Disclosure: This guide to Best Food Advent Calendars contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. 

Unwrap happiness this holiday season by indulging in a tasty holiday countdown! Explore our recommendations for the best food advent calendars that are sure to fill each day with bite-sized delights!

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December is quickly approaching and with that comes twinkling lights, cheerful music, cheesy Hallmark movies and cherished holiday traditions. Some of these traditions include the daily anticipation that has everyone filled with excitement – food advent calendars!

Yes, ’tis the season to sip, savor and celebrate every festive moment! What better way to celebrate than with the tradition of counting down to Christmas with a delicious food filled holiday advent calendar!

This fun holiday tradition isn’t just for kids; it’s for both kids and adults alike (and even our favorite fur babies) to embrace the spirit of the season through daily surprises that tease the taste buds and fill our hearts with joy.

With an array of options to suit all tastes, budgets and preferences, the world of food advent calendars is filled with endless possibilities! Today we are highlighting just some of the best food advent calendars of 2023 and those that we look forward to year after year.

From gourmet chocolate-filled advent calendars, to ones filled with zesty hot sauce that are sure to ignite your senses, food advent calendars are a culinary adventure waiting to unfold.

And for the DIYer? Why not create your own personalized food advent calendar? With a bit of creativity, you can craft a calendar that reflects not only your unique tastes, but also your favorite family recipes and holiday traditions, ensuring every day brings a fun adventure that is sure to create lifelong memories!

So, whether you are a budding home chef, a culinary expert or an unapologetic foodie, there’s a food advent calendar out there waiting to add some magic and bliss to your holiday season.

Join us in celebrating the holidays by unwrapping joy, one bite at a time, as we share our favorite ways to countdown to Christmas!

Helpful Tips and Information:

What are advent calendars?

An advent calendar is used to count down the days until Christmas.

How do advent calendars work?

Advent calendars work by opening one tiny door each day leading up to Christmas. Behind the door of the advent calendar is usually a small gift.

When do advent calendars start?

Advent calendars typically come in 12- or 24-day options.

For advent calendars that are 24 days, you would start opening them on December 1 and the last day you would open your advent calendar is on December 24, or Christmas Eve.

For those advent calendars that are only 12 days, you would open door one on December 13 and then you would open door 12 on December 24, or Christmas Eve.

Where to buy advent calendars?

In our guide to the best food advent calendars, we share several places to buy advent calendars. From popular stores like Aldi, Trader Joes and Costco, to online retailers like Amazon.

When do advent calendars come out?

You can typically buy advent calendars online starting in August. However, advent calendars will not start arriving in stores until usually early November.

A Guide to Best Food Themed Advent Calendars:

Trader Joe’s Chocolate Advent Calendar – This advent calendar is extremely popular. So much so, that people practically stalk Trader Joe’s the first part of November just to snag them! Trader Joe’s Chocolate Advent Calendar features 24 small pieces of milk chocolate.

Each advent calendar box has a cute design and each piece of chocolate comes in classic holiday shapes, such as bells, trees and Santa. And while Trader Joes Chocolate Advent Calendar is not gourmet chocolate by any means, it is only a $1.29, which makes it a fantastic, affordable advent calendar that everyone will love. So, hurry and run and grab one today!

If you happen to miss out on the Trader Joe’s Chocolate Advent Calendar, this Chocolate Advent Calendar is similar. 

Delysia Chocolatier – If you are looking for a more sophisticated chocolate advent calendar, look no further than the one offered by Delysia Chocolatier. Their annual 24-day chocolate advent calendar always features a fun theme, such as holiday music or movies, and features beautifully handmade gourmet chocolate.

Bonne Maman Jam and Honey Advent Calendar – Aside from the Trader Joe’s Chocolate Advent Calendar, this jam advent calendar is probably one of the most popular food themed advent calendars.

You can purchase a 24-day Bonne Maman Advent Calendar online for about $45, or in years past, we’ve seen a 12 day version at Costco for about $13. Both versions come with the cutest mini-sized jars of jams and honeys. Many of these are advent calendar exclusive flavors, so if you are already a Bonne Maman fan like us, then you will love trying these new flavors.

To enjoy this Bonne Maman Advent Calendar, save and serve each tiny jam jar as part of a Christmas morning brunch buffet or to liven up a Holiday Charcuterie Board. Last year, we enjoyed ours by using them to make our favorite jam filled Lemon Tea Cookies on Christmas Eve!

Tea Advent Calendar – These Tea Advent Calendars from Adagio Teas and Pukka Teas are filled with flavorful, seasonal loose-leaf tea, in flavors like candy cane, gingerbread and more! 

If you miss out on the advent calendar for this year, you can purchase one of their Christmas Tea Samplers which includes many of the same festive and flavorful teas found in the advent calendar!

Looking for more tea themed gifts? Check out our full holiday gift guide for tea lovers! 

Wine and Beer Advent Calendars – While wine and beer advent calendars are on the pricier side, they are definitely a fun and festive way to try out a variety of beers and wines. You can find variations of these advent calendars everywhere from Aldi, to your local liquor store and even Costco. In recent years we’ve even seen liquor versions, featuring the small travel size mini bottles.

Cheese Advent Calendar – For those cheese snobs enthusiasts in your life, a cheese advent calendar is a must! Aldi offers an affordable 24-day cheese advent calendar featuring an assortment of mini cheeses – like Truffle Cheddar and Mustard Gouda – which is perfect for your cheese lover to enjoy on their own.

However, if you are looking for a cheese advent calendar to share, opt with Costco’s 12-day festive cheese calendar. This cheese advent calendar is directly imported from Europe and features over 3 pounds of gourmet cheese including gouda from the Netherlands and sheep’s milk cheese from Spain.

Hot Sauce Advent Calendar – A few years ago we bought a hot sauce advent calendar (similar to this hot sauce advent calendar) and not only was it fun seeing and tasting the different flavors of hot sauce from around the world, but it was practical too! Who doesn’t love adding a little flavored hot sauce to their Tex-Mex Quiche on Christmas morning! 

Homemade Advent Calendar – If you are feeling a little crafty and want to have a more personalized advent calendar, consider making your own. You can use our Valentine’s Day advent calendar for inspiration and simply swap out the Valentine’s Day themed stickers for Christmas stickers or those fancy holiday gift tags.

Then on the back of each day, write a fun activity to do as a family. These could be things like decorate a gingerbread house or make Sour Cream and Onion Popcorn and watch a holiday movie. Another day you could make Mexican Spiced Hot Chocolate and drive around and look at Christmas lights. And, of course it wouldn’t be the holiday season without making these Easy Ornament Cookies.

Out of all these holiday advent calendars, this homemade version is probably our favorite because it is sure to create a lifetime of cherished memories!

Dog and Cat Treat Advent Calendars – Of course we can’t forget about our furry friends! There are some cute and fun pet themed advent calendars available. Trader Joe’s offers both dog and cat treat advent calendars for about $8. This 24-day calendar features grain-free salmon and seaweed treats for cats and salmon and sweet potato dog treats.

If you don’t happen to live near a Trader Joe’s don’t worry, as you can find other advent calendars for dogs and cats online. 

Advent calendars are always a fun Christmas gift that allows you to celebrate the holidays in a fun, small way all December long. Do you have a favorite food themed advent calendar? Share below!