, and even how to call up guests for dinner.

The set is made with high-quality, durable wood, which means that your little ones can perfect their recipes in the years to come. All other plastic components are BPA-free and built to last. They’ll enjoy preparing meals with all the kitchen appliances and cookware that come with this retro kitchen. All knobs and compartments are functional, which helps to develop your child’s fine motor skills.

What we want to see

It’s easy to assemble, but the instructions can get troublesome as there isn’t any text that accompanies the assembly instructions – just photos. Some reviews mention that white paint can turn yellow over time. The plastic grey handles and knobs would have been more engaging if they were rotatable. The kitchen is also relatively small, so it’s best for solo playing and smaller children. Shared playing will get cramped with two or more kids.

Other than that, this stylish and functional retro kitchen will keep your kids engaged for hours on end, thanks to its many interactive features and appliances.

Best Play Kitchen for Sharing – KidKraft Grand Gourmet Corner Kitchen

This retro-style corner kitchen is fully equipped with everything a budding gourmet chef needs! The generous counter space, steel cookware, and wide selection of appliances are perfect if your child has a lot of playmates.

Why we love it

The set is complete with a metal cookware set (pan, pot, spatula, ladle), an oven, microwave, washing machine, wash bin, and functional doors that will keep your kids and their playmates engaged for hours. The cute pink design with chic silver accents is made eleven better with thoughtful details like the menu chalkboard and the kitchen curtains.

The counter is 21 inches high, which makes it perfect for kids 4 years old up to 8 years old. The set doesn’t come with very small pieces so that younger toddlers can pretend with their older playmates under supervision. The play kitchen does have some unstable climbing surfaces, like the oven door that opens from the top, so make sure to watch out for that.  The set is made from durable and non-toxic medium density fiberboard, so it’ll be a neighborhood favorite for years to come.

What we want to see

Assembly has about 43 steps so that it can get tiresome after 3 to 5 hours. All parts are color-coordinated, which makes the assembly easier. Although thastovetopt’s not explicitly said in the instructions which complicated our process. Some screws and bits were also a little difficult to fit.

Even though this is a corner design, the piece has some unsightly holes on the back of the kitchen and storage spaces. Some parents opted to cover up these annoying holes with art paper or wallpaper.

Other than that, the kitchen set is a sturdy toy that has lots of details playmates will love exploring!

Best for Growing Boys and Girls – KidKraft Large Wooden Play Kitchen with Lights & Sounds

Play Kitchens can be expensive, so why not invest in one that will last all through your kids’ childhood? This large play kitchen will be your toddler’s go-to toy in the next 5 or so years!

Why we love it

This modern-style wooden toy kitchen is made from high-quality and sturdy wood materials that last for the years to come. It’s also one of the taller play kitchens you’ll find with the 24-inch countertops, so it’s not likely that your kids will outgrow the design soon. The kitchen is very wide at 45 inches – kids will have a lot of fun sharing this with their playmates. Children from one to 8 years old have an awesome time whipping up a feast on this play kitchen!

The play kitchen is designed with a modern touch – from the metal details to the induction stovetop and the faucet spray nozzle. The oven knobs make a clicking sound when turned, but it would have been better if the burners light up and glow red.

There are also lots of interactive appliances and details that keep your kids engaged for hours on end. The ice maker lights up and makes a realistic sound when used! Your kids will also enjoy playing pretend with the spray nozzle, functional oven, refrigerator, and microwave doors, and washer doors. There’s also an open shelf above the washer that you kids can use as extra storage space.

There are a few things that we’d like to see in this play kitchen, though. The burners do not light up and make sounds, to the disappointment of many customers who trusted the “lights and sound” label on the model. It would have been great if that feature was added as well, like the other KidKraft models.

Assembly is also a little complicated, even with the instructions. It might take you two hours up to four hours kist to get the play kitchen up and running. We would have appreciated it if the screws and bolts were labeled more meticulously – some had similar labels, which made assembly more complicated than necessary.

Other than that, this play kitchen is one of the most sturdy models you’ll find. It also comes larger than most, so your kids and their playmates can enjoy playing in this modern kitchen in the years to come.

Food for thought

Before you make the purchase, there are some shopping considerations you have to factor in.

Especially if you have very young children, make sure to check the materials used and the sturdiness. There are lots of affordable KidKraft wood kitchens that use sturdy hardwood or plywood.

A compact kitchen is great if you have limited space, but older kids might not find it engaging enough with the limited accessories. Make sure to factor in the projected assembly time and how well reviewers fare with the instruction manual. You wouldn’t want to come up with an unassembled play kitchen on Christmas, would you?

Conclusion – Bon appetit!

With families stuck at home during the pandemic, it can be challenging to find an avenue for your kids and toddlers to have stimulating opportunities to play!

Pretend play isn’t just a fun activity – it’s essential for encouraging creativity and the development of your child’s emotional, social, motor, and cognitive skills. It’s the perfect way for younger toddlers and older kids to play and work together, experiment, and learn how to use new tools properly.