The Best Gifts for Cooks, From Steak Knives to Serving Bowls

Stephanie Stanley

There’s no denying that food is our greatest unifier. Athena encapsulated this sentiment perfectly in Cook Beautiful when she wrote; “A shared meal nourishes so much more than our bodies—it feeds our souls. It ignites our senses. It evokes a time and place we long to hold on to and remember.” We couldn’t agree more. There’s nothing quite like the merriment, connection, and fulfillment a simple gathering around a table of food can bring. If you share this culinary fondness with someone special, then we know you’ll find the perfect present in our best gifts for cooks guide. Everything’s here from kitchen tools to dinner plates, everyday tumblers, olive oil/balsamic vinegar pairings, and so much more! We’re pretty sure you’ll be adding two of each to cart—one for you and one for your loved one!

Want more options? Check out our gift guide hub for thoughtful present ideas to spoil your special someone this year!

1. Public Goods Wine Glasses (Set of 4)

This sleek, hand-blown glass is a beautiful gift for the wine aficionado but is also the perfect vessel for serving Aperol Spritz, your favorite sparkling water, or fizzy kombucha.

2. Vintage Rolling Pins

Rolling out dough can be a tedious task but these vintage pins make it easy with their smooth curved handle that fits perfectly in the curvature of your hand.

3. Cook Beautiful by Athena Calderone

Divided into seasons, this classic cookbook helps you indulge your cravings using fresh ingredients that do all the work for you. Athena also includes styling tips for plating your dish and setting the table. Yes, we can all cook beautiful too!

4. Evermill The Counter Top Spice Rack

Equally elegant on your countertop or mounted to your wall, this rack keeps your spices organized and close at hand. All spices are included and 100% organic.

5. Grigor Mortar & Pestle

No kitchen is complete without a mortar & pestle. This one doubles as décor.

6. Brass Cookbook Holder

Every home cook needs a cookbook holder. This one is for the minimalist at heart.

7. Eva Solo North America 7.25'' Specialty Knife

For the amateur chef who wants to step things up a notch.

8. Gjusta Chili Vinegar

Ahh, Gjusta... if you know, you know! The famous Venice Beach store is brimming with treasures and culinary delights (their bakery is legendary!). This chili vinegar is made in-house with jalepeño, dried oregano, rosemary, and white wine vinegar.

9. SKAGERAK Hammer Grinder

Inspired by the Danish island of Bornholm and the nature around the old fortress of Hammershus, this stylish salt and pepper set belongs on your favorite foodies counter.

10. Raku Casserole Dish

Whether used as an oven-to-table serving dish at your next dinner party or as a tray to hold items in the living room, this ceramic piece is sure to elevate any space.

11. Wide Mesh Tote

Lightweight and flexible, this 100% organic cotton wide mesh tote bag is easy to carry and expands to fit everything from a bushel of carrots to several bottles of wine so it's perfect for your loved one's weekend farmers market haul.

12. Vermicular Frying Pan

A stylish frying pan does not exiss... introducing the Vermicular Frying Pan, successfully recalibrating your expectations of cast iron cooking, one ridiculously chic frying pan at a time. Weighing just 2.4 pounds, this non-toxic and rust-proof pan can be easily maneuvered with one hand. Oh, and no seasoning required. Boom!

13. Bona Furtuna Romeo & Juliet Gift Set

Name a more perfect pairing than olive oil and balsamic vinegar? We'll wait. This delectable set includes the delicious Bona Furtuna Biancolilla Centinara EVOO olive oil with the Bona Furtuna 12-year Aged Tradizionale DOP Balsamic Vinegar. Transport your loved one to Italy without leaving your kitchen.

14. JUST A SQUEEZE MARBLE CITRUS REAMER

Squeeze your citrus in style with this beautiful marble reamer.

15. Hawkins New York Kitchen Essentials Set

We're of the belief that everything, no matter how utilitarian, can be beautiful too. Case in point, this stunning kitchen essentials set.

16. Our Place Always Pan Set

Once you have an Always Pan, you'll never use anything else. Well, maybe you will but we guarantee this will be one of the most-used pans in your kitchen. Why? It just is the most convenient size and depth to cook most things plus it has a steamer insert, too.

17. HAWKINS NEW YORK Simple Cast Iron Bowl - Set of 5

Cast iron is one of our favorite materials for cooking. This set looks stylish while it's working hard.

18. FARMHOUSE SPICE JAR, EGGSHELL

Who wouldn't want to cook using spices from this beautiful jar?

19. HORS D'OEUVRES SET - PIXIE WOOD

Handcrafted using offcuts of exotic Pixie wood from Guatemala’s Peten Jungle, this knife, spreader, and small serving spoon set have been designed with cocktail hours, hors d’oeurves, and cheeseboards in mind.

20. ALABASTER ROLLING PIN

Alabaster everythinnnnnnnggggg...

21. RW GUILD RINKA MUG BY KANEKO KOHYO

Never did we ever see a mug we loved more.

22. Banda Spoons

If you hadn't already noticed a theme here, we love beautiful handcrafted wooden kitchen tools.

23. Luzon Bowls

These bowls have a simple minimal appearance with an old-world shape.

24. Condiment Plate

No two are the same, making this the perfect catch-all dish to serve food or sit pretty all on its own.

25. Fluted Wall Crock

All of those beautifully designed wooden spoons need a stylish home after all.

26. Low Marble Bowls

Marble bowls — need we say more?

27. Zing spoon

Minimal, simple, beautiful.

28. Gir Ultimate Bundle

There is nothing quite like the gift of new kitchen tools. This silicone set is BPA and BPS-free, dishwasher-safe, and stain, odor, and microbe-resistant. Oh, and it's also heat resistant to 550°F. Plus, they're impossibly chic, no? Yep, practical and pretty.

29. Le Creuset ® Signature 5.5 qt. Round Cream Dutch Oven with Lid

Le Creuset's classic French cookware is prized for its utilitarian good looks and unsurpassed heat retention.

30. Wooden magnetic knife holder

Don't leave your favorite knives just laying around, they deserve to be hung like art!

31. VERMONT BERRY COLANDER, GRANITE

Skip the usual metal variety for this pretty granite version.

32. Material Kitchen Trio of Knives

Athena has often spoken of her fondness for Material Kitchen's knives because they're good, like really good!

33. Smeg '50s Retro Style Two-Slice Toaster

Go back to the future with this retro toaster.

34. KEEP IT EXACT WALNUT WOOD MEASURING SPOONS

We'll have one of everything.

35. Fellow Ode Electric Brew Grinder

Make a fresh brew every day with this electric grinder. Now that's an aroma we want to wake up to.

36. Jara Serving Bowl

Serving bowls that double as decorative objects will always get a yes in our books.

37. CLERK POUR OVER STAND

A pour-over coffee never looked so enticing.

38. STONED Alexis Rectangular Board - Extra Small

We love marble in all of its forms, shapes, and colors.

39. Wooden Cake Stand

No kitchen is complete without a cake stand. These also double as pedestals for serving meals in style at dinner parties or charcuterie board in a pinch.

40. Modern Sprout Tumbler Mint Grow Kit

Have fresh herbs at arm's length with these awesome grow kits.

41. Linen Apron

An apron is always a good idea.

42. Kyoord High-Phenolic Olive Oil

Made in Corfu, Greece, this world class extra virgin olive oil will take you beyond taste, beyond wellness, beyond the everyday.

43. BROYT UPSTATE TOBACCO BRUSHED DINNER PLATE

Serve your culinary creations in style with these beautiful hand-brushed dinner plates.

44. NORR TRAY

Even if you're just eating for one or two at home, serving it in style creates a ceremony that elevates your dining experience.

45. Beast Blender

If you haven't heard of the Beast Blender yet, then prepare to be amazed. This thoughtfully designed modern blender is more than just a pretty face. Its 1000-watt motor will blend everything fast, and we do mean everything. From apple to celery, just throw it all in, seal the lid, snap onto the base, and blend away into a super smooth liquid. The best part? It monitors the internal temperature to avoid overheating and blending of hot liquids, too. It's awesome.

46. Shinola Runwell Jumbo Steak Knives, Set of 4

Whether you're tucking into a bone-in ribeye or a rack of lamb, you'll appreciate the heft and craft of these steak knives, not to mention they look incredible, too. Each handle is made of a different type of wood—ash, beech, oak, or walnut—and is accented by copper rivets.

47. Linen Tea Towel

Tea towels can always use an upgrade!

48. BROWN NOVAH PITCHER

We're always looking for ways to up our water intake and these beauties would surely make us drink the recommended eight glasses a day.

49. LIMONADA SPOON, SET OF 2, SMALL AND LARGE

Each set is hand-crafted and hand-finished by skilled woodworkers in the Peten region of Guatemala using only sustainably harvested, locally sourced, FSC certified wood from the heart of the Guatemalan jungle.

50. PAPIER MACHÉ BOWL

We love the charm of the hand and these bowls show the attention to detail.

51. Ooni Koda 16 Pizza Oven

If you're trying to find the perfect gift for a pizza fanatic, then we found "the one."

Crate & Barrel Stovetop Popcorn Popper Black

52. Stovetop Popcorn Popper Black

For those home chefs who are also movie buffs.

53. KEEP IT NEUTRAL MARBLE CREAMER AND SUGAR BOWL

We really can't see any reason not to buy one of everything made from marble. It just makes everything, and we mean everything, look better. Right?

54. Balmuda The Kettle

Take it from us, this kettle will be treasured by those who are gifted it. Easy to use and light to handle, it's the perfect size for common kitchen needs, holding just enough water for three standard cups of coffee or two large mugs.

55. Tomos Maple Cutting Boards with Leather Straps

Stylish and useful -- two words we want to describe almost everything we own.

56. Rustic SOAPDISH with strainer

Washing your hands never looked so damn stylish.

57. Brown Leather Coolers

Coolers just got a majorly stylish upgrade.

58. Click & Grow Smart Garden 3 Self Watering Indoor Garden

Herbs are the secret ingredient to making every dish taste like a restaurant. Now you can grow fresh herbs or vegetables in this self-watering indoor garden. The kit includes the planter base, which features a built-in water reservoir that holds a month's worth of water, an LED lamp arm to provide vital light, and three basil starter pods, so you can get growing right away.

59. Aarke Matte Black Sparkling Water Carbonator III

We truly cannot think of a better gift for every home cook, or home body, than this über stylish sparkling water carbonator. It's just a stunning design.

60. BALMUDA The Toaster Oven

The humble toaster oven is an icon but for years it's never been given the stylish exterior it deserves, until now. Thank you, Balmuda!

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