Customer Reviews

Educo Gourmet Chef Kitchen

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

We bought this kitchen in the hopes it would be a less toxic option despite being made in China. Hape, parent company of Educo, in response to having a lead recall on its Target line a few years ago seems to have put even more safety measures in place to prevent these sorts of toxic things from being applied to their toys. They source their paints and glues from Germany only, their plywood comes from Russia, and it's my understanding that only the manufacturing end takes place in China. That said, I was disappointed to find that there are 3 parts to this kitchen that are made of particle board - the inner shelves and the back of the kitchen, thus the 4 stars.

That aside, the kitchen is absolutely adorable. I do wish I'd had more details about the measurements of various parts before ordering and assembling the kitchen, as there seems to be so few details about this item online and as of yet, no reviews.

Overall size: 27.5" tall X 22" wide X 13" deep

I haven't gifted it to the children yet, as Christmas is 3 months away, but I wonder if it will be large enough to accommodate 2 children at once. I imagine they'll find a way.

Counter height: 20"

This will be a little short for my 95th percentile 4-year old (we estimated she would need a 22" counter), but should be perfect for our 18-month old.

Sink: 2.25" deep, 6" x 6" wide
Ample room for washing dishes unlike the comparable Educo My Creative Cookery Club

Burners: Large 4.25", Small 3.5"

Usable counter space: About 5" x 9"

Inside shelves: 10.5" depth x 6" high x 9.5" wide (oven side) 8.25" wide (cabinet side)

Two last things worth mentioning:

1- All those crazy grooves in the upper shelf are made to perfectly accommodate (from left to right) spatula & serving spoon, knives, and two plates sold in the Educo Gourmet Chef Cookware set.

2- We bought this kitchen elsewhere for a small bit more with all the accessories in Educo Gourmet Chef Cookware and Educo Gourmet Chef Cuisine for a really fair price. I'd recommend that option to someone considering the version offered on Amazon. Both the cookware and cuisine are awesome and fit so perfectly that I don't really get why they're sold separately to begin with. I plan on reviewing them separately for anyone interested in dimensions on those things. The combined kitchen set also has much more attractive red dials for the stove (these click in a pleasing way when you turn them), and red and blue knobs for the sink. It really improves the look of the whole kitchen.

Overall, this really is a very sweet kitchen, though perhaps not as indoor-air-quality friendly as I had initially hoped. Construction takes just over an hour, with a bit of cursing on the poorly matched holes for the doors, and the painfully small screws which you'd need elf hands to properly manage. The larger screws not only go into the wood but a specially implanted metal piece that in some places was put in crooked. The screws wouldn't catch at first, and we had to use a really tiny screwdriver to jimmy these metal thingies back into place. Still, not the worst item I've ever had to put together.

I'd recommend this to someone on a budget, looking for a kitchen made by a slightly better-than-average-company.

I hope that this is helpful to someone else who feels, as I do, that shopping online leaves you missing all those tiny details that you'd just rather know before you make a purchase.

UPDATE:

This kitchen ended up being the perfect size for both my girls, even the oldest one. They love it, and have played with it daily for the past few months. Since I originally purchased it we've run a lead home test kit on the green and orange components. While these are not the most reliable tests, I think it's worth mentioning that those two colors came up negative for lead. So those are the pros.

The sink faucet issue mentioned by other reviewers can pretty easily be fixed with Elmer's glue - and it is an annoyance. We glued the sink in too. However, the single biggest gripe I have with the kitchen is that although we let it air for months before Christmas, the smell of the unfinished interior MDF shelves is still INCREDIBLY STRONG. It bothers me. I'm thinking of replacing those MDF shelves, since we're pretty much stuck with the kitchen, but based solely on the smell when the cabinet/oven doors are open, I probably would have saved up and bought one component at a time of the Plan Toys kitchen since they use E-Zero (no formaldehyde) glues, and do not seem to use MDF at all.

The Educo kitchen is the perfect size for our house and serves its function perfectly. The only problem I have with it is that the front door for the oven does not close all the way and the faucet keeps falling out. I have the kitchen in our living room so my son can play while I am working in the "real" kitchen and it drives me crazy that the door never stays shut and the faucet is constantly on the floor.

Got this as a Christmas gift for my 2yo daughter, and she loves it. It's noticeably smaller than the plastic alternatives, and doesn't have a microwave or anything, but for a kid it's just as good.

Pros:
Compact size. Fits where other kitchen won't, and doesn't just take over the room.

Design. Clean and cool-looking. It's useful to note that the green color isn't nearly as neon as Amazon's pictures appear. There's plenty of slots for utensils and dishes, and two large cabinets that double as the oven and fridge.

Cons:
Assembly. Of course I expected to put it together myself, but I would really have liked better instructions and more standard size screws. The hinges attach with the tiniest screws I've seen, and I had to hunt down eyeglass screwdrivers to put them on. The rest of the screws are allen-screws, and even with the key are slow going. Once I sorted it all out though, it really wasn't THAT difficult.

Build. The unit is actually really sturdy, and without too many moving parts should last for years. However, I did have one broken dial (it doesn't click like the others), and the faucet is too easy to remove from the sink.

I bought the Educo Gourmet Chef's Kitchen in green for my daughter for Christmas. We tried desperately to get the white, but it was nowhere to be found in stock. I was worried about the color looking neon, but the photos are not terribly accurate. The green is softer than in photos. It's modern, not neon. We also got the Educo Coolest Cooler and the Educo kitchen accessories to make it a complete set. My daughter plays with some very high end and some mid-range kitchens at the various toddler programs and playgroups we attend so we had a pretty good idea of what we were looking for: wooden, compact, affordable. This kitchen exceeded our expectations. When you compare it to the Plan Toys kitchen, you are looking at a huge savings. Design-wise I feel they are comparable and the Educo kitchen is in my opinion, cuter. The compact size is great. We have the kitchen in my daughter's room in a corner that has become a kitchen/baby play area. My daughter is 2 1/2 and she is VERY TALL for her age. We worried and even delayed our purchase because we were afraid that she'd outgrow it too quickly. But fortunately, the counter height (approx 20") and overall size of the kitchen is perfect for her and we feel she'll be very happy with it for some time. It was easy to assemble - my husband and I knocked it out in about 30 minutes.

Our only complaint - and this felt significant - was that one of the stove knobs had lost their "clicking" component. It was glued on and must have come off during shipping. I picked up a C-clamp and plan to glue it back on but the wood is soft and I'm afraid it will dent with the c-clamp. Also, I just don't like having to do the work that I expect that I have paid for.

Aside from this complaint, the kitchen is lovely, my daughter loves it and it fits in her room. It's a win, win, win. She makes me cupcakes almost daily in her kitchen and I adore seeing her run off to play in her kitchen when I start making dinner. This kind of play is so important and I think this particular kitchen is a very well made piece with real value.

I was really disappointed with this toy. The kitchen is very small, very lightweight, and quite flimsy. The storage capacity is tiny, especially since the shelf over the cooking/sink area only fits Educo utensils which are sold out everywhere. The screw holes for the doors don't line up so the doors are crooked and look horrible. There was even some of the hardware missing. The faucet and handles are attached via 1/4 inch wooden pegs and constantly fall off. I don't think I will ever buy a toy from Educo again. The kitchen that Ikea now makes is much better: heavy and durable, beautiful natural and painted white wood, lots of storage space, twice the size, and legs that adjust to a growing child (three height positions).

I gave this to my grandson for his 2nd birthday. Other friends and family gave him some of the accessories (food pieces, pots and pans). He loves it all!! A great gift and just the right size for their apartment.

We got this four our almost 2 year old for christmas. The size is perfect and compact for our very small home. The construction out of the box was easy, took no time to put together, but there was some adjustments needed as doors didn't fit properly. not everything sits flush but it's not in the way or situated so that it would break. The 'faucet spout' is also designed so that it can detach without snapping- but our 2yo kept pulling it off- so that's been put away since the first day and now just plays with the sink. Overall our 2yo loves playing with with it.

We got this for our almost 2 year old daughter for Christmas. I had been offered a large plastic kitchen for free, but was not excited at the idea of having a big kitchen in her already crowded play room and I really wasn't excited about the plastic. I wanted something that required a little more imagination. This kitchen is great.

It is small so we actually have it under the eating bar in our kitchen so she can cook when we cook. It is brightly colored, which I wasn't sure I would like when I ordered it, but I do like it. The knobs click when you turn them. The oven and other cupboard can be used as an oven, microwave, refrigerator, cupboard or whatever the child wants. The sink is plastic and easily removed and there is a little shelf with notches above the sink and stove for accessories.

The problems I have with the kitchen are the faucet is way too easy to remove. My daughter almost immediately pulled it out and after putting it back several times, I stopped because I was worried it would break beyond repair. I am going to try to figure out another way to attach it. The hot and cold knobs have not been a problem at all. The only other problem is that she received utensils from others for Christmas and they don't fit in the notches on the little shelf. I had read somewhere that those notches are a perfect fit for some Educo utensils, but that is not what we have so the notches have been useless so far. But, the shelf itself is a nice place to put the "canned" foods she got for Christmas along with the "spices" she also received.

Overall I am really happy with this purchase, but I did get a really great deal on it so I am not sure how happy I would be if I had paid original price.

This is a great wood kitchen. It is lightweight, so it is easy to move to anywhere in the house. The combination of unpainted wood and painted wood is a good balance. The colors are nice earth tones. The cabinets open and have good storage for play food and pots and pans. There is even a little towel holder on the side. I appreciated one of the reviews posted that specified in detail the wood construction, which is accurate, the back and inside shelves are press wood, while the rest is solid wood. Overall for the price it has a lot of good details and for a non-toxic option it is affordable.

Ordered this for Christmas for my 18 month old and am very happy with it. I received it quickly and with all pieces in tact. I picked this one because of the compact size, color and that it was made of wood. The dimensions that are in the other reviews were very helpful. I put it together myself and it wasn't too difficult at all. It is very sturdy and I think she will enjoy it for years to come. Thank you Amazon.