Others have side tables or are designed to be especially easy to clean. It’s your grill and your food, so decide what’s most important to you. The Weber name is inextricably tied to backyard barbecues, but that wasn’t always the case. The domed charcoal grill, which many foodies swear gives the best flavor, traces its roots back to Weber Brothers Metal Works. Founded in 1887, the Chicago company produced a range of metal products, from hinges to wagons.
Whatever your charcoal grill budget may be, I strongly advise getting a model that has an ash removal system, such as Weber’s One-Touch removable ash bucket. Even if it costs a little more, you’ll be glad you shelled out the extra dough for that convenience, which takes away much of weber q the pain in the ash. It’s a three-probe temperature tracker and ventilation control system that feeds all the grilling data you could want to your phone. If your fire is gaining too much heat on a low-and-slow pork shoulder, the Tempmaster will cut back airflow to cut the heat down.
Cart-style grills have a handle and wheels that make them easy to move around, and the Char-Griller Patio Pro BBQ Grill is a compact and budget-friendly option for your deck or patio. It features a modest 250 square inches of cooking space, but it has all the features you need to whip up a delicious meal. This portable charcoal grill can hold up to five hamburgers at a time, and the lid’s glass-reinforced nylon handle stays cool during use. Reviewers say this product is an unbeatable value, as it’s easy to tote around to various events and delivers the same caliber of high-quality food as full-size Weber grills.
That’s just one of the questions I’ll answer in this review of the OG of Weber grills. If you’ve ever found starting a grill to be a hassle, and even if you haven’t, this will make grilling so much easier. Is there a portable grill that works as well as a full-sized one? Meet the Kudu Open-Fire Grill, which allows for all the romance of this kind of cooking, with none of the hassle. All products featured on Epicurious are independently selected by our editors.
Throw your hands up for the love of charcoal and ridiculously good food. Whether entertaining on a small patio or in a big backyard, the need to grill has no limits. After dinner, fold down the side table, push together your chairs, and toast to the Performer charcoal grill. Still, you’ll have it up and running in no time, especially if you follow guide to using a charcoal grill that’s a complete A to Z that will help you master this form of cooking.
Because of this, the Napoleon is definitely not a grill for charcoal beginners. The Char-Griller Super Pro is a versatile steel barrel charcoal grill with a whopping 850 square inches of total cooking area, if you count the top warming rack. The main grates are made of heavy-duty cast iron and resemble the grates of some of the best gas grills we tested this year. Like the Char-Griller Classic, the Super Pro can also be converted to a proper smoker by attaching an optional side fire box, and the enameled steel body does a great job of retaining heat.
Overall, this is a good basic barrel grill, but assembly was frustrating and it lacks many of the features that made the Classic our pick for best upgrade. The true original Weber grill, the Weber Original Kettle Grill, can be purchased for under $100, making it our top pick for best budget grill. This grill measures 18 inches wide, which is a noticeable surface-area difference from the 22-inch grill.
Before the cooking tests, we spent a day assembling the three grills. Overall, the cooking tests were far more important to us; you typically only assemble a grill once. But poor instructions can make assembly slow, weber charcoal grill frustrating, and full of retraced steps. And a simply bad design can make assembly needlessly difficult. Plus, poorly finished parts can have dangerously sharp edges—sometimes sharp enough to cause a nasty cut.