But the Q2200 is a tabletop grill and it is so wide, even with the two side tables folded, that I wouldn’t want to carry it too far. The Traveler’s design is much smarter for someone who weber q needs to take their grill on the go. This would be a good grill for someone who had a smaller outdoor space and needed something stationary, but smaller than a typical home gas grill.
Preventing grease and fire contact is especially important since the cooking grates on portable gas grills sit very close to the heating element (usually a 1- to 1½-inch clearance). Steel inserts that sit over the flame ports can help, as can a cleverly designed grilling grate that channels grease away from the fire. If you’re searching for a gas grill you can bring on all your adventures that also performs well enough to be used at home, look no further than the Weber Q 2200. Our home tester tried it out both at home and on the road to grill hot dogs, steaks, and veggies and was impressed with the final results each time. No matter how mobile your lifestyle, there’s a great small grill to fit.
Among the charcoal models, the Weber Go-Anywhere scores top marks for control. Thanks to a relatively deep basin, we were able to build and stoke a substantial volume of coals to achieve the exact heat we desired. Since the area of the basin exactly matches the surface area of the grill, we were then able to spread out those coals to create targeted heat zones. The George Foreman Indoor/Outdoor 15+ may offer a huge grilling surface, but can only be operated on a single heat-setting.
That’s covered by a two-piece cast iron grill grate that’s solid where it runs over the burner, which acts as a heat diffuser and keeps the burner from getting covered in grease. Speaking of grease, it has a slide-out grease trap that’s easy to empty. It also has a built-in thermometer that’s reasonably accurate, but I still suggest getting a separate instant-read thermometer.
The Char-Broil Grill2Go can handle up to six large burger patties at a time without crowding. Charcoal is smokier than gas, a possible issue for smaller, fenced-in spaces. The fire and fuel source is contained, so there’s no risk of hot embers falling on the ground. This grill folds up like a suitcase, and you can carry it with one hand.
Though cast iron adds an extra 5 to 10 pounds to the total weight of a grill, we think the flavorful dark crust on burgers and steaks makes it worthwhile. We also prefer an open grate design that allows ambient heat from the firebox to brown the areas in between the grill marks. We found that stainless steel solid grates with small perforations don’t let enough ambient heat through to brown the food properly. We learned that the coal bed can be adjusted for better temperature control — a useful feature that we find highly important in charcoal grill tests. The grill grate is narrow, especially compared to other portable grills we tested, but can still fit about four to five chicken thighs side-by-side, or two large steaks. We tried this grill out along with the brand’s grilling kit , and found the accessories to be good quality and useful.
I tried to cover both the “portable” part and the “grill” part in my testing. After unboxing, I carried each one a block down from my house and a block back, noting how easy the handles were to hold, and if a grill’s size and weight distribution made it challenging to walk with. For those grills with wheels, I walked them weber genesis 2 around a large, uneven lawn with plenty of divots to see how they rolled. For the charcoal options, I also smoked ribs, pork, and brisket, If you’re planning to smoke, I highly recommend investing in some kind of thermometer system. It has adapters based on your grill and offers one temp probe and three food probes.
If you’re not sure whether a portable grill is the best type for you, start with our grill buying guide. CR members can access our comprehensive grill ratings of all the portable and full-sized grills portable bbq that have come through our labs. Let’s closely compare the smallest grills in our test regarding control. The Cuisinart Petite Gourmet and Eureka Gonzo are very similar in size and weight.