Real Foodies Shop at FoodNetworkStore.com

If fear of crowds hasn’t already kept you away from the mall, the price of gas just might, especially when it comes to endlessly vulturing for a parking spot that isn’t a 10-mile hike from the door.  Online shopping to the rescue!  No need to brave the icy roads and holiday-crazed drivers.  No need to shovel a path to your car.  No need to change out of your pajamas on a cold winter's day.

But one of the downsides to online shopping is that you don’t always know how the whatzit is supposed to work, or if you can really trust the doohickey to operate as advertised.  All this piled on top of the usual gift-giving anxiety can tempt a shopper to crawl into a cave until spring arrives, but luckily the Food Network store is only a mouse click away.  If you don’t know a KitchenAid from a Cuisinart, have no fear.   Food Network chefs aren’t just TV personalities:  they’re brand names.  Whether you’re shopping for a gourmet cook or an Alton fan, you’ll find something for everyone on your gift list.

Unlike other cookware sites, the Food Network store isn’t limited to letting you search by category or brand name.  By selecting the “shop by host” or “shop by show” categories, you can find the perfect gift for  your fellow Food Network fans.  Rachael Ray, Alton Brown, Giada de Laurentiis, Paula Deen, Bobby Flay, Ina Garten, Emeril Lagasse, Sandra Lee, Pat and Gina Neely, Tyler Florence, Guy Fieri, and Ellie Krieger all have wares to hawk in the “shop by host” category, while the “shop by show” page features an alphabetical listing of show titles. 

If you have no idea whether a Rachael Ray gift will make a friend squeal with glee or scream in horror, you can avoid the FN personality minefield and check out the Gift Ideas section.  Aside from the usual “best gifts” list (which sometimes means the high-end items or the overstocked stuff that’s taking up way too much space in the warehouse), the FN storekeepers have suggested stocking stuffers (also perfect for gift baskets or for giving to someone who’s watching their suitcase weight for the flight home), gifts under $25 (recommended for anyone who’s participating in Secret Santa at the office), and gifts for the Food Network fan (although you may want to check and see if your Giada fanboy cousin already has the Everyday Italian DVDs).  If you want to give your present that extra oomph of Very Special Purpose, try the Breast Cancer Awareness or Share Our Strength categories.  And if you have money to burn, send some my way—I mean, you can pole-vault to the crème-de-la-crème of the price list to the ultimate gifts section. 

But perhaps the most creative shopping help is the “gifts by personality” option.  Not to be confused with the “shop by host” category, these lists help you shop for that friend who’s a baker, a bartender, a coffee lover, a cookbook collector, an entertainer, a foodie who can’t be pigeonholed by any of the other categories, or a grill master who would give Bobby Flay a run for his money.

With all these great shopping options, you can have your foodie gift list taken care of before suppertime.