A play kitchen gets more use than almost any other big toy we sell. Children cook, serve, wash up and take orders, often for an hour at a time, and copy every phrase they've heard in your kitchen.

Check the height first: the bench should sit at about their waist. Then look at what opens and turns. Oven doors, a sink that lifts out and knobs that click give them more to do. A wooden kitchen lasts for years and suits a toddler and an eight-year-old alike.

Play food and a few pots and pans make the biggest difference. A kitchen with nothing to cook gets ignored.