Meghan was the Food Editor for Kitchn's Skills content. She's a master of everyday baking, family cooking, and harnessing good light. Meghan approaches food with an eye towards budgeting — both time and money — and having fun. Meghan has a baking and pastry degree, and spent the first 10 years of her career as part of Alton Brown's culinary team. She co-hosts a weekly podcast about food and family called Didn't I Just Feed You.
updated Jun 7, 2024
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Father’s Day is just around the corner! Along with the the perfect grill for the summer, co*cktail gifts, and any other last-minute Father’s Day gifts, a special home-cooked dinner is the perfect way to show every dad or father figure in our lives how much we love and appreciate them.
Grilled steak, burgers, and smoked ribs are Father’s Day dinner classics, but mixing it up with dishes like chicken souvlaki, cioppino (seafood stew), and Mexican beef enchiladas can provide a new element of festive flair to your family’s celebratory meal.
Here are 57 delicious Father’s Day dinner ideas, from garlic butter steak and potatoes and classic filet mignon to grilled lobster tails and shrimp scampi. Don’t forget a potato side dish and a big, green salad to round out this special meal!
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Ground coffee, brown sugar, and coriander combine to make a robust steak seasoning blend. When the steak hits the high heat of the pan (or the grill), the aroma of the beans awakens, deepening their robust roasted flavor and creating a crave-worthy caramelized crust. Try it on any cut of steak, from skirt steak to ribeye steak.
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St. Louis ribs covered in a smoky barbecue seasoning, brushed with your favorite barbecue sauce, and then broiled until sticky and caramelized. Serve with classic potato salad and grilled corn on the cob for a Father's Day dinner he won't forget.
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You can't say no to this classic Midwest dish of a burger patty stuffed with melty cheese. Serve with a handful of potato chips or grilled potatoes. These burgers are messy in a good way, so you might as well skip the fork altogether for this easy Father's Day meal!
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Garlic Butter Steak and Potatoes
Crispy potatoes and tender ribeye steak are seared in a cast iron skillet and finished with a garlic-herb butter. Serve with creamed spinach and a big salad for the ultimate Father's Day dinner.
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This platter of grilled chicken skewers, fresh vegetables, and warm pita is a simple yet satisfying Father's Day dinner! Serve the grilled chicken with warm pita, tomatoes, cucumbers, and creamy tzatziki sauce.
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Serve this impressive, Flintstones-style cut of beef with cowboy butter, cowboy beans, and baked potatoes for a show-stopping Father's Day dinner.
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Grilled Lobster Tails with Garlic Butter
Grilled lobster tails are a fast yet fancy way to serve seafood when the weather is just too nice to stay indoors for Father's Day! Tender, sweet lobster tail is grilled to perfection and finished with a herby garlic butter. Serve with grilled corn on the cob and a big summer salad.
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Pan-Seared Ribeye (with Garlic Butter)
With the help of a really hot skillet and a kiss of garlic-herb butter at the end, this seared ribeye steak recipe takes only about 10 minutes on the stovetop. If you want to recreate the steakhouse experience at home on Father's Day, serve it up with baked potatoes and creamed spinach.
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The cheesy, peppery pasta you know and love can be ready in 30 minutes for Father's Day. Cacio e pepe is all about the pasta, Pecorino Romano cheese, and the creamy sauce that binds them together — that’s it.
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It’s officially grill season! And while we love burgers and brats, there are times when a juicy steak is just what the grill master (Dad!) ordered. Medium-rare, cut-against-the-grain tri-tip contains all the flavor and juiciness of a pricier single serve steak at less than half the price.
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Cioppino is a big seafood stew of briny abundance, best shared among a crowd of people for Father's Day. Serve with grilled sourdough bread and a bottle of your favorite white wine.
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Unlike lasagnas made with marinara, you won’t find a drop of red sauce here. Instead you get layers of hearty pasta, ricotta, mozzarella, Italian sausage crumbles, and an entire pound of fresh spinach. Serve it with a big salad and garlic bread for a Father's Day dinner he'll love.
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New York Strip Steak with Green Beans and Blistered Tomatoes
Crisp-tender green beans and blistered tomatoes cook in the same pan that sears juicy New York strip steaks for an easy Father's Day dinner.
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Grilled Chicken Cutlets with Pistachio-Avocado Relish
Paired with a bright, zippy sauce, these juicy, flavorful grilled chicken breasts work well as the center of attention at Father's Day dinner, alongside grilled corn on the cob and classic potato salad.
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These tacos use flank steak marinated with chipotle, citrus, cilantro and onions. Don't forget the tortilla chips, classic guacamole, and pitcher margaritas for the best Father's Day dinner!
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We've cracked the code to making perfectly tender and mouth-watering barbecued ribs in the oven. Serve with classic potato salad and grilled corn on the cob for the best Father's Day dinner.
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This marinated flank steak is the ultimate Father's Day main! Serve it with your favorite side dishes and a big salad to complete the meal.
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This crowning jewel of any good Wisconsin tailgate party is sure to be a hit with Dad on Father's Day! Serve with fried cheese curds or fried pickles and grilled corn on the cob.
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Chopped Greek Salad with Grilled Steak
Grilled skirt steak turns a regular Greek salad into a hearty main dish that's full of crunchy veggies and feta cheese in a lemon-oregano vinaigrette. Serve it with Greek lemon potatoes or crispy skillet-fried potatoes for a Father's Day dinner everyone will love.
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Gumbo is such a labor of love – it's truly the best Father's Day dinner! Serve it a scoop of white rice, thinly sliced scallions, filé powder, and a few spurts of Tabasco hot sauce.
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These no-frills burgers are exactly what they sound like: ground beef that's cooked in a skillet and smashed with a spatula to create rough, craggly little patties. Serve them with potato chips, classic potato salad, and grilled corn on the cob for an easy Father's Day dinner.
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A buttery, lemony garlic sauce coats linguine and shrimp, and the bright bite of red pepper and parsley balances everything. Serve it with garlic bread and a green salad for a Father's Day dinner he'll love.
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This steak fajita salad features cumin-rubbed flank steak along with charred peppers and onions over a bed of crunchy, chopped romaine and red cabbage.
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This step-by-step guide will walk you through making the very best homemade beef birria, plus how to turn it into crispy quesatacos. A simple garnish of cilantro, onion, lime, and homemade salsa is a must, along with a side of arroz rojo (Mexican rice).
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Sticky-sweet BBQ chicken is the quintessential Father's Day dinner that shouldn’t be limited to the lucky folks with smoker grills.You only need five ingredients to make this shortcut barbecue chicken. Serve with broccoli bacon salad and classic potato salad for a meal the whole family will love.
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Here's how to buy, prepare, and roast prime rib, the most iconic beef roast for Father's Day dinner! Serve with creamy, cheesy, and crowd pleasing dauphinoise potatoes and a big salad.
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A rich and creamy Italian pasta with just four ingredients and 30 minutes for Father's Day? Yes, please. Unlike pasta alla gricia, amatriciana, or cacio e pepe, carbonara uses eggs to create a rich, silky pasta that’s as perfect at midnight as it is at noon.
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Craving meatloaf but are short on time on Father's Day? Make meatloaf burgers! Shaping the meat into patties makes this is a fast track solution to getting extra crispyness in every bite. Serve with grilled potatoes or classic potato salad and grilled corn on the cob.
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Grill meaty swordfish to perfection and top with an easy, fresh lemon-herb sauce. It pairs well with a simple green salad and some crusty bread, or with rice pilaf and grilled summer squash.
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Serve this peppercorn-crusted steak in Cognac-cream sauce with pommes frites and green beans almondine for the ultimate Father's Day dinner.
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Strands of spaghetti or bucatini are tossed with brown butter that’s infused with za’atar, lemon juice, Parmesan, and a mix of fresh herbs.
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The Best Grilled Chicken Salad
Packed with bright, fresh, bold flavors and juicy strips of chicken breast, this is the grilled chicken salad to make on Father's Day. Serve with grilled potatoes and grilled corn on the cob to complete the meal.
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Spatchocking then grilling a whole chicken makes a perfect Father's Day main. Grilling over an open flame gives the chicken a delicious smoky essence. If you are using a charcoal grill, create heat zones for direct and indirect cooking.
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20-Minute Steak Salad with Chile, Garlic, and Herbs
This easy flank or skirt steak salad gets an umami hit from fish sauce, sherry vinegar, and lime juice tossed through a mix of crunchy veg, and is finished with fresh herbs.
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Grilled Short Rib Chimichurri Party Sandwich
A whole loaf of bread is filled with tender grilled short ribs, chimichurri sauce, pickled red onions, and peppery arugula before being sliced into individual sandwiches to feed a Father's Day crowd.
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Heirloom Tomato and Steak Caprese
Inspired by traditional caprese, this dinner salad is topped with grilled hanger or skirt steak and a punchy basil vinaigrette.
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This jambalaya is packed with rich, deep flavors, and stars smoky andouille sausage and juicy chicken thighs. This big-batch, make-ahead dish lets you make a delicious Cajun meal for Father's Day without being tied to the stove and missing out on the party.
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Stirring your spice rub into the mayo will seal the spices to the steak and keep them from burning. The recipe is easily scaled up to accommodate however many steaks you’d like to grill; just keep the ratio of dry rub to mayonnaise equal. Serve with hearty grilled potatoes and your favorite salad for a delicious and easy Father's Day dinner.
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Quick and easy grilled chicken tacos are the perfect Father's Day dinner. Serve with tortilla chips, classic guacamole, and pitcher margaritas to share.
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Grilled Lamb Chops with Herb Sauce
With the tiniest bit of extra effort, you can take your grilled lamb from a pretty good main to a show-stopping centerpiece that will wow and impress Dad on Father's Day. Serve with Greek lemon potatoes or grilled potatoes and a big salad for a meal he won't forget.
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A brightened-up version of the classic comfort food, featuring the flavors of Greek spanakopita: spinach, feta cheese, fresh dill, and lots of lemon.
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Grilled Shrimp Tacos with Tomatillo Salsa
Spicy, smoky shrimp and a homemade tomatillo salsa combine in these flavor-packed tacos for Father's Day. Serve the tacos with tortilla chips, classic guacamole, and pitcher margaritas to share.
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Pollo a la Brasa (Peruvian Roast Chicken)
The spice blend is everything! Serve with white rice, aji verde, aji polleria, a simple salad lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers with a simple lemon vinaigrette.
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Homemade Chicken Gyros with Tzatziki Sauce
This hearty street food favorite is easy and fun to make at home for Father's Day! Serve chicken gyro in warm pita with tomato, onion, lettuce, and homemade tzatziki. If you want street-food bonus points, stuff in some cooked french fries as well.
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This easy, cheesy spinach lasagna is total comfort food for vegetarians in the family and meat-eaters alike on Father's Day.
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Take your Father's Day dinner up a notch with a minimalist creamy penne pasta with rich Cajun flavor and juicy morsels of andouille sausage and plump shrimp. Serve it with maque choux on the side.
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The secret to the best enchiladas? Dousing them in a rich red chile sauce. Serve with arroz rojo (Mexican rice) and refried beans.
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Garlicky White Wine Spaghetti with Mussels and Clams
This dish boasts garlicky, buttery spaghetti and easy-to-cook clams and fresh mussels, and though it looks and tastes luxurious, absolutely anyone can pull it off for Father's Day dinner.
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Learn how to cook perfectly tender and juicy filet mignon crowned with garlic butter. Serve with your favorite steakhouse side dishes, like creamed spinach and baked potatoes.
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Slow Cooker Maple Jalapeño Pulled Pork Tacos
Transform a cut of pork into a sweet and spicy taco filling with just a jar of pickled jalapeños and a drizzle of maple syrup. The spicy pork is best served atop warm tortillas with more pickled jalapeños, diced white onion, and chopped fresh cilantro.
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Southern Chicken Fried Steak with Gravy
Thanks to a few staple ingredients and a quick pan fry, chicken fried steak is surprisingly easy to make at home. Serve it with buttermilk mashed potatoes, green beans, buttermilk biscuits, fried corn, or baked mac and cheese for a Father's Day dinner the whole family will love.
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Easy Balsamic Glazed Steak Tips and Mushrooms
Beefy steak tips are marinated, seared, and served with mushrooms sautéed in balsamic vinegar. Serve them with creamy mashed potatoes and roasted asparagus for a Father's Day dinner he'll love.
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A gumbo that's abundant with seafood and will make your kitchen smell incredible. Serve this Cajun dish with white rice and your favorite hot sauce.
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Turn tender, flavorful top round into a mouth-watering sandwich. Serve with hot, medium, or mild Chicago-style giardiniera and french fries or onion rings for a crowd pleasing Father's Day meal.
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Spaghetti with Mizithra Cheese and Browned Butter
In this Olde Spaghetti Factory copycat recipe, spaghetti tossed in garlic browned butter and mizithra cheese.
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Cube Steak with Mushroom Gravy
This gravy-drenched recipe turns cube steak into a delicious Father's Day main. The filets have been tenderized with a meat mallet, making them tender and quick-cooking. Serve over mashed potatoes or buttered noodles with your favorite vegetable side.
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With just a bag of wood chips and your grill, you can easily make the best smoked ribs you’ve ever eaten. Serve the ribs with your favorite side dishes, like baked beans and classic potato salad.
