Melissa & Doug Pizza Party

Pizza Party Ages: 3+

What We Think Fun factor: Durability: Educational factor: Novelty factor: The Good: Sturdy wood toy will stand up to years of play The Challenging: Cute, painted, wood storage container is built to last, but would be improved with the addition of a cover In a Nutshell: Toy pizza with topping and utensils offers kids fun, creative props for imaginary play

Kids love serving up their delicious pizza creations with the wooden pizza cutter and server. View larger.

With 54 pizza toppings, children can customize pies for their friends and family. View larger.

Once the pizza is "ready," the child can use the pizza cutter to cut the pizza. It actually has a rolling blade, just like an authentic utensil, and since the pizza slices are held together with Velcro, it makes a fun crunching sound when it's cut. Your little pizza chef can then dish out pizza to her customers with the included server. (Note that the toy kitchen utensils are not meant for use with real food or with real kitchen appliances.)

Play and Learn
Pretend play is a very important part of childhood development, and the Pizza Party toy gives children fun, straightforward tools to inspire their imaginations. We also love that this toy is perfect for both independent and interactive playtime, giving parents the opportunity to help kids learn while playing, too. For example, children can learn counting concepts while preparing pizza: ask them to count the number of mushrooms on the pizza, or to put 10 peppers on her pizza.

Sturdy Wood Construction
The Pizza Party comes with 54 disk-shaped pizza toppings -- three of each kind -- which is enough to create an all-pepperoni, all-peppers, or all-mushroom pizza, as well as make up whatever combination your child chooses. We like that there are an abundance of toppings pieces, so that the inevitable loss of a couple of pieces won't ruin the whole toy. That said, we do wish that the cute, painted wood storage container came with a cover to help keep the pieces in place a bit better.

With its sturdy wood construction and high-quality materials, this toy is made to last. And as with all of their products, Melissa & Doug states that this toy is made with non-toxic coatings and meets or exceeds US toy testing standards.

About Melissa & Doug
Started in the garage at Doug's parents' house in 1988, Melissa & Doug has grown to become one of the most popular toy makers in the world. Their toys have garnered dozens of parenting and "best toy" awards over the years, and have been featured widely in national print media and on television.

One of the company's points of pride is that their toys are thoroughly tested for safety, and meet all US consumer product safety regulations. The toys are tested at the factory of origin during various phases of the production process to ensure that every toy meets the company's stringent safety requirements every step along the way. In particular, the paints and coatings on Melissa & Doug toys are tested frequently to be sure they meet or exceed government recommendations limiting heavy metals and lead in children's items.

Since day one, Melissa & Doug has been in compliance with every US consumer product safety regulation and will continue to stay compliant as the laws continue to evolve, assuring parents that their children can have a safe childhood while playing with Melissa & Doug toys.

What's in the box Toy pizza, 54 "pizza topping" pieces, wood pizza server and pizza cutter.