I take my holiday gift shopping very seriously — if not for my giftee, for my own serotonin-seeking purposes. There’s nothing quite as satisfying as finding the right N/A cocktail bundle for your aunt, or a cake stand that doubles as a chip and dip bowl (the in-laws will love that one) for the avid entertainer.
We’re all on different budgets; some are on the hunt for tasty bargains and piggy-bank-friendly stocking stuffers, while others have a more robust chunk of change set aside for providing big-impact presents You might have already bookmarked Eater’s under-$50 and under-$25 gift guides, which are full of all kinds of chic home goods; kitsch, food-themed puzzles; and cult-fave buttermilk pancake mixes, but now [turns up gas] we’re shopping at the under-$100 range, which gives us even more wiggle room to sweep your giftees off their feet via a Valentino biscotti ornament, a robust at-home chai kit, or a set of steak knives from Peter Luger.
We’re in prime gift guide season, folks. Fasten your aprons, and let’s shop for every kind of food-loving person on your holiday list.
This cake stand doubles as a chip and dip bowl
For my money, a solid indicator of a fun household is whether or not it’s filled with chip and dip bowls. This whimsical, colorful glass option from the MoMA Design Store also doubles as a cake stand when turned upside down (or right-side up, depending on your perspective), and is a great gift for the avid entertainer.
Steak knives from the iconic Peter Luger steakhouse
Imagine the flex of sawing through a Porterhouse at home with Peter Luger logo-stamped blades, which are made with stainless steel and wood handles that will transport their giftee back to the hallowed halls of the world-famous Brooklyn steakhouse. If you have a bit more room left in your gift budget, I suggest pairing it with Eric Wareheim’s recent tome about steakhouses — it sure makes for a splashy coffee table book.
A pop of color (and Le Creuset) for the stovetop
This cheery red whistling kettle would make a sweet addition to every Le Creuset collection, and look beautiful as a stovetop fixture for the more cottagecore-minded/tea-obsessed person in your life.
Everything you need to make chai at home
Diaspora Spice Co. is one of Eater’s favorite places to buy spices online, because it’s home to dozens of single-origin heirloom spices from (mostly) India and Sri Lanka. As founder Sana Javeri Kadri explains on its site, a core tenant of Diaspora Spice Co.’s operations is rooted in undoing colonialist inequity in the spice trade; in her words: “We’re proud to pay our farm partners an average of 6x above the commodity price. In a system where fair trade is a mere 15 percent premium, we pay what we believe to be a living wage.” The equitable spice brand has partnered with the North Carolina-based pottery and lifestyle brand East Fork on this at-home chai bundle, which features the former’s brand new masala chai blend, Madhur jaggery, a stainless steel strainer, and a panna cotta colorway kuhlad from the indie pottery company.
Your giftee loves Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette
These pastel eggnog petit fours come from the acclaimed Los Angeles-based confectionary Valerie Confections, and are made of a rich spiced buttercake, with bourbon ganache layers dipped in white chocolate and garnished with 23-karat gold leaf and chocolate biscuit pearls.
This strawberry platter for spring entertaining
Perhaps your lucky giftee loves gingham tablecloths, strawberry shortbread, and enchanting majolica platters dotted with ceramic strawberries. This 1960s platter is, of course, a sweet cake stand — but it could also host any number of aperitif snacks, sweets, and other delights.
For the partner obsessed with red-sauce joints
Every friend group has one: the person who lives for spag bol in a red leather booth, can’t leave Whole Foods without pillaging the cheese ends section for fancy Parmesan, and has plenty of hot takes on the best red-sauce joints. This year, give them this pasta sampler from the cult-fave NYC red sauce joint Rubirosa, which comes with three jars of its famous marinara and three pounds of pasta.
Flamingo Estate’s newest balsamic vinegar looks like a British Museum treasure
Is that an Etruscan vase? A 16th-century Spanish spout? The latest balsamic offering from the dreamy organic Los Angeles lifestyle brand Flamingo Estate is housed in a reusable, charmingly antique-looking glass vessel. As for the balsamic vinegar, aged in oak barrels and made from Trebbiano and Lambrusco grapes and Calabrian figs, the Estate describes its flavor as “unlike any other: part caramel, part wildflower, part cream.”
Ghia’s nonalcoholic aperitif and cocktail glass set
Ghia’s apéritif box is one of those drink-themed holiday gifts that sells out every year, because it pairs the brand’s signature amaro-esque N/A ambrosia with chic glassware from French-American glass artist and designer Sophie Lou Jacobsen. Whether you’re shopping for someone who doesn’t drink or is just trying to drink less alcohol in the new year, it’s a fashionable foot forward in the world of booze-free drinks.
For the farmers market frequenter
In 2025, fruit and vegetable merch and prints peaked like never before, from bag charms to barrel jeans. As Jess Mayhugh explains in this Eater article, the “farmers-market-centric textile trend that has been culminating for years finally has its own name: Enter ‘Farmstand Graphics.’” For the partner who’s already Pinterest-ing your next trip to Italy, I suggest this fun yet versatile (gotta love a slightly sheer, black colorway as a base) Betsey Johnson dress emblazoned with a whole haul of fruit and veg.
A double burner griddle for those Sunday pancakes
Owning a double burner griddle is the culinary equivalent to flexing a California king size bed, because it can handle all of the pancakes, eggs, and grilled cheese orders from the family (without having to hop between skillets like a stove DJ). We love this one from Lodge, known for its excellent cast iron cookware.
Up their bar cart game with this 1970s decanter set
This vintage gilded fish vessel, and its throng of gilded ceramic fish shot glasses, has left me speechless. The lucky recipient of this standout set will also have the pleasure of talking to cocktail party guests about the multiverse of mid-century-modern Soviet fish-themed decanters (it’s a whole very interesting rabbit hole).
For the discerning ornament collector
John Derian is the Final Boss of curating swish food-themed holiday ornaments (I do also need this energy drink-themed ornament), so it’s hardly surprising that the New York-based designer plucked this Valentino biscotti jar ornament for this year’s batch of stunners. If you’re trying to impress an Italian nonna this holiday season, it’s a sure-thing home run.
It’s been the year of the olive
From girl dinner discourse to the renaissance of ultra-dirty martinis, no aperitivo snack has been living, laughing, and loving harder than olives this year. This briny duo from Big Night brings together the shoppy shop’s sleek olive-themed hors d’oeuvres picks with a jar of Quincy’s big, juicy Spanish Queen olives in expertly salty, perfectly ratioed brine.
