Stumped as to what to get the guy in your life? This year, a few experts stopped by TODAY to share their favorite picks to help you out. Here's the secret: focus on the interests of the recipient. If they're into the outdoors, working out or cooking, we've got you covered!
5 great gifts for the guy who loves to cook
Andrew Knowlton is the Restaurant Editor at Bon Appétit magazine, so knows a thing or two about food. Here are his top five present ideas for the guy who loves to cook and enjoy great food!
1. Personalized Grilling BBQ Utensil Set, $60, wayfair.com
Great for the guy who absolutely loves to grill. With this set, you get a fork, tongs and spatula — essentially everything you need for summer BBQs and tailgating. Go ahead and personalize it by putting their monogram on the case. Also, it's made in the USA!
2. Kettle Smokers by Nordic Ware, $92, whisknyc.com
Made from aluminized steel, this cute little smoker can be used on the grill, stove or oven. It works great outdoors or indoors, and makes smoking foods at home very easy!
3. Baking Steel 2-in-1 Griddle, $200, amazon.com
This is an incredibly versatile kitchen tool that guys (or any home chef) will love. It's a 14" x 18" slab of pre-seasoned steel that will never break. Use it to turn your stove top into a diner for searing steaks, smashburgers, eggs, bacon, pancakes, and potatoes — it can reach 700 degrees Fahrenheit, so watch out! You can use it chilled, too. When it's cool, it serves as a cold plate beneath platters of fresh fruit.
4. Homemade Bacon Kit, $20, Sur La Table
Everybody loves bacon, but why settle for store-bought when you can make your own? It's all of the seasoning and curing components you need to get mouthwatering, maple cured bacon. It's so easy! Just add pork belly — in just seven days your slab of homemade bacon will be ready to cut, cook and devour. Yum!
5.The Bacon Crate, $49, mancrates.com
If you're really serious about your bacon and crave bacon in every form — think popcorn, sunflower seeds, and peanut brittle — this is the gift to get. This gift comes fully stocked with delicious bacon products. Beyond the flavors, the presentation is everything: it comes in a sealed wooden create with a laser etched crowbar!
5 gifts for the active guy in your life
Matt Bean from Men's Health Magazine stopped by the show to share his top picks for guys who love working out, hanging outdoors and playing sports.
1. NFL Salute to Service apparel, $39.99-$99.99, nflsalute.com
Show your love for your favorite team and those who protect your country with the NFL's Salute to Service apparel. The team and USA graphics make them a great way to boast your team and patriotic fandom! Available for all 32 NFL teams. 100% of the NFL's proceeds from Salute to Service products are donated to three of the NFL's military non-profit partners like USO, Pat Tillman Foundation and Wounded Warrior Project.
2. Stainless steel vessels, $29.99, acehardware.com
YETI is known for its incredibly tough stainless steel products. These products are constructed with 18/8 kitchen-grade stainless steel and each of the offerings will keep your contents extremely fresh — hot or cold — for as long as science allows.
Folks can now personalize their "Rambler" with their favorite sports team's logo, a business log, custom design or more. Keep in mind, MSRP is simply an additional $10 on top of the cost of the stainless steel item!
3. Outdoor gift subscription boxes (various), starting at $25 a month, getcairn.com
If your guy likes the outdoors, this might be the ideal gift for him. This subscription box of the month delivers 3-6 outdoor products, and is worth about $50 in value. It's outdoor inspiration delivered right to your doorstep!
4. Original Puffy Blanket, $65, gorumpl.com
The Rumpl Puffy Blanket uses the same technical materials found in premium sleeping bags and insulated puffy jackets. Whether indoors or outside, the Puffy blanket is designed to provide optimal warmth in any environment.
Utilizing a weather-resistant 20D ripstop nylon shell with DWR treatment, the blanket resists water, dirt, odor, pet hair and other debris. The Puffy fits easily in an included stuff sack for quick storage or taking on the go. And it packs down to fit in a small stuff sack for easy transport. Lastly, it's available in six colors so you can get the hue that your recipient likes best!
5. Eagle Creek Cargo Hauler Duffels, from $89 - $119, shop.eaglecreek.com
The lightest, strongest, best organized duffel ever. New water-based coating is so durable, the company says you can even drag it behind your car for testing. It's got storm-proof construction — think waterproof fabric, but not seam sealed nor waterproof zips — storm flaps on lockable, self-repairing zippers, two separate end pockets to keep nasty gear from clean and it even packs into its own end pocket for storage. It comes in four sizes and five colors as well.
6 great gifts for the man cave
Lifestyle expert Frank Fontana is here to share his favorite man cave gifts for the guy who likes to dress up his personal space.
1. Sonos compact wireless speakers, from $169, amazon.com
The collection of wireless speakers from Sonos will appeal to any audiophile. These speakers beautifully stream all of your music and, though they might look small, they create surprisingly big sound. What's more, it's humidity resistant, which makes it ideal for the bathroom.
2. Amazon Echo, $139, amazon.com
Another option is the Amazon Echo, a hands-free speaker featuring Alexa, a cloud-based service that helps you play music, provide information, news, sports scores, weather and more. It works instantly, all you have to do is ask.
A smaller version — the Echo Dot — has the same capabilities as the Echo, but it is smaller and only $39 right now — perfect for every room of the house! The main difference is the Echo Dot has a smaller speaker, but it can connect to speakers and headphones to play music.
3. Summit racing equipment's 1930s gas pump drink dispenser, $29.97, summitracing.com
Add some nostalgia to your bar area or rec room with this 1930s Gas Pump Drink Dispenser! From Summit Racing's Gifts and Collectibles line, this holds up to 32 ounces of your favorite high-octane beverage. To fill a glass, just remove the pump nozzle from the hook and squeeze the trigger.
4. Unique book ends, starting at $34, houzz.com
These cool accessories are practical and full of personality. They made a great addition to your book collection! And they start at around $30. Here's one that we like, but you can find plenty more to choose from on houzz.com.
5. Personalized desk valet tray for dresser, $39.99, holtzleather.com
Made in the USA! This cool leather tray is full grain fine leather and tanned the old fashioned way. If you want to add a fun detail, Holz leather offers free customization on all of its products.
6. Home t-shirts, $32, thehomet.com
Made in the USA, these tees are insanely soft. What's more, they donate 10% of profits to Multiple Sclerosis research. So far, $275,000 has been donated towards the goal of $1,000,000! Here's the best part: All of their products are unisex and fit really well on guys and girls. We have a shirt for every state and some countries, too!